Immigration Reform Groups raising more funds than Enforcement-Only Opposition

According to the Associated Press, pro-immigration reform organizations are growing in influence and, for the first time, are raising more money than immigration restrictionist and enforcement-only groups.

Immigration Restictionists say that their funds from donations have slowed to a “trickle” as donors are discouraged.

Read the full article from the Associated Press by linking here.

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Arpaio to be investigated by Department of Justice

We just got the news that Maricopa County Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Department is the target of a federal probe over allegations of discrimination and unconstitutional searches and seizures. Here is the link to the Associated Press article. Below is today's press release from our partners at the National Immigration Forum.

Justice Department Investigation of Arizona Sheriff Welcomed, Needed, and Overdue

Contact: Katherine Vargas (kvargas@immigrationforum.org)
(202) 383-5987 or (202) 641-5198 (mobile)

Washington, DC - According to a Department of Justice (DOJ) letter dated March 10, the Civil Rights Division will be investigating Sheriff Joe Arpaio of the Maricopa County (Arizona) Sheriff's Office (MCSO) focusing on "…alleged patterns or practices of discriminatory police practices and unconstitutional searches and seizures conducted by the MCSO, and on allegations of national origin discrimination…" The MCSO has a 287g agreement with the Department of Homeland Security to conduct immigration enforcement actions and Sheriff Arpaio was recently described by Ali Noorani as "the poster boy for all that is wrong with the 287g program," in a Wall Street Journal article. The following is a statement by Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum.

We welcome the Department of Justice's investigation because when a local elected official takes the law into his own hands, the role of the federal government is to protect the people from abuse. The Sheriff's over-the-top publicity-seeking has made him a flashpoint for those concerned that immigration enforcement practices are out of control, but DOJ needs to keep a close eye on any Sheriff more concerned with headlines than the Constitution and the law. In the mean time, the Sheriff's 287g agreement with the federal government should be suspended pending the outcome of this investigation.

Just because the Congress has not passed immigration reform is no excuse for the federal government to abdicate enforcement to local sheriffs, especially when some of those local police have abused their power. How and when local police should enforce federal immigration law and how the 287g program has been administered has been ignored by Washington for too long. Issues raised by a series of government and non-government reports (link, link, link) clearly indicate that more oversight is needed and not just from the Department of Justice.

These developments put additional pressure on Congress to address immigration reform. State and local governments and law enforcement are rightly calling for action, the American people want to know when someone will act to address immigration, and immigrant communities that feel under siege want clear next steps towards reform. We need solutions that restore the rule of law, prioritize hardened criminals - immigrant and non-immigrant - for enforcement, and get the vast majority of hard working immigrants integrated into our communities and on the road to citizenship. That would be progress and much more constructive than this Arizona Sheriff's stunts, which may be found to have been in violation of federal law.

Visit http://www.immigrationforum.org/ for more information.

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Senator Gillibrand Backpedals on Immigration

Last week we reported on Kristen Gillibrand’s ascension to the U.S. Senate and about her change in position on immigration. Gillibrand, a Democrat from the New York’s 20th Congressional District, was chosen by Gov. David Paterson to take the seat vacated by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

According to a report from MSNBC, Senator Gillibrand is “backpedaling” on her once harsh positions on immigration. Gillibrand is said to be abandoning her position against “sanctuary cities” and “plans to come out in favor of legislation that would roll back federal laws that discourage states from offering the kids of illegal immigrants in-state tuition.”

According to the Associated Press, Senator Gillibrand said, "We need to recognize the heritage that the immigrant community has provided to this country and put policies in place that will reflect that core value."

Why the change of her position? MSNBC reports that she told the New York Times that "In a lot of these issues, it’s a case of learning more and expanding my view."

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Widow not married long enough to stay in U.S.

The Associated Press is reporting that a widowed Jamaican Woman who lost her husband in a Staten Island ferry crash in 2003 cannot stay in the United States. The reason the appeals court gave is that she and her husband weren’t married long enough.

Osserritta Robinson, 31, of Mahwah, N.J., is reported by the Associated Press as,

“one of about 170 immigrants who have been denied residency status because of what some call the "widow penalty" a U.S. law that requires an immigrant to be married for two years to remain in the country if the American spouse dies.”

Before her husband's death, Louis Robinson had filed citizenship papers on behalf of his wife. However, because of a government bureaucratic backlog, they were never processed.

Robinson's attorney, Jeffrey Feinbloom, had this to say about the court's decision:

"These people are victims. They've already been through the ultimate tragedy. They're just being re-victimized."

Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano has asked her staff to review the issue and others involving non-citizen spouses.

To read more on this story and get a copy of the court ruling, link here

Resources:
US appeals court nixes widow's immigration bid

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