Sbsun.com
County spent millions on welfare for illegal immigrants' American children
Stephen Wall, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/18/2010 05:11:43 PM PST
San Bernardino County spent nearly $64 million in state and federal money last year to provide welfare benefits to the American-born children of illegal immigrants.
Illegal immigrants aren't entitled to welfare. But their citizen children are.
Nationwide, one in three immigrant-headed households uses at least one major welfare program, compared with 19 percent of citizen households, according to the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank that advocates immigration reduction.
In California, 192,660 citizen children are getting welfare checks passed through their illegal immigrant parents. That costs $546 million a year in state, federal and county funds, officials say.
Some lawmakers say it's an expense California can't afford as the state struggles to close a nearly $20 billion budget gap.
"We should never be giving benefits to people in this country illegally," said state Sen. Bob Dutton, R-Rancho Cucamonga.
County officials provided data from August 2009 to show the funding and number of American-born children of illegal immigrants receiving aid in the CalWORKs and food stamp programs.
Information for all of 2009 was not easily retrievable, officials said, but the August figures are an accurate reflection of a monthly total during the year.
The county's Transitional Assistance Department runs the CalWORKs program, which provides cash aid and services to needy families, as well as the food stamp program.
The maximum CalWORKs grant for a family of three in the county is $661 per month. The maximum amount of food stamp assistance that a family of three can get is $526 a month.
The American-born children of illegal immigrants made up 15.5 percent of the CalWORKs caseload and 6.5 percent of the food stamp caseload in the county last year.
About 15,000 citizen children of illegal immigrants in the county received either CalWORKs or food stamps in a typical month last year. More than 11,000 used both programs in an average month in 2009, according to county data.
In August, the county spent nearly $3.3 million for CalWORKs and about $2 million for food stamps for the American-born children of illegal immigrants. The two programs totaled nearly $64 million when multiplied over 12 months.
The county contributes roughly $1.7 million a year of its own funds to run the programs, officials say.
"This is a huge burden on our state," said Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, whose district includes Victorville and northwestern San Bernardino County. "Obviously, these kids are U.S. citizens and that's fine. But when you look at it, these parents should have never been here in the first place."
The welfare expenses don't count pregnancy-related services that were provided last year to about 2,350 illegal immigrant women in the county through Medi-Cal, a health-care program for low-income California residents.
The welfare costs also don't include the roughly $11 billion the state spends annually for education, unreimbursed health care and incarceration of illegal immigrant criminals, said Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation of American Immigration Reform, a Washington D.C.-based group that favors strict immigration limits.
"The American people are fed up with illegal aliens depleting our tax dollars by overrunning our schools, our hospitals and our welfare system," said Raymond Herrera, founder and president of We The People California's Crusader, a Claremont-based anti-illegal immigration group.
This month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a nearly 16 percent grant reduction to CalWORKs caseloads, a move that could save the state almost $590 million.
Dutton said the CalWORKs program has failed.
"I don't think it's done a good job," he said. "People are on it too long. They've become dependent. If the program doesn't work, you need to get rid of it and try something different."
There is a five-year time limit for adults receiving CalWORKs. But children are still entitled to their share of benefits after their parents are cut off.
There is no time limit for the food stamp program.
The county did not have data on the average length of time an illegal immigrant parent with an American-born child receives CalWORKs or food stamps.
Supporters of the CalWORKs program say the proposed cuts would have devastating consequences.
"What they're attempting to do is cripple the future prosperity of our community by denying legal benefits to these American-born children," said Gil Navarro, a member of the San Bernardino County board of education.
"You are creating havoc in the community because now people have to survive in a different way," said Navarro, who is running for a state assembly seat in the June Democratic primary against Assemblywoman Wilmer Amina Carter, D-Rialto. "Hungry people are forced to do things they may not normally do."
Not all illegal immigrants take advantage of public services like welfare that are available to their U.S.-born children.
Freddy Munguia, a 34-year-old illegal immigrant from Honduras, said he won't ask for public assistance for his 2- and 3-year-old American-born daughters.
"I don't want my kids to get any help from the government," said Munguia, a day laborer who came to this country four years ago. "Instead of helping the country, I'm taking away from it."
Critics of illegal immigration call the children "anchor babies" whose citizenship allows their illegal immigrant parents to gain a foothold in this country and receive welfare and other benefits for their kids.
"In some cases, people do come here with the intent of having children in this country because they believe it will work to their advantage," Mehlman said.
Others have a different view.
California could reap an economic boon worth $16 billion by legalizing its 1.8 million Latino illegal immigrant adults, helping fix the state's financial problems, according to a report released last week by the USC Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration.
"Our immigrants are an asset economically, politically, religiously and culturally," said the Rev. Patricio Guillen, a retired Roman Catholic priest who is executive director of Libreria del Pueblo, a San Bernardino nonprofit that helps immigrants.
Friday, January 22, 2010
COMPARING MEXICAN ILLEGALS To Ilegals From Other Countries - AN AMERICAN SEES & SPEAKS
re: Illegals. Just a quick question on comparing.
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Date: 2010-01-21, 1:07PM PST
Reply to: pers-hzhwx-1563944596@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]
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You wrote:
The US department immigration says there are 160,000 Illegal German immigrants, 225,000 UK, 40,000 French, 65,000 Isreali, 140,000 Russian, 18,000 Austrailian, in Los Angeles and Socal. And they are all here illegally, and yes most work. The total estimate is about 1 million non Mexican/South American illegals right here, and all of them are taking your jobs.
I'd like to ask:
Out of the 160,000 illegal German immigrants, how many are mass producing babies that they can't feed and expect the American tax payer to foot the bill?
Out of the 225,000 illegal UK immigrants, how many march in the street demanding citizenship and driver's licenses?
Out of the 40,000 illegal French immigrants, how many are involved in gangs and everyday street crime?
Out of the 65,000 illegal Israeli immigrants, how many trash their neighborhoods and lower property values?
Out of the 140,000 illegal Russian immigrants, how many expect YOU to learn their language instead of assimilate?
Out of the 18,000 illegal Austrailian immigrants, how many are imprisoned for violent crime?
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Date: 2010-01-21, 1:07PM PST
Reply to: pers-hzhwx-1563944596@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You wrote:
The US department immigration says there are 160,000 Illegal German immigrants, 225,000 UK, 40,000 French, 65,000 Isreali, 140,000 Russian, 18,000 Austrailian, in Los Angeles and Socal. And they are all here illegally, and yes most work. The total estimate is about 1 million non Mexican/South American illegals right here, and all of them are taking your jobs.
