Tag: asylum fraud

Secret internal government audit: at least 70% of asylum claims are fraudulent

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment
Poster boys for fraud in US asylum system—Boston Bomber Tsarnaev brothers!

Update February 13th:  CIS reported on the House hearing on asylum fraud, here, on Tuesday.

That is what the Washington Times reported this week here (hat tip:Erich):

At least 70 percent of asylum applications showed signs of fraud, according to a secret 2009 internal government audit that found many of those cases had been approved anyway.

The 2009 fraud assessment, obtained by the House Judiciary Committee and reviewed by The Washington Times, suggests a system open to abuse and exploitation at a time when the number of people applying for asylum in the U.S. has skyrocketed, particularly along the southwestern border.

Another report obtained by the committee suggests that the government isn’t detaining most of those who apply for asylum, including those awaiting a final judgment. [As we learned this week, lawyers like those at the ACLU, are working hard to keep more asylum seekers out of detention!—ed]

Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said the documents taint the credibility of the asylum system, which is designed to provide an outlet for foreigners who face real risks of being harmed if they remain in their home countries.

“Asylum fraud undermines the integrity of our immigration system and hurts U.S. taxpayers. Once individuals are granted asylum, they receive immediate access to all major federal welfare programs. Our immigration system should be generous to those persecuted around the globe, but we must also ensure our compassion isn’t being abused by those seeking to game the system,” Mr. Goodlatte, a Virginia Republican, said in a statement to The Times.

“Because our immigration laws are so loosely enforced by the Obama administration, we should not be surprised to see so much fraud in the system,” he said. “President Obama’s continued refusal to enforce our laws on the books encourages more illegal immigration and invites fraud.”  [This asylum fraud was going on in the Bush years as well, the report says it looked at claims made in 2005!—ed]

[….]

The investigators said even the 70 percent combined fraud number may be low because some of the other 30 percent of cases had problems that weren’t detected.

The report was labeled “Draft” and apparently was never released.

There is more, read it all.

Checking some numbers!

Go to the Department of Homeland Security’s ‘Annual Flow Report’ for 2012.  Just a reminder, and one the Washington Times story mentions too, refugees are brought into the US through the US State Department, but asylum seekers ‘find their way’ to America on their own steam (they might be visa overstays, or illegal border crossers) who then ask for asylum and claim they have a “credible fear” of persecution if they go home.

In 2012 we brought 58,179 refugees to the US and there were 29,484 aliens granted asylum.  Assuming a 70% fraud rate, that means that 20,638 individuals lied or cheated and are now on the way to US citizenship.  And, in the meantime they are dipping into taxpayers’ wallets.

House Judiciary Chairman makes it clear he has no interest in reviewing refugee program

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

As we reported here yesterday, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing this past week on asylum fraud, but in his opening remarks, Chairman Bob Goodlatte signals that he is pretty happy with the Refugee program we have now.

Rep Bob Goodlatte (R-VA): “robust” refugee program to continue!

Earlier this year I made some trips to Capitol Hill to discuss with staffers the problems (as well as cost) with the program and to emphasize the need for oversight hearings and was met with a wall of resistance.  Bottomline is that even if asylum fraud is open to investigation, no one on the Hill wants to get near the Refugee program with a ten foot pole.

Clearly fearing that they will be called mean “racists” and “xenophobes” for even suggesting there could be problems with the structure of the 1980 law that basically turned refugee resettlement over to unaccountable contractors, no oversight is planned (even though there were staffers who were very aware of the failings).

In fact, S.744, the Senate’s “comprehensive immigration reform” bill will expand the program and the funding for the contractors.

Here are the opening remarks by Chairman Goodlatte (I’m told he was a former immigration lawyer):

Chairman Goodlatte:  The United States of America is extremely hospitable to immigrants, asylees, and refugees.  Our nation’s record of generosity and compassion to people in need of protection from war, anarchy, natural disaster, and persecution is exemplary and easily the best in the world.

We have maintained a robust refugee resettlement system, taking in more United Nations designated refugees* than all other countries combined. We grant asylum to tens of thousands of asylum seekers each year. We expect to continue this track record in protecting those who arrive here in order to escape persecution.

As far as I know, the Refugee Act of 1980 has never been reviewed by any oversight committee of Congress.  Such a review is long overdue!

*See my previous post about the UN picking which refugees we take.

House of Representatives holds hearing on flood in asylum claims at US border

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Brenda Walker at Limits to Growth alerted us to a hearing yesterday in the House Judiciary Committee about the latest scammers at the border saying they have a “credible fear of persecution” in Mexico and want to make an asylum claim.  I couldn’t listen in, but Walker did.

Here is Walker:

On Thursday morning, the House Judiciary Committee took up the subject of Asylum Abuse: Is it Overwhelming our Borders?

For Democrats and other friends of victimhood, providing an abundant welcome for the hard-luck cases of the planet is job #1. The Dems consider a cushy reception to be far more important than public safety from hostile characters, ranging from Mexicans claiming a “credible fear” (who may be cartel members) to head-choppy jihadists from around the Muslim world. The point is that more people are gaming the system because they are often successful, and there is no penalty for attempting asylum fraud.

See Limits to Growth for links to the hearing.

Then this (below) about Chairman Goodlatte (a Boehner*** buddy or he wouldn’t be a committee chairman!) who we all know is looking for a way to get the legalization of the lawbreakers moving in his committee.

(Walker) They aren’t breaking in so they can vote in our elections!

