Obama Won’t Enforce Existing Immigration Laws

[peejay 327]

Obama Won’t Enforce Existing Immigration Laws

by Mark Krikorian

Posted 05/06/2010 ET

President Obama criticized Arizona's new immigration law, saying it was caused by inaction in Washington—specifically, the unwillingness of Congress to pass an amnesty law. He's right about the geographic location of the problem, but not about how to start fixing it.

The chief culprit right now is the President himself, not Congress. While there are numerous changes to the law that should be made, the most urgent task before us is to enforce the laws already on the books.

The administration can do plenty without new laws.

Repair the Fence

Start with the fence. People sometimes exaggerate the importance of fencing, imagining you can set it and forget it. Actually, it requires constant maintenance and policing, but it does represent an important tool for the Border Patrol. Congress in 2006 required the construction of more than 700 miles of double fencing along the border with Mexico. The administration has said that construction is virtually complete—except that much of the new "fencing" actually consists of one layer of vehicle barriers, which can prevent a vanload of illegals from driving into the country but stop no one from hopping over them. Ending its opposition to real fencing would be the first priority.

Prosecute Illegals

Also at the border, the President could expand Operation Streamline, an initiative to prosecute every illegal alien caught along certain small sections of the border and lock them up for a few weeks or a month before returning them. The goal is to exact a penalty for border-jumping. Most people who are caught are now sent right back with little or nothing in the way of consequences.

Workplace Raids

Of course, border enforcement doesn't end at the border. Making it hard for illegal aliens to find and keep jobs is at least as important, because without the magnet of jobs, illegal immigration becomes much less attractive. The President has all but ended raids at worksites, replacing them with audits of companies' personnel records to look for illegal workers—who are fired, but not arrested. Audits are a great idea, but there need to be raids as well, if enforcement is to be taken seriously. And Obama doesn't need permission from Congress to re-start them.

Check Social Security Numbers

Also in the area of employment, the Social Security Administration and the IRS currently know of hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens who have used fake or stolen Social Security numbers to get jobs or file for tax refunds. But the agencies don't tell anyone, supposedly because of their interpretation of privacy law. Here again, the President could act without action by Congress and instruct his agencies to inform employers when they submit a fake or stolen number from a new employee and insist they take steps to clear up the situation, including ultimately firing. Also, in cases of identity theft, the President must require the agencies to inform all those claiming to have the number that it's being used in multiple locations, so the real owner can take steps to stop it.

Use Local Police

In the area of policing, Congress created in 1996 something called the 287(g) program, which trains local police in the finer points of immigration law and effectively deputizes them as immigration agents. This allows local police to start the processing of immigration violators and enhances federal-state-local cooperation in immigration enforcement. This administration has tried to cut back this program and discourage new enrollments; the opposite is required and is within the administration's existing authority.

What's more, the administration can launch less-intensive, perhaps web-based, training in immigration law for local police, so they'll be able to tell the difference between a green card and an employment authorization document, among other things, hugely improving their ability to spot immigration lawbreakers and not hassle legal immigrants or visitors.

Track Visa-holders

And border enforcement isn't even all on our own territory. About one-third of illegal aliens came in legally, with visas, but never left. In 1996, Congress mandated the development of a check-in/check-out system at the border, so we'd know which visa-holders left and which had overstayed. Nearly 15 years later, this still hasn't been completed, and it's not clear anyone in the administration even wants to do this. Again, this is in Obama's power to change on his own, with no new laws.

And a further step back takes us to the visa offices themselves in our consulates overseas.

Although the law specifically says all visa applicants are to be assumed to be potential illegal aliens until they prove otherwise to the satisfaction of our State Department employees, the reality is very different. Too many refusals can potentially jeopardize a young Foreign Service officer's career, while freely granting visa applications to people likely to end up as illegal aliens causes little disquiet from superiors. This, again, is matter of misguided management not inadequate laws.

Our immigration policy is indeed broken, something everyone seems to agree on. But rather than Congress’s passing "comprehensive immigration reform," we need the President to undertake some "comprehensive enforcement reform." And he doesn't need anyone's permission to do that.