I'd like to ask:
Out of the 160,000 illegal German immigrants, how many are mass producing babies that they can't feed and expect the American tax payer to foot the bill?
Out of the 225,000 illegal UK immigrants, how many march in the street demanding citizenship and driver's licenses?
Out of the 40,000 illegal French immigrants, how many are involved in gangs and everyday street crime?
Out of the 65,000 illegal Israeli immigrants, how many trash their neighborhoods and lower property values?
Out of the 140,000 illegal Russian immigrants, how many expect YOU to learn their language instead of assimilate?
Out of the 18,000 illegal Austrailian immigrants, how many are imprisoned for violent crime?
FAIRUS.org ANNOUNCES REAL IMMIGRATION REFORM - Not the La Raza Version
MEXICANOCCUPATION.blogspot.com
REAL ! IMMIGRATION REFORM ! NOT FOR WALL STREET, MEXICO’S, OR NEW VOTERS FOR THE LA RAZA DEMS!
THIS IS REFORM TO GET OUR COUNTRY BACK FROM THE MEXICAN INVASION AND OCCUPATION.
WHO IS FIGHTING REAL IMMIGRATION REFORM:
THE LA RAZA “THE (MEXICAN) RACE” DEMS, CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUCUS (SEE LIST BELOW)
MEXICO – We are Mexico’s welfare system. Since the amnesty to end the invasion we have taken 1.5 million illegals per year in. 38 million of Mexico’s POOR, ILLITERATE, CRIMINAL and frequently PREGNANT. We are also Mexico’s prison system. Prison cost for illegals in CA alone is over a billion per year, and yet the state had Mexican gang problems everywhere!
U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE! The front for the corporate interests and to fight against living wages. There is a reason why Wall St. demands OPEN BORDERS and NO E-VERIFY! CNN calculates that the Mexican occupation depresses wages for legals $300 to $400 BILLION PER YEAR!
FORTUNE 500, major donors to LA RAZA – the Mexican political party funded by Wall St, your taxes, and Mexico.
DEMOCRATIC PARTY – has long sold out the American people for the benefit of illegals and their illegal votes!
EMAIL BROADCAST THIS TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW! EVEN AT TIME OF SOARING DEFICITS, CRIMINAL MEXICAN DRUG CARTELS, MEXICAN GANG VIOLENCE, AND WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS, THE DEMS ARE AT THIS VERY MOMENT LOOKING TO GRANT AMNESTY TO 38 MILLION ILLEGALS! (SEE MEXICANOCCUPATION.blogspot.com)
Take Action Before Amnesty Hits the Floor!
Call Your Representatives and Tell Them to Co-Sponsor the Chaffetz Resolution!
Today, Congressman Chaffetz (R-UT), along with Congressmen Hunter (R-CA), Kratovil (D-MD), and Nye (D-VA), introduced a bipartisan resolution in the House of Representatives that calls on Members of Congress to support TRUE immigration reform. This resolution offers the perfect opportunity for you to tell Congressional Leadership that you want their legislative agenda to reflect YOUR priorities, not theirs – and not those of special interests. Please call your Representatives TODAY, and tell them to co-sponsor this important Resolution.
The two-page Chaffetz Resolution is remarkably simple and its message is clear. It states that it is the sense of the House of Representatives that:
(1) E-Verify should be mandatory, and that worksite enforcement policies should hold both employers and illegal employees responsible for violations of immigration law;
(2) Installing and sustaining border security infrastructure and manpower is a critical responsibility of the federal government; and
(3) Any immigration reform legislation Congress adopts should not grant amnesty to, or confer legal status upon, illegal aliens in the United States.
Please take this opportunity to send a loud and clear message to Speaker Pelosi and other Congressional leaders that it’s time for real change in Washington. Tell your Representatives that instead of continuing the same old policies that cater to special interests and those who break our laws, you want responsible immigration policy that promotes the interests of Americans.
Call your Representatives today and tell them:
• You want TRUE immigration reform that supports American workers, the enforcement of our laws, and our national security.
• By calling for mandatory E-Verify, improved border security and rejecting amnesty, the Chaffetz Resolution promotes TRUE immigration reform.
• You want your Representative to sign on as a co-sponsor of the Chaffetz Resolution (H.Res. 1026).
The following Representatives have already signed on as co-sponsors of the Chaffetz Resolution. Call them today and thank them for standing up for true immigration reform:
(NOTE THAT THERE IS NOT A SINGLE CA DEMOCRAT ON THIS LIST! DESPITE THE STAGGERING UNEMPLOYMENT, MEXICAN GANG CRIMES, PRISON FOR ILLEGALS COST, WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS DEFICITS. WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU? CAN WE AFFORD THE LA RAZA DEMS?)
• Jason Chaffetz (R-UT-03) – 202-225-7751
• Duncan Hunter (R-CA-52) – 202-225-5672
• Frank Kratovil (D-MD-01) – 202-225-5311
• Glenn Nye (D-VA-02) – 202-225-4215
• John Fleming (R-LA-04) – 202-225-2777
• Cynthia Lummis (R-WY-At Large) – 202-225-2311
• Mike Coffman (R-CO-06) – 202-225-7882
• Tom McClintock (R-CA-04) – 202-225-2511
• Bill Posey (R-FL-15) – 202-225-3671
• Phil Roe (R-TN-01) – 202-225-6356
• Gregg Harper (R-MS-03) – 202-225-5031
• Lynn Jenkins (R-KS-02) – 202-225-6601
• John Barrow (D-GA-12) – 202-225-2823
• Bobby Bright (D-AL-02) – 202-225-2901
• Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-09) – 202-225-2956
• Pete Olson (R-TX-22) – 202-225-5951
• Gene Taylor (D-MS-04) – 202-225-5772
• Patrick Murphy (D-PA-08) – 202-225-4276
• Mike McIntrye (D-NC-07) – 202-225-2731
• Steve Kagen (D-WI-08) – 202-225-5665
• Heath Shuler (D-NC-11) – 202-225-6401
• Travis Childers (D-MS-01) – 202-225-4306
Call your Representatives TODAY! To find your Representative's phone numbers, click here.
