BOS_LHR

Thanks for posting! Can't wait to see what kind of volume data they have for December.

I would bet 99% of petitions sent to California will continue to see the quick turnaround we've been accustomed to. There's no reason for them to slow down. Last I looked at July's sheet it seemed like Texas was nearly done with them, so that could be a good sign for August TSC transfers too. Nebraska shall henceforth be known as the pit of despair.

There is a free app that works just fine In my experience, I got transfer emails from USCIS about an hour before the app updated and gave me a push notification, BUT the app notified me of my approval several hours before I received the email.

On the bright side, after tomorrow there are no more holidays for them until Memorial Day in late May. Hope they start cranking through petitions!

On the bright side, after tomorrow there are no more holidays for them until Memorial Day in late May. Hope they start cranking through petitions!

Ah yes, another holiday. It's demoralizing to call day in, day out and have nothing happening. We've been ready with documentation for months. People say this stage is easier because it's "more active"... feels like a lot of false starts to me. The stop and go is maddening! Still, brave faces, right? At least there are rough timelines we can count on at this point. That's a lot more than we could say for USCIS.

We all really want it to be over for you too. I'm literally still subscribed to instant updates on this thread just so I can congratulate you and the few other regulars who are still waiting when your time comes. Hoping it's soon.

I also sent our story to neilm. Sad to say, but the right wing in the US has a good track record of making the Obama administration miserable, and that is our best bet to get traction.

Since NYT published the story online Saturday, a number of additional outlets have picked it up. SUCH great news. Head on over to this thread to find links to some of them: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/479585-ir1cr1-backlog-makes-the-ny-times/
I've been emailing the authors to thank them for covering the story and one of them got back to me with the following:
"I'm happy to keep plugging away. Have people you know send me stories ASAP of how they were treated by officials, and of their circumstances, and I'll write them up, and push the White House for an answer."

Ready guys? Story time. GO.

Email your story to neilm@dailycaller.com. Give him an easy to recognize subject line so he knows you're writing in response to his article ("Obama split 500,000 American families to legalize illegals before 2012 election"). I know TONS of you have been given the run-around by Tier 2, by your elected officials, and even by your attorneys. Please consider taking a minute to share your story. We have some momentum in the media right now, let's use it!

*snort* Someone called my kid an anchor baby on Fark. LMFAO!

You've hit the nail on the head. I'm not at all happy about it either. But I knew that this was a possibility, and I'm just realistic and opportunistic enough to take what I can get as far as publicity is concerned.

So I've been emailing authors to thank them for these articles (and thank you Salo&Romashka for posting links!) and one of them got back to me with the following:
"I'm happy to keep plugging away. Have people you know send me stories ASAP of how they were treated by officials, and of their circumstances, and I'll write them up, and push the White House for an answer."
Ready guys? Story time. GO.
Email your story to neilm@dailycaller.com. Give him an easy to recognize subject line so he knows you're writing in response to his article ("Obama split 500,000 American families to legalize illegals before 2012 election"). I know TONS of you have been given the run-around by Tier 2, by your elected officials, and even by your attorneys. Please consider taking a minute to share your story. We have some momentum in the media right now, let's use it!

Yeah, I hear you. I wouldn't have chosen types like this as allies if I had a choice. I was reflecting this morning how my Democratic president has actually given me something to agree with the tea party on, which is horrifying. Still, while Obama didn't force USCIS to set us aside, he forced them into making decisions that had to hurt someone, because he didn't give USCIS enough time before they needed to execute on his policy. It's unfair to unilaterally blame the president for our current situation, but I can't say he's done us any favors, up to and including his current plans for immigration reform. That's neither here nor there. Honestly, I don't see support for our demographic pouring in from all sides, and I personally don't want to waste an opportunity to speak up when so few people have been interested in giving us a voice. I'm realistic about who can and will put the pressure on to get things done for us, even if I'm not happy about it.

