European political parties that support immigration reduction are gaining ground over concerns the European Union’s open-borders policies are costing jobs, USA Today reports. The voter backlash in one country, Switzerland, will force the government to implement reductions contrary to European Union policies.
Appearing on Sunday morning news shows, Reps. Paul Ryan and Eric Cantor appeared hesitant to confirm that the House will pursue immigration legislation this year. Ryan said that the likelihood of a broad immigration bill reaching President Obama's desk this year is "clearly in doubt," while Cantor said Congress should focus on “things that we can agree on.”
In a court order, Federal District Judge Andrew Hanen accused the Department of Homeland Security of helping to smuggle an illegal-alien girl into the U.S. to live with her mother. Judge Hanen said this was the fourth recent case in which the Border Patrol apprehended a “coyote” smuggling a child, then delivered the child to illegal-alien parents. In each case, taxpayers covered the expense.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) plans to introduce a comprehensive amnesty bill designed to pressure Republicans to take up the immigration issue during the busy fall schedule. The legislation would combine the bill the Senate Judiciary Committee passed in May with a border-security bill the House Homeland Security Committee passed.
Over 100 Republican donors, fundraisers and former Party officials wrote Republican members of Congress on Tuesday to urge them to pass an amnesty and overhaul the nation's "broken" immigration system. The letter is one element of a campaign to lobby Republican legislators as they return to their districts for August recess.
Kimberly Dvorak from The Examiner reports that the Obama Administration ignored multiple warnings by Border Patrol Agents and local police that said a wilderness reserve plan would result in national security breaches and deaths.
NumbersUSA members were busy in 2011 pursuing state enforcement legislation and fighting pro-illegal alien bills. Thanks to their efforts, important enforcement bills passed in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Montana, North Carolina and Virginia. Members also stopped pro-illegal alien bills in Colorado, Nebraska and Oregon. We thought you’d appreciate learning about some of their hard-fought battles.
Most folks are focusing on the 2012 elections now but it’s important to remember that a few states hold 2011 gubernatorial and state legislative elections. The results of some state legislative races, in particular, will influence whether certain states can enact in 2012 the immigration-enforcement legislation that failed this year.
DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano is visiting Afghanistan with a contingent of border security and customs officials to advise their Afghan counterparts on border control, according to a DHS press release. Her surprise visit comes before charges have been filed in the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry near the U.S. border.
A Rasmussen poll released today found that 67 percent of U.S. voters believe illegal aliens are a significant strain on the U.S. budget, while 66 percent think government benefits and services are a magnet for illegal aliens. The poll confirmed again the voters’ strong preference for border control (68%) over legalizing illegal aliens (26%).