You can also fax your Member of Congress and tell them you support the Chaffetz Resolution.
When you’re done, please reach out to your family and friends and ask them to call/fax too.
Stay tuned to FAIR for more information on the Chaffetz legislation
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GET ON FAIRUS.ORG EMAIL LIST AND SUPPORT THE MOVE TO GET OUR COUNTRY BACK. HEARD ENGLISH TODAY?
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Working for bit by bit amnesty is:
BARACK OBAMA… (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT)
In California:
GAVIN NEWSOM, MAYOR OF SANCTUARY CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO, AND LA RAZA CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR
ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA, MAYOR OF SANCTUARY CITY LOS ANGELES, MEXICAN GANG CAPITAL OF AMERICAN, NOW PAYING OUT $50 MILLION PER MONTH IN WELFARE TO ILLEGALS. WAS CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA
LA RAZA’S QUEENS: WORKING TIRELESSLY FOR “SPECIAL AMNESTY” FOR 1.5 MILLION ILLEGAL FARM WORKERS, NO ID TO VOTE, NO ENGLISH ONLY, NO E-VERIFY, NO REAL WALL WITH NARCO MEX, NO ICE ENFORCEMENT, NO ENFORCEMENT OF LAWS PROHIBITING HIRING OF ILLEGALS, AND EXPANDED HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS
DIANNE FEINSTEIN… (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT) – ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. ILLEGALLY HIRES ILLEGALS AT HER SAN FRANCISCO HOTEL
BARBARA BOXER… (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT) ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
NANCY PELOSI (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT – ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. ILLEGALLY HIRES ILLEGALS AT HER ST. HELENA, NAPA WINERY.
HILLARY CLINTON… ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. PUSHES FOR CHAIN MIGRATION TO DOUBLE NUMBER OF ILLEGALS.
HARRY REID… ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. TURNS OVER AMERICAN TAX DOLLARS TO SUPPORT RACIST LA RAZA AGENDA.
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS FROM CALIFORNIA
HENRY WAXMAN … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
SAM FARR … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
ZOE LOFGREN … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. MAJOR PROPONENT OF CHAIN MIGRATION TO DOUBLE NUMBER OF ILLEGALS.
MIKE HONDA … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. SABOTAGES E-VERIFY.
PAUL FONG … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. SABOTAGES E-VERIFY.
XAVIER BECERRA… (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
LINDA SANCHEZ… (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. WON SEAT WITH VOTES OF ILLEGALS.
LORETTA SANCHEZ … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. WON SEAT WITH VOTES OF ILLEGALS.
JOE BACA … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. VIRULENTLY RACIST CHARTER MEMBER OF LA RAZA.
MIKE THOMPSON (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS ) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
PETE STARK (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
ANNA ESHOO … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
JANE HARMAN … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
LUIS GUTIERREZ... ENDORSED BY LA RAZA, VIRULENTLY RACIST MEXICAN CONGRESSMAN WORKING HARD FOR MORE ILLEGALS.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, October 22, 2009
The federal government has declared war on Sheriff JOE ARPAIO of Maricopa County, Arizona, for enforcing our nation’s immigration laws. “America’s Toughest Sheriff” will give Lou an update.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Friday, October 16, 2009
E-Verify- the single most successful federal program aimed at keeping illegal immigrants out of the workforce- is once again threatened. This time, E-Verify was stripped from a Senate Amendment behind closed doors and without explanation. Instead of becoming a permanent program E-verify has been reduced to only three years. Critics are calling this a stall tactic and an attempt at killing an employment enforcement system. We will have a full report tonight.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, October 15, 2009
E-Verify -- the single most successful federal program aimed at keeping illegal immigrants out of the nation's workforce is once again being threatened. Permanent reauthorization for the program -- which has a 99.7-percent accuracy rate -- has been pulled from pending legislation. Now the program is set to expire in just 3-years. The change was made behind closed doors in the Senate -- without public comment or debate.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
New attempts to put comprehensive immigration reform back on the front burner. Congressman Luis Gutierrez -- the chair of the Democratic Caucus Immigration Task Force -- is unveiling new legislation that would call for amnesty for the up to 20 million illegal immigrants in this country.
Congressman Gutierrez will join me tonight
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
The Obama administration could be weakening a successful joint federal and local program aimed at keeping illegal immigrants off our streets. "287 G" gives local police the training and authority to enforce federal immigration law. Supporters of the program believe the ministration wants to limit the program to criminal illegal immigrants already in custody -- limiting the investigative authority of police.
JIM PETHOKOUKIS, the money and politics columnist for Reuters,
will explain the president’s not-so-secret plan to raise your
taxes.
And Father PATRICK BASCIO has a remarkably different perspective on illegal immigration from that of most Christian clergymen-one he’s outlined in a remarkable new book entitled
On the Immorality of Illegal Immigration: An Alternative Christian View.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, September 28, 2009
And T.J. BONNER, president of the National Border Patrol Council, will weigh in on the federal government’s decision to pull nearly 400 agents from the U.S.-Mexican border. As always, Lou will take your calls to discuss the issues that matter most-and to get your thoughts on where America is headed. Call him toll-free on the Independent Hotline at 877-55 DOBBS.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Federal contractors now must use E-verify to check the status of their employees on federal projects. The rule which goes into effect today will affect almost 169,000 contractors and some 3.8 million workers. The E-verify program has an accuracy rating of 99.6% but has been repeatedly challenged by the U.S. Chamber of Congress. We will have a full report
tonight.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
And there are some 800,000 gang members in this country: That’s more than the combined number of troops in our Army and Marine Corps. These gangs have become one of the principle ways to import and distribute drugs in the United States. Congressman David Reichert joins Lou to tell us why those gangs are growing larger and stronger, and why he’s introduced legislation to eliminate the top three international drug gangs.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Senator Ted Kennedy kicked off a week of events and meetings focusing on immigration before he introduces legislation promoting amnesty for millions of illegal aliens living in the United States. Today, Kennedy met with Cardinal Roger Mahony, an outspoken and controversial supporter of illegal aliens and Kennedy’s bill. Senators McCain, Kennedy and Representatives
Flake and Gutierrez are expected to unveil their legislation later this month. We’ll have a full report.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Another victory for American workers in Arizona. Yesterday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the get-tough employer sanctions law in the state. The law hits employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens with strict penalties and in some cases even strips businesses of their licenses. A lower court upheld the same law in February. But open-borders and amnesty groups along with the business lobby are considering yet another appeal.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, February 11, 2008
In California, League of United Latin American Citizens has adopted a resolution to declare "California Del Norte" a sanctuary zone for immigrants. The declaration urges the Mexican government to invoke its rights under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo "to seek third nation neutral arbitration of ....disputes concerning immigration laws and their enforcement." We’ll have the story.