Yeah, I hear you. I wouldn't have chosen types like this as allies if I had a choice. I was reflecting this morning how my Democratic president has actually given me something to agree with the tea party on, which is horrifying. Still, while Obama didn't force USCIS to set us aside, he forced them into making decisions that had to hurt someone, because he didn't give USCIS enough time before they needed to execute on his policy. It's unfair to unilaterally blame the president for our current situation, but I can't say he's done us any favors, up to and including his current plans for immigration reform. That's neither here nor there. Honestly, I don't see support for our demographic pouring in from all sides, and I personally don't want to waste an opportunity to speak up when so few people have been interested in giving us a voice. I'm realistic about who can and will put the pressure on to get things done for us, even if I'm not happy about it.

Yeah, I hear you. I wouldn't have chosen types like this as allies if I had a choice. I was reflecting this morning how my Democratic president has actually given me something to agree with the tea party on, which is horrifying. Still, while Obama didn't force USCIS to set us aside, he forced them into making decisions that had to hurt someone, because he didn't give USCIS enough time before they needed to execute on his policy. It's unfair to unilaterally blame the president for our current situation, but I can't say he's done us any favors, up to and including his current plans for immigration reform. That's neither here nor there. Honestly, I don't see support for our demographic pouring in from all sides, and I personally don't want to waste an opportunity to speak up when so few people have been interested in giving us a voice. I'm realistic about who can and will put the pressure on to get things done for us, even if I'm not happy about it.

Yeah, I hear you. I wouldn't have chosen types like this as allies if I had a choice. I was reflecting this morning how my Democratic president has actually given me something to agree with the tea party on, which is horrifying. Still, while Obama didn't force USCIS to set us aside, he forced them into making decisions that had to hurt someone, because he didn't give USCIS enough time before they needed to execute on his policy. It's unfair to unilaterally blame the president for our current situation, but I can't say he's done us any favors, up to and including his current plans for immigration reform. That's neither here nor there. Honestly, I don't see support for our demographic pouring in from all sides, and I personally don't want to waste an opportunity to speak up when so few people have been interested in giving us a voice. I'm realistic about who can and will put the pressure on to get things done for us, even if I'm not happy about it.

I wrote the following to the author:
Dear Ms. Preston,
Thank you for your article "Program Benefiting Some Immigrants Extends Visa Wait for Others." Like the individuals described in your article, I am a US citizen with a foreign spouse abroad. With immigration legislation discussions currently focused on amnesty and reforms to work visa programs, my family and hundreds of thousands like mine have been thrown under the proverbial bus. I have reached out to my elected representatives, the USCIS Ombudsman's office, numerous legal professionals, and USCIS itself for help or information. There is no empathy or interest in (or sometimes even awareness of) the hardships currently facing visa petitioners of my type. USCIS has refused to set expectations for families suffering apart and there has not yet been any way to hold them accountable for their dismal performance. I am part of a community which has extensively researched the causes and effects of the administration's immigration policies and the ways in which they have been implemented. Official documents show mismanagement at USCIS dating back for years, and always it is citizens and their families suffering at the hands of the latest agenda pet project. To finally see some acknowledgement of this in the press is a wonderful relief, and I would be thrilled to see additional attention brought to the side effects of current immigration reform upon law-abiding US citizens' families. President Obama claims that family unity is a top priority for his administration, and that "humane" and timely processing is essential, but these things have fallen by the wayside for a large, unacknowledged demographic of Americans. My sincere thanks to you for shedding light on the issue and giving us a voice.
Best regards,
Name

Since NYT published the story online Saturday, a number of additional outlets have picked it up. SUCH great news. Head on over to this thread to find links to some of them: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/479585-ir1cr1-backlog-makes-the-ny-times/
I've been emailing the authors to thank them for covering the story and one of them got back to me with the following:
"I'm happy to keep plugging away. Have people you know send me stories ASAP of how they were treated by officials, and of their circumstances, and I'll write them up, and push the White House for an answer."