Of course, any “legal status” that allows the aliens to get work permits and be free of worry about deportation is all the invaders care about. They didn’t break into the United States so they could vote in our elections.

[….]

You have to listen carefully when lawyers speak. Goodlatte likes to say he objects to a “special pathway” to citizenship for foreign lawbreakers, but legalization is negotiable.

All of our previous posts on the Mexican asylum scam are archived here.

*** Boehner wants an amnesty, here.

Is Rush reading RRW?

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

I caught a bit of Rush Limbaugh’s discussion today of the story we reported yesterday—-the one about “asylum-seekers” flooding the US border one day last week.  All said the same thing, that they wanted asylum because they had a credible fear of persecution by Mexican drug cartels.

Narco refugees!

This idea is not new.  I checked our archives and see that in 2012 we wrote about a Texas immigration lawyer working to expand the definition of asylum to include people some call “narco refugees.”    Immigration lawyers like Carlos Spector, and he is not alone, are looking to fatten their wallets while changing America.

Imagine if lawyers like this guy prevailed, we would have people on the border expecting to be granted asylum from every crime-ridden country in the world!

***Update*** Looks like the O-man has already expanded the definition, here.

***Update August 13th***Commenter to this post, pungentpeppers, alerts us to more on the story—we give them hotel rooms and all are not Mexicans!

Here (below) is some of what Rush had to say.  He doesn’t get all the nuances of the asylum process, but that doesn’t matter.  The words “asylum” and “refugee” were heard by millions of listeners who may in the future pay a little more attention to what I believe has been an immigration law (Refugee Resettlement Act of 1980 thanks to Carter, Kennedy, Biden) misused and abused by too many, for too long.

If Rush only knew that the Obama–Gang of Eight amnesty bill will make receiving asylum easier and put more cash in the pockets of the refugee contractors whose job it is to hook the new refugees and asylees up with social services he would probably have a heart attack.  (See Rand Paul: “They bring’em in and sign’em up for welfare!).  And, don’t tell him those same contractors, largely funded with tax dollars, are also busy lobbying for passage of S.744!

Limbaugh:

“Just this past Monday, Border Patrol agents say about 200 people came through the Otay Crossing claiming a quote: ‘credible fear’ of the drug cartels.  So many were doing this that they had to close down the processing center and move the overflow by vans to another station.  ‘They are being told if they come across the border, when they come up to the border and they say certain words, they  will be allowed into the country,’ said a person who did not want to be identified on camera.  ‘We are being overwhelmed.’  Pete Nunez, former U.S. Attorney and immigration expert says, ‘This will swamp the system.’ ‘To make our system even more ridiculous than it has been in the  past,” he adds.  ‘There are no detention facilities for families, so the family would have to be split up. We don’t want to split families up, so we end up releasing people,'” out into the wild, essentially.

So what this essentially is, folks, is refugee status.  And refugee status is about the best status you can have, living in America.  Being a refugee is right up there with being a citizen, because benefits for refugees include food stamps, housing vouchers, English language training, job training, transportation passes, Medicaid, supplemental security income assistance, SSI, as well as other public and private benefits.  I mean, the Tsarnaev family were refugees.  They landed in America either at Logan or JFK, and they claimed asylum.  And that’s all you have to do.

Now, theoretically you’re kept track of, but if you come in claiming oppression, political asylum or, in this case, a credible fear of the drug cartels, then you’re admitted.  And somebody has come up with this idea.  Now, it’s not known who, obviously, but somebody’s come up with this.  What are the odds that whoever has come up with this is either a Democrat or a Democrat activist?

And then he said this—-the Syrians are coming!

Now, look, we’re already taking in thousands upon thousands of Mexicans and Hispanics, and there’s a companion story here about Syrian refugees are now pouring into the United States.  And there hadn’t been anything signed.  There’s no new immigration bill.  All this happened, the Republicans didn’t sign on to some 1,000 page bill.  There are plenty of laws on the books to overwhelm the country with new immigrants without any amnesty bill taking place.  So while we’re all debating that, this new influx just continues.

That is right!

Read it all!  Limbaugh links this story to one about taxpaying Americans fleeing the country.

Steve Sailer is all over the Chechen ‘refugee’ fraudsters

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Steve Sailer writes at VDARE and elsewhere, including at his own blog iSteve.

From day one, when we first became aware of the fact that Chechen asylees were responsible for the first successful major Islamic terror attack on American soil since 9/11, Sailer has been on the story.

Chicks digged those Chechens. Go figure!

Here is a post from yesterday (hat tip Fjordman via Twitter) where Sailer pulls together the sorry tale of the lives (and deaths) of the  Tsarnaev-Todashev mixed martial artists—their lying to get into the US and their Muslim misogynist attitudes about women.  I think you will find it as informative (and amusing) as I do.

Tsarnaev-Todashev story has immigration fraud written all over it

Some excerpts here to encourage you to read the whole thing!

Sailer:

From the Boston Globe:

In 2008, the US government granted Todashev asylum, a protection granted to foreigners with a credible fear for their safety in their homelands ­because of religious, political, or other specific forms of persecution.

But Reuters reports that Todashev’s father is a government official in Grozny whose father is in tight with the All-Time Champ Chechen Ramzan Kadryov.

[….]

We hear a lot these days about immigrants’ “American Dream,” but the Chechen Dream appears to be to have some babe support you. Do you think these guys were big hip-hop fans back in the old country?

[….]

Why is it okay for various violent Chechens to just up and move to my country because they think it’s a better place to practice hurting people?

Good question!  Read it all, there are lots of still unexplained twists and turns in this story.