Last year, Prince William County, Virginia passed an initiative to allow local police to check the immigration status of anyone in police custody. The county recently held its first immigration training session for local police officers. We’ll have a look inside the training.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon is in New York today on the first leg his five day tour across America to meddle in immigration issues in the United States. This is his first visit to the U.S. since he became President in 2006, but he will not meet with President Bush or any of the presidential candidates, who he has accused of spewing anti immigrant rhetoric. Join us for that report.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight Wednesday
March 5, 2008
Immigration experts are appearing on Capitol Hill today to release the results of a study showing the cost of illegal immigration on the criminal justices system in the 24 U.S. counties bordering Mexico–more $1 billion in less than a decade.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Gov. Schwarzenegger said California is facing “financial Armageddon”. He is making drastic cuts in the budget for education, health care and services. But there is one place he isn’t making cuts… services for illegal immigrants. These services are estimated to cost the state four to five billion dollars a year. Schwarzenegger said he is “happy” to offer these services. We will have a full report tonight.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Plus drug cartel violence is spreading across our border with Mexico further into the United States. Mexican drug cartels are increasingly being linked to crimes in this country. Joining Lou tonight, from our border with Mexico is the new “border czar” Alan Bersin, the Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Special Representative for Border Affairs.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, April 20, 2009
And compelling new evidence that H-1B visas for foreign workers lower the pay of information technology workers in this country. Critics say the report, by NYU’s Stern School of Business and Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, proves that corporate elites are importing cheap overseas labor simply to lower the wages of American workers. We’ll have a special report.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Plus, outrage after President Obama prepares to push ahead with his plan for so-called comprehensive immigration reform. Pres. Obama is fulfilling a campaign promise to give
legal status to millions of illegal aliens as he panders to the pro-amnesty, open borders lobby. Tonight we will have complete coverage.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, February 16, 2009
Construction of the 670 miles of border fence mandated by the Bush administration is almost complete. The Border Patrol says the new fencing, more agents and new technology
have reduced illegal alien apprehensions. But fence opponents are trying to stop the last few miles from being finished. We will have a full report, tonight.
Plus, even open border advocates agree that the most effective way of fighting illegal immigration is to crack down on the employment of illegal aliens. Yet, those same groups are
opposed to E-Verify, which has an initial accuracy rate of 99.6% making it one the most accurate programs ever. E-Verify was stripped from the stimulus bill but who stripped it out and who is opposed to verifying employment status is still not clear.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Friday, October 17, 2008
Tonight, a Supreme Court ruling is putting our democracy at risk. The court today overturned a federal appeals court decision that would have forced Ohio to do more to verify questionable voter registrations. We’ll have the very latest in our special report.
Plus, in the War on the Middle Class tonight, a government program is found to be rampant with fraud and abuse, giving even more American jobs to foreign workers. A new Department of Homeland Security report shows cases of violations, forgery and shell businesses in the H-1B visa program. We’ll have that and much more.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
In Colorado, over 1,300 illegal aliens are being investigated for applying for improper tax refunds. The ACLU has written a letter to the judge threatening to sue if the judge convenes a grand jury to investigate the case. We will have all the latest developments of the case as well as the ACLU’s bullying in pursuit of their amnesty agenda.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
And WILLIAM GHEEN, the president of Americans for Legal Immigration, breaks down his push for E-Verify—and why the Obama administration is wrong to delay its implementation when it comes to federal contractors.
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CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
Why the new jobs go to immigrants
By David R. Francis
Wall Street cheered and stock prices rose when the US Labor Department announced last Friday that employers had expanded their payrolls by 262,000 positions in February.
But it wasn't entirely good news. The statisticians also indicated that the share of the adult population holding jobs had slipped slightly from January to 62.3 percent. That's now two full percentage points below the level in the brief recession that began in March 2001.
Why the apparent contradiction? Reasons abound: population growth, rising retirements. But one factor that gets little attention is immigration.
In the past four years, the number of immigrants into the US, legal and illegal, has closely matched the number of new jobs. That suggests newcomers have, in effect, snapped up all of the new jobs.
"There has been no net job gain for natives," says Andrew Sum, an economist at Northeastern University.
In the US, President Bush calls for giving millions of illegal immigrants a kind of guest-worker status as a legal path to US citizenship. So far, no specific legislation to implement his suggestion has been put before Congress.
Meanwhile, US border patrols spend millions of dollars a year trying to keep illegals out. And yet, they keep coming, evidently little discouraged by recession or the 9/11 attacks. In the past four years alone, the number of immigrants ran some 2.5 million to 3 million, of which about half were illegal.
They come for jobs, of course. And the Bush administration makes barely any effort to enforce current law. In 2003, a total of 13 employers were fined for hiring undocumented employees.
In fact, neither Republicans nor Democrats have promoted enforcement of immigration law prohibiting the hiring of illegal immigrants, says Mr. Sum, head of Northeastern's Center for Labor Market Studies.
What employers really want in many cases by hiring immigrants is to hold down wage costs, experts say.
ARTICLE:
MOST MEXICAN IMMIGRANTS IN NEW STUDY GAVE UP JOBS TO TAKE THEIR CHANCES IN U.S.
By NINA BERNSTEIN New York Times
A report about the work lives of recent Mexican immigrants in seven cities across the United States suggests that they typically traded jobs in Mexico for the prospect of work here, despite serious bouts of unemployment, job instability and poor wages.
The report, released Tuesday by the Pew Hispanic Center, was based on surveys of nearly 5,000 Mexicans, most of them here illegally.
Those surveyed were seeking identity documents at Mexican consulates in New York, Atlanta and Raleigh, N.C., where recent arrivals have gravitated toward construction, hotel and restaurant jobs, and in Dallas, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Fresno, Calif., where they have been more likely to work in agriculture and manufacturing.
Unlike the stereotype of jobless Mexicans heading north, most of the immigrants had been employed in Mexico, the report found.