Mr. Krikorian is executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=36853

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

There have been articles all over discussing stepped up workplace enforcements and raids as well as increased deportations since Obama took office.

[Pinocchio Liberal 268]

There have been articles all over discussing stepped up workplace enforcements and raids as well as increased deportations since Obama took office.

Articles? :rofl: A cop gets shot and a rancher dies also. On Obamas watch. More articles?

Edited May 8, 2010 by Col. Lingus

[john & jean 37]

Since Obama is an illegal, why would you expect him to enforce immigration laws??

[zenaxe 22]

Since Obama is an illegal, why would you expect him to enforce immigration laws??

Birthers are essentially cave men and women with furniture...get a grip dude.

[john & jean 37]

Voted for Obama?

Embarrassed yet??

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

Also the REPAIR highlights most of these aspects. What I don't agree with in the REPAIR act is the 8 year guest worker program.

I disagree with it for two reasons.

No.1 I don't see why the US government should be promoting illegal immigration. I also don't see how the plan comes up with a solution to the paperwork involved. Our immigration system is like an old Ford Pinto climbing up and down Pike's Peak. Its been taking 2 passengers at a time and now its expected to carry 6 people (one guy in the boot). Yes the whole 8 year thing is so that the current back logs can be cleaned out but it never explains how its going to process 10 million people. The pinto's engine is going to sputter.

No.2 For all the far lefts talk of fairness its simply not fair. Why does an illegal immigrant get a visa, but a South Korean who overstayed his visa gets kicked to the curb.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Articles? :rofl: A cop gets shot and a rancher dies also. On Obamas watch. More articles?

Obama beats Bush on deportations

Edited May 8, 2010 by Mr. Big Dog

[justashooter 430]

Birthers are essentially cave men and women with furniture...get a grip dude.

and yet we still have not seen a legitimate long form. all we have to go on is an evasive answer from a Hawaii official that there is some kind of "certificate of live birth", just like the one i had from maryland in the same time frame, that was not good enough to get a passport with. i had to get a long form. surely osama has one. why not show it and be done with? why spend over 2 million dollars in legal fees to avoid doing so?

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

and yet we still have not seen a legitimate long form. all we have to go on is an evasive answer from a Hawaii official that there is some kind of "certificate of live birth", just like the one i had from maryland in the same time frame, that was not good enough to get a passport with. i had to get a long form. surely osama has one. why not show it and be done with? why spend over 2 million dollars in legal fees to avoid doing so?

Suggestion for your new avatar.

[rsn 135]

and yet we still have not seen a legitimate long form. all we have to go on is an evasive answer from a Hawaii official that there is some kind of "certificate of live birth", just like the one i had from maryland in the same time frame, that was not good enough to get a passport with. i had to get a long form. surely osama has one. why not show it and be done with? why spend over 2 million dollars in legal fees to avoid doing so?

Everyone, raise your hands if you are surprised that shooter is a birther. I have nothing against conservatives who believe in a cause and stand behind it, even though I generally disagree with them, violently, on many issues (many, but not all). However, if I were a conservative, I would do my best to distance myself from nutjobs like yourself. You are a perfect example of what is wrong with this country - people who throw out one red herring after another instead of focusing on the real issues. You should be ashamed of yourself. I would say the same thing to anyone who believed Bush was behind 9/11. You are a disgrace.

Edited May 8, 2010 by rsn

[SMOKE 1,426]

and yet we still have not seen a legitimate long form. all we have to go on is an evasive answer from a Hawaii official that there is some kind of "certificate of live birth", just like the one i had from maryland in the same time frame, that was not good enough to get a passport with. i had to get a long form. surely osama has one. why not show it and be done with? why spend over 2 million dollars in legal fees to avoid doing so?

because it makes the birthers look like fools for keeping this going. + he doesn't have to.

his birth was announced in 2 honolulu newspapers in august 1961. link either #1. it was planned almost 50 years ago for a kenyan to be the president of the US. or #2. he was born in hawaii. which one sounds likely & which one just sounds stupid?

[Ban Hammer 12,829]

Suggestion for your new avatar.

where did you get that picture of me?

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

where did you get that picture of me?

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

Gather 'round, Obozo is about to teach us about amnesty.