Ready guys? Story time. GO.

Email your story to neilm@dailycaller.com. Give him an easy to recognize subject line so he knows you're writing in response to his article ("Obama split 500,000 American families to legalize illegals before 2012 election"). I know TONS of you have been given the run-around by Tier 2, by your elected officials, and even by your attorneys. Please consider taking a minute to share your story. We have some momentum in the media right now, let's use it!

Since NYT published the story online Saturday, a number of additional outlets have picked it up. SUCH great news. Head on over to this thread to find links to some of them: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/479585-ir1cr1-backlog-makes-the-ny-times/
I've been emailing the authors to thank them for covering the story and one of them got back to me with the following:
"I'm happy to keep plugging away. Have people you know send me stories ASAP of how they were treated by officials, and of their circumstances, and I'll write them up, and push the White House for an answer."

Ready guys? Story time. GO.

Email your story to neilm@dailycaller.com. Give him an easy to recognize subject line so he knows you're writing in response to his article ("Obama split 500,000 American families to legalize illegals before 2012 election"). I know TONS of you have been given the run-around by Tier 2, by your elected officials, and even by your attorneys. Please consider taking a minute to share your story. We have some momentum in the media right now, let's use it!

More coverage:
http://www.latintimes.com/deferred-deportation-program-young-undocumented-immigrants-boosts-green-card-wait-times-families
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/370723/legal-immigrants-go-back-line-mark-krikorian

The story is gaining traction. It's now on the front page of the Drudge Report
Being covered by other news sources:
http://dailycaller.com/2014/02/09/obama-split-500000-american-families-to-legalize-illegals-before-2012-election/
Reprint in Columbus Dispatch of original article
http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/national_world/2014/02/09/visa-slowdown-keeps-many-families-apart.html

I wrote the following to the author:
Dear Ms. Preston,
Thank you for your article "Program Benefiting Some Immigrants Extends Visa Wait for Others." Like the individuals described in your article, I am a US citizen with a foreign spouse abroad. With immigration legislation discussions currently focused on amnesty and reforms to work visa programs, my family and hundreds of thousands like mine have been thrown under the proverbial bus. I have reached out to my elected representatives, the USCIS Ombudsman's office, numerous legal professionals, and USCIS itself for help or information. There is no empathy or interest in (or sometimes even awareness of) the hardships currently facing visa petitioners of my type. USCIS has refused to set expectations for families suffering apart and there has not yet been any way to hold them accountable for their dismal performance. I am part of a community which has extensively researched the causes and effects of the administration's immigration policies and the ways in which they have been implemented. Official documents show mismanagement at USCIS dating back for years, and always it is citizens and their families suffering at the hands of the latest agenda pet project. To finally see some acknowledgement of this in the press is a wonderful relief, and I would be thrilled to see additional attention brought to the side effects of current immigration reform upon law-abiding US citizens' families. President Obama claims that family unity is a top priority for his administration, and that "humane" and timely processing is essential, but these things have fallen by the wayside for a large, unacknowledged demographic of Americans. My sincere thanks to you for shedding light on the issue and giving us a voice.
Best regards,
Name

May I suggest that we all write to the writer of this article, Julie Preston, and thank her? Click on her byline (her name) if you read the article on the New York Times site. It will take you to her page, and you can write her through the NYT's reply system.
I have done so.
Sukie

The article is a great start! Already sharing it all over the place. I think it would be awesome if VJers wrote in to the NYT with lots of positive feedback for the article and as much additional information as we can muster. We need to encourage them to write more pieces like this, and with more of the substantive data we've been collecting all these months!

NY Times: Program Benefiting Some Immigrants Extends Visa Wait for Others
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/09/us/program-benefiting-some-immigrants-extends-visa-wait-for-others.html?ref=us&_r=0