Once in the United States, they soon found that their illegal status was no barrier to being hired here. And though the jobs they landed, typically with help from relatives, were often unstable and their median earnings only $300 a week, that was enough to keep drawing newcomers because wages here far exceeded those in Mexico.
"We're getting a peek at a segment of the U.S. labor force that is large, that is growing by illegal migration, and that is bringing an entirely new set of issues into the U.S. labor market," said Rakesh Kochhar, associate director for research at the Pew Hispanic Center and author of the study.
The report suggested that policies intended to reduce migration pressures by improving the Mexican economy would have to look beyond employment to wages and perceptions of opportunity.
The survey found that the most recent to arrive were more likely to have worked in construction or commerce, rather than agriculture, in Mexico. Only 5 percent had been unemployed there; they were "drawn not from the fringes, but from the heart of Mexico's labor force," the report said.
After a difficult transition in their first six months in the United States about 15 percent of the respondents said they did not work during that time the rate of unemployment plummeted, to an average of 5 percent.
But in one of the most striking findings, 38 percent reported an unemployment spell lasting a month or more in the previous year, regardless of their location, legal status or length of time in the United States.
"These are workers with no safety net," Mr. Kochhar said. "The long run implication is a generation of workers without health or pension benefits, without any meaningful asset accumulation."
On the other hand, Mr. Kochhar and Roberto Suro, director of the Pew Hispanic Center, said the flexibility of this work force was a boon to certain industries like home construction, an important part of the nation's economic growth since the last recession.
Among respondents to the survey, those who settled in Atlanta and Dallas were the best off, with 56 percent in each city receiving a weekly wage higher than the $300 a week median. The worst off were in Fresno, where more than half of the survey respondents worked in agriculture and 60 percent reported earning less than $300 a week. The lowest wages were reported by women, people who spoke little or no English, and those without identification.
To some scholars of immigration, the report underlines the lack of incentives for employers to turn to a guest worker program like the one proposed by President Bush because their needs are met cheaply by illegal workers and all without paperwork or long term commitment.
Guest workers might instead appeal to corporations like Wal Mart, the scholars said, where service jobs are now the target of union organizing drives.
"You can't plausibly argue that immigrant dominated sectors have a labor shortage," said Robert Courtney Smith, a sociologist and author of "Mexican New York: Transnational Lives of New Immigrants." Instead, he said, the report and evidence of falling wages among Mexican immigrants over time point to an oversupply of vulnerable workers competing with each other.
But Brendan Flanagan, a spokesman for the National Restaurant Association, which supports a guest worker program, disagreed. "In many places it is difficult to fill jobs with domestic workers," Mr. Flanagan said. "We've seen a simple lack of applicants, regardless of what wage is offered."
Although the survey, conducted from July 2004 to January 2005, was not random or weighted to represent all Mexican immigrants, it offers a close look at a usually elusive population.
Those surveyed were not questioned directly about their immigration status, but they were asked whether they had any photo identification issued by a government agency in the United States. Slightly more than half over all, and 75 percent in New York, said they did not.
The migration is part of a historic restructuring of the Mexican economy comparable to America's industrial revolution, said Kathleen Newland, director of the Migration Policy Institute, a research organization based in Washington.
The institute released its own report on Tuesday, arguing that border enforcement efforts have failed. Workplace enforcement, which has been neglected, would be a crucial part of making a guest worker program successful.
For now, Mexicans keep arriving illegally.
"It doesn't matter if it's winter," said Ricardo Cortes, 23, a construction worker waiting for a friend outside the Mexican consulate in New York on Tuesday. "People are still coming because there's no money over there."
REAL ! IMMIGRATION REFORM ! NOT FOR WALL STREET, MEXICO’S, OR NEW VOTERS FOR THE LA RAZA DEMS!
THIS IS REFORM TO GET OUR COUNTRY BACK FROM THE MEXICAN INVASION AND OCCUPATION.
WHO IS FIGHTING REAL IMMIGRATION REFORM:
THE LA RAZA “THE (MEXICAN) RACE” DEMS, CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUCUS (SEE LIST BELOW)
MEXICO – We are Mexico’s welfare system. Since the amnesty to end the invasion we have taken 1.5 million illegals per year in. 38 million of Mexico’s POOR, ILLITERATE, CRIMINAL and frequently PREGNANT. We are also Mexico’s prison system. Prison cost for illegals in CA alone is over a billion per year, and yet the state had Mexican gang problems everywhere!
U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE! The front for the corporate interests and to fight against living wages. There is a reason why Wall St. demands OPEN BORDERS and NO E-VERIFY! CNN calculates that the Mexican occupation depresses wages for legals $300 to $400 BILLION PER YEAR!
FORTUNE 500, major donors to LA RAZA – the Mexican political party funded by Wall St, your taxes, and Mexico.
DEMOCRATIC PARTY – has long sold out the American people for the benefit of illegals and their illegal votes!
EMAIL BROADCAST THIS TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW! EVEN AT TIME OF SOARING DEFICITS, CRIMINAL MEXICAN DRUG CARTELS, MEXICAN GANG VIOLENCE, AND WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS, THE DEMS ARE AT THIS VERY MOMENT LOOKING TO GRANT AMNESTY TO 38 MILLION ILLEGALS! (SEE MEXICANOCCUPATION.blogspot.com)
Take Action Before Amnesty Hits the Floor!
Call Your Representatives and Tell Them to Co-Sponsor the Chaffetz Resolution!
Today, Congressman Chaffetz (R-UT), along with Congressmen Hunter (R-CA), Kratovil (D-MD), and Nye (D-VA), introduced a bipartisan resolution in the House of Representatives that calls on Members of Congress to support TRUE immigration reform. This resolution offers the perfect opportunity for you to tell Congressional Leadership that you want their legislative agenda to reflect YOUR priorities, not theirs – and not those of special interests. Please call your Representatives TODAY, and tell them to co-sponsor this important Resolution.
The two-page Chaffetz Resolution is remarkably simple and its message is clear. It states that it is the sense of the House of Representatives that:
(1) E-Verify should be mandatory, and that worksite enforcement policies should hold both employers and illegal employees responsible for violations of immigration law;
(2) Installing and sustaining border security infrastructure and manpower is a critical responsibility of the federal government; and
(3) Any immigration reform legislation Congress adopts should not grant amnesty to, or confer legal status upon, illegal aliens in the United States.
Please take this opportunity to send a loud and clear message to Speaker Pelosi and other Congressional leaders that it’s time for real change in Washington. Tell your Representatives that instead of continuing the same old policies that cater to special interests and those who break our laws, you want responsible immigration policy that promotes the interests of Americans.
Call your Representatives today and tell them:
• You want TRUE immigration reform that supports American workers, the enforcement of our laws, and our national security.
• By calling for mandatory E-Verify, improved border security and rejecting amnesty, the Chaffetz Resolution promotes TRUE immigration reform.
• You want your Representative to sign on as a co-sponsor of the Chaffetz Resolution (H.Res. 1026).
The following Representatives have already signed on as co-sponsors of the Chaffetz Resolution. Call them today and thank them for standing up for true immigration reform:
(NOTE THAT THERE IS NOT A SINGLE CA DEMOCRAT ON THIS LIST! DESPITE THE STAGGERING UNEMPLOYMENT, MEXICAN GANG CRIMES, PRISON FOR ILLEGALS COST, WELFARE FOR ILLEGALS DEFICITS. WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU? CAN WE AFFORD THE LA RAZA DEMS?)
• Jason Chaffetz (R-UT-03) – 202-225-7751
• Duncan Hunter (R-CA-52) – 202-225-5672
• Frank Kratovil (D-MD-01) – 202-225-5311
• Glenn Nye (D-VA-02) – 202-225-4215
• John Fleming (R-LA-04) – 202-225-2777
• Cynthia Lummis (R-WY-At Large) – 202-225-2311
• Mike Coffman (R-CO-06) – 202-225-7882
• Tom McClintock (R-CA-04) – 202-225-2511
• Bill Posey (R-FL-15) – 202-225-3671
• Phil Roe (R-TN-01) – 202-225-6356
• Gregg Harper (R-MS-03) – 202-225-5031
• Lynn Jenkins (R-KS-02) – 202-225-6601
• John Barrow (D-GA-12) – 202-225-2823
• Bobby Bright (D-AL-02) – 202-225-2901
• Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-09) – 202-225-2956
• Pete Olson (R-TX-22) – 202-225-5951
• Gene Taylor (D-MS-04) – 202-225-5772
• Patrick Murphy (D-PA-08) – 202-225-4276
• Mike McIntrye (D-NC-07) – 202-225-2731
• Steve Kagen (D-WI-08) – 202-225-5665
• Heath Shuler (D-NC-11) – 202-225-6401
• Travis Childers (D-MS-01) – 202-225-4306
Call your Representatives TODAY! To find your Representative's phone numbers, click here.
You can also fax your Member of Congress and tell them you support the Chaffetz Resolution.
When you’re done, please reach out to your family and friends and ask them to call/fax too.
Stay tuned to FAIR for more information on the Chaffetz legislation
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GET ON FAIRUS.ORG EMAIL LIST AND SUPPORT THE MOVE TO GET OUR COUNTRY BACK. HEARD ENGLISH TODAY?
*
Working for bit by bit amnesty is:
BARACK OBAMA… (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT)
In California:
GAVIN NEWSOM, MAYOR OF SANCTUARY CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO, AND LA RAZA CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR
ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA, MAYOR OF SANCTUARY CITY LOS ANGELES, MEXICAN GANG CAPITAL OF AMERICAN, NOW PAYING OUT $50 MILLION PER MONTH IN WELFARE TO ILLEGALS. WAS CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA
LA RAZA’S QUEENS: WORKING TIRELESSLY FOR “SPECIAL AMNESTY” FOR 1.5 MILLION ILLEGAL FARM WORKERS, NO ID TO VOTE, NO ENGLISH ONLY, NO E-VERIFY, NO REAL WALL WITH NARCO MEX, NO ICE ENFORCEMENT, NO ENFORCEMENT OF LAWS PROHIBITING HIRING OF ILLEGALS, AND EXPANDED HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS
DIANNE FEINSTEIN… (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT) – ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. ILLEGALLY HIRES ILLEGALS AT HER SAN FRANCISCO HOTEL
BARBARA BOXER… (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT) ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
NANCY PELOSI (LISTED ON JUDICIAL WATCH’S 10 MOST CORRUPT – ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. ILLEGALLY HIRES ILLEGALS AT HER ST. HELENA, NAPA WINERY.
HILLARY CLINTON… ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. PUSHES FOR CHAIN MIGRATION TO DOUBLE NUMBER OF ILLEGALS.
HARRY REID… ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. TURNS OVER AMERICAN TAX DOLLARS TO SUPPORT RACIST LA RAZA AGENDA.
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS FROM CALIFORNIA
HENRY WAXMAN … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
SAM FARR … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
ZOE LOFGREN … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. MAJOR PROPONENT OF CHAIN MIGRATION TO DOUBLE NUMBER OF ILLEGALS.
MIKE HONDA … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. SABOTAGES E-VERIFY.
PAUL FONG … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. SABOTAGES E-VERIFY.
XAVIER BECERRA… (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
LINDA SANCHEZ… (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. WON SEAT WITH VOTES OF ILLEGALS.
LORETTA SANCHEZ … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. WON SEAT WITH VOTES OF ILLEGALS.
JOE BACA … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA. VIRULENTLY RACIST CHARTER MEMBER OF LA RAZA.
MIKE THOMPSON (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS ) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
PETE STARK (VOTED ALSO FOR HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGALS) … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
ANNA ESHOO … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
JANE HARMAN … ENDORSED BY LA RAZA
LUIS GUTIERREZ... ENDORSED BY LA RAZA, VIRULENTLY RACIST MEXICAN CONGRESSMAN WORKING HARD FOR MORE ILLEGALS.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, October 22, 2009
The federal government has declared war on Sheriff JOE ARPAIO of Maricopa County, Arizona, for enforcing our nation’s immigration laws. “America’s Toughest Sheriff” will give Lou an update.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Friday, October 16, 2009
E-Verify- the single most successful federal program aimed at keeping illegal immigrants out of the workforce- is once again threatened. This time, E-Verify was stripped from a Senate Amendment behind closed doors and without explanation. Instead of becoming a permanent program E-verify has been reduced to only three years. Critics are calling this a stall tactic and an attempt at killing an employment enforcement system. We will have a full report tonight.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, October 15, 2009
E-Verify -- the single most successful federal program aimed at keeping illegal immigrants out of the nation's workforce is once again being threatened. Permanent reauthorization for the program -- which has a 99.7-percent accuracy rate -- has been pulled from pending legislation. Now the program is set to expire in just 3-years. The change was made behind closed doors in the Senate -- without public comment or debate.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
New attempts to put comprehensive immigration reform back on the front burner. Congressman Luis Gutierrez -- the chair of the Democratic Caucus Immigration Task Force -- is unveiling new legislation that would call for amnesty for the up to 20 million illegal immigrants in this country.
Congressman Gutierrez will join me tonight
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
The Obama administration could be weakening a successful joint federal and local program aimed at keeping illegal immigrants off our streets. "287 G" gives local police the training and authority to enforce federal immigration law. Supporters of the program believe the ministration wants to limit the program to criminal illegal immigrants already in custody -- limiting the investigative authority of police.
JIM PETHOKOUKIS, the money and politics columnist for Reuters,
will explain the president’s not-so-secret plan to raise your
taxes.
And Father PATRICK BASCIO has a remarkably different perspective on illegal immigration from that of most Christian clergymen-one he’s outlined in a remarkable new book entitled
On the Immorality of Illegal Immigration: An Alternative Christian View.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, September 28, 2009
And T.J. BONNER, president of the National Border Patrol Council, will weigh in on the federal government’s decision to pull nearly 400 agents from the U.S.-Mexican border. As always, Lou will take your calls to discuss the issues that matter most-and to get your thoughts on where America is headed. Call him toll-free on the Independent Hotline at 877-55 DOBBS.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Federal contractors now must use E-verify to check the status of their employees on federal projects. The rule which goes into effect today will affect almost 169,000 contractors and some 3.8 million workers. The E-verify program has an accuracy rating of 99.6% but has been repeatedly challenged by the U.S. Chamber of Congress. We will have a full report
tonight.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
And there are some 800,000 gang members in this country: That’s more than the combined number of troops in our Army and Marine Corps. These gangs have become one of the principle ways to import and distribute drugs in the United States. Congressman David Reichert joins Lou to tell us why those gangs are growing larger and stronger, and why he’s introduced legislation to eliminate the top three international drug gangs.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Senator Ted Kennedy kicked off a week of events and meetings focusing on immigration before he introduces legislation promoting amnesty for millions of illegal aliens living in the United States. Today, Kennedy met with Cardinal Roger Mahony, an outspoken and controversial supporter of illegal aliens and Kennedy’s bill. Senators McCain, Kennedy and Representatives
Flake and Gutierrez are expected to unveil their legislation later this month. We’ll have a full report.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Another victory for American workers in Arizona. Yesterday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the get-tough employer sanctions law in the state. The law hits employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens with strict penalties and in some cases even strips businesses of their licenses. A lower court upheld the same law in February. But open-borders and amnesty groups along with the business lobby are considering yet another appeal.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, February 11, 2008
In California, League of United Latin American Citizens has adopted a resolution to declare "California Del Norte" a sanctuary zone for immigrants. The declaration urges the Mexican government to invoke its rights under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo "to seek third nation neutral arbitration of ....disputes concerning immigration laws and their enforcement." We’ll have the story.
Last year, Prince William County, Virginia passed an initiative to allow local police to check the immigration status of anyone in police custody. The county recently held its first immigration training session for local police officers. We’ll have a look inside the training.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon is in New York today on the first leg his five day tour across America to meddle in immigration issues in the United States. This is his first visit to the U.S. since he became President in 2006, but he will not meet with President Bush or any of the presidential candidates, who he has accused of spewing anti immigrant rhetoric. Join us for that report.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight Wednesday
March 5, 2008
Immigration experts are appearing on Capitol Hill today to release the results of a study showing the cost of illegal immigration on the criminal justices system in the 24 U.S. counties bordering Mexico–more $1 billion in less than a decade.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Gov. Schwarzenegger said California is facing “financial Armageddon”. He is making drastic cuts in the budget for education, health care and services. But there is one place he isn’t making cuts… services for illegal immigrants. These services are estimated to cost the state four to five billion dollars a year. Schwarzenegger said he is “happy” to offer these services. We will have a full report tonight.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Plus drug cartel violence is spreading across our border with Mexico further into the United States. Mexican drug cartels are increasingly being linked to crimes in this country. Joining Lou tonight, from our border with Mexico is the new “border czar” Alan Bersin, the Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Special Representative for Border Affairs.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, April 20, 2009
And compelling new evidence that H-1B visas for foreign workers lower the pay of information technology workers in this country. Critics say the report, by NYU’s Stern School of Business and Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, proves that corporate elites are importing cheap overseas labor simply to lower the wages of American workers. We’ll have a special report.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Plus, outrage after President Obama prepares to push ahead with his plan for so-called comprehensive immigration reform. Pres. Obama is fulfilling a campaign promise to give
legal status to millions of illegal aliens as he panders to the pro-amnesty, open borders lobby. Tonight we will have complete coverage.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Monday, February 16, 2009
Construction of the 670 miles of border fence mandated by the Bush administration is almost complete. The Border Patrol says the new fencing, more agents and new technology
have reduced illegal alien apprehensions. But fence opponents are trying to stop the last few miles from being finished. We will have a full report, tonight.
Plus, even open border advocates agree that the most effective way of fighting illegal immigration is to crack down on the employment of illegal aliens. Yet, those same groups are
opposed to E-Verify, which has an initial accuracy rate of 99.6% making it one the most accurate programs ever. E-Verify was stripped from the stimulus bill but who stripped it out and who is opposed to verifying employment status is still not clear.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Friday, October 17, 2008
Tonight, a Supreme Court ruling is putting our democracy at risk. The court today overturned a federal appeals court decision that would have forced Ohio to do more to verify questionable voter registrations. We’ll have the very latest in our special report.
Plus, in the War on the Middle Class tonight, a government program is found to be rampant with fraud and abuse, giving even more American jobs to foreign workers. A new Department of Homeland Security report shows cases of violations, forgery and shell businesses in the H-1B visa program. We’ll have that and much more.
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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
In Colorado, over 1,300 illegal aliens are being investigated for applying for improper tax refunds. The ACLU has written a letter to the judge threatening to sue if the judge convenes a grand jury to investigate the case. We will have all the latest developments of the case as well as the ACLU’s bullying in pursuit of their amnesty agenda.
*
Lou Dobbs Tonight
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
And WILLIAM GHEEN, the president of Americans for Legal Immigration, breaks down his push for E-Verify—and why the Obama administration is wrong to delay its implementation when it comes to federal contractors.
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CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
Why the new jobs go to immigrants
By David R. Francis
Wall Street cheered and stock prices rose when the US Labor Department announced last Friday that employers had expanded their payrolls by 262,000 positions in February.
But it wasn't entirely good news. The statisticians also indicated that the share of the adult population holding jobs had slipped slightly from January to 62.3 percent. That's now two full percentage points below the level in the brief recession that began in March 2001.
Why the apparent contradiction? Reasons abound: population growth, rising retirements. But one factor that gets little attention is immigration.
In the past four years, the number of immigrants into the US, legal and illegal, has closely matched the number of new jobs. That suggests newcomers have, in effect, snapped up all of the new jobs.
"There has been no net job gain for natives," says Andrew Sum, an economist at Northeastern University.
In the US, President Bush calls for giving millions of illegal immigrants a kind of guest-worker status as a legal path to US citizenship. So far, no specific legislation to implement his suggestion has been put before Congress.
Meanwhile, US border patrols spend millions of dollars a year trying to keep illegals out. And yet, they keep coming, evidently little discouraged by recession or the 9/11 attacks. In the past four years alone, the number of immigrants ran some 2.5 million to 3 million, of which about half were illegal.
They come for jobs, of course. And the Bush administration makes barely any effort to enforce current law. In 2003, a total of 13 employers were fined for hiring undocumented employees.
In fact, neither Republicans nor Democrats have promoted enforcement of immigration law prohibiting the hiring of illegal immigrants, says Mr. Sum, head of Northeastern's Center for Labor Market Studies.
What employers really want in many cases by hiring immigrants is to hold down wage costs, experts say.
ARTICLE:
MOST MEXICAN IMMIGRANTS IN NEW STUDY GAVE UP JOBS TO TAKE THEIR CHANCES IN U.S.
By NINA BERNSTEIN New York Times
A report about the work lives of recent Mexican immigrants in seven cities across the United States suggests that they typically traded jobs in Mexico for the prospect of work here, despite serious bouts of unemployment, job instability and poor wages.
The report, released Tuesday by the Pew Hispanic Center, was based on surveys of nearly 5,000 Mexicans, most of them here illegally.
Those surveyed were seeking identity documents at Mexican consulates in New York, Atlanta and Raleigh, N.C., where recent arrivals have gravitated toward construction, hotel and restaurant jobs, and in Dallas, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Fresno, Calif., where they have been more likely to work in agriculture and manufacturing.
Unlike the stereotype of jobless Mexicans heading north, most of the immigrants had been employed in Mexico, the report found.
Once in the United States, they soon found that their illegal status was no barrier to being hired here. And though the jobs they landed, typically with help from relatives, were often unstable and their median earnings only $300 a week, that was enough to keep drawing newcomers because wages here far exceeded those in Mexico.
"We're getting a peek at a segment of the U.S. labor force that is large, that is growing by illegal migration, and that is bringing an entirely new set of issues into the U.S. labor market," said Rakesh Kochhar, associate director for research at the Pew Hispanic Center and author of the study.
The report suggested that policies intended to reduce migration pressures by improving the Mexican economy would have to look beyond employment to wages and perceptions of opportunity.
The survey found that the most recent to arrive were more likely to have worked in construction or commerce, rather than agriculture, in Mexico. Only 5 percent had been unemployed there; they were "drawn not from the fringes, but from the heart of Mexico's labor force," the report said.
After a difficult transition in their first six months in the United States about 15 percent of the respondents said they did not work during that time the rate of unemployment plummeted, to an average of 5 percent.
But in one of the most striking findings, 38 percent reported an unemployment spell lasting a month or more in the previous year, regardless of their location, legal status or length of time in the United States.
"These are workers with no safety net," Mr. Kochhar said. "The long run implication is a generation of workers without health or pension benefits, without any meaningful asset accumulation."
On the other hand, Mr. Kochhar and Roberto Suro, director of the Pew Hispanic Center, said the flexibility of this work force was a boon to certain industries like home construction, an important part of the nation's economic growth since the last recession.
Among respondents to the survey, those who settled in Atlanta and Dallas were the best off, with 56 percent in each city receiving a weekly wage higher than the $300 a week median. The worst off were in Fresno, where more than half of the survey respondents worked in agriculture and 60 percent reported earning less than $300 a week. The lowest wages were reported by women, people who spoke little or no English, and those without identification.
To some scholars of immigration, the report underlines the lack of incentives for employers to turn to a guest worker program like the one proposed by President Bush because their needs are met cheaply by illegal workers and all without paperwork or long term commitment.
Guest workers might instead appeal to corporations like Wal Mart, the scholars said, where service jobs are now the target of union organizing drives.
"You can't plausibly argue that immigrant dominated sectors have a labor shortage," said Robert Courtney Smith, a sociologist and author of "Mexican New York: Transnational Lives of New Immigrants." Instead, he said, the report and evidence of falling wages among Mexican immigrants over time point to an oversupply of vulnerable workers competing with each other.
But Brendan Flanagan, a spokesman for the National Restaurant Association, which supports a guest worker program, disagreed. "In many places it is difficult to fill jobs with domestic workers," Mr. Flanagan said. "We've seen a simple lack of applicants, regardless of what wage is offered."
Although the survey, conducted from July 2004 to January 2005, was not random or weighted to represent all Mexican immigrants, it offers a close look at a usually elusive population.
Those surveyed were not questioned directly about their immigration status, but they were asked whether they had any photo identification issued by a government agency in the United States. Slightly more than half over all, and 75 percent in New York, said they did not.
The migration is part of a historic restructuring of the Mexican economy comparable to America's industrial revolution, said Kathleen Newland, director of the Migration Policy Institute, a research organization based in Washington.
The institute released its own report on Tuesday, arguing that border enforcement efforts have failed. Workplace enforcement, which has been neglected, would be a crucial part of making a guest worker program successful.
For now, Mexicans keep arriving illegally.
"It doesn't matter if it's winter," said Ricardo Cortes, 23, a construction worker waiting for a friend outside the Mexican consulate in New York on Tuesday. "People are still coming because there's no money over there."
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