Tag: Immigration

Steve Gill: Indiana Church Misguided for ‘Detainment’ of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph in Protest of Trump Border Policy

Julie Carr
Steve Gill

Tennessee Star Political Editor Steve Gill, on Wednesday’s Gill Report broadcast live on WETR 92.3 FM in Knoxville, discussed the Biblical protest by an Indianapolis church and its misguided interpretation of the holy family as immigrants. “An Indianapolis church is putting Jesus, Mary and Joseph in a cage, to protest president Trump’s zero tolerance policy cracking down on illegal immigration,” stated Steve Gill; adding, “Apparently the church is incapable of understanding the term ‘illegal,’ you know, ‘criminal behavior.’ Apparently, we shouldn’t put people in prisons if they break the law.” He continued: I wonder if somebody broke into the church and stole all the church items and stole the money in the church whether they would prosecute or just turn the other cheek and say we shouldn’t jail anybody because it might separate them from their families. Anyway, Christ Church Cathedral constructed a cage made of chain link fence on its lawn overnight and placed statues of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph inside to represent Christ and the holy family being detained by immigration authorities. The church tweeted out yesterday morning, ‘On our lawn tonight, we place the holy family in an ICE detention.’ Steve Carlson, the church’s rector and dean,…

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Families of Victims of Illegal Aliens Tell of ‘Permanent Separation’ From Children, Being Ignored by Media

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angel parents

by Fred Lucas   With President Donald Trump still facing criticism over separating migrant families who illegally crossed the border, other families met with the president Friday to share their stories of “permanent separation” from children killed by illegal immigrants—and to complain of being ignored by the news media. Among those family members were Laura Wilkerson, who recalled the 2010 slaying of her son Josh. “He was brutally tortured, strangled over and over. He was set on fire after death. His last hours were brutal,” Wilkerson said, standing on a stage at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building with Trump, administration officials, and family members of 13 other victims of crimes by illegal immigrants. They were among the “Angel Families” advocating for strong enforcement of immigration laws. [ The liberal Left continue to push their radical agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution. Find out more ] Wilkerson contrasted their situation with those of illegal-immigrant parents who can communicate with the children they’ve been separated from on Skype. “As with everyone standing up here, none of our kids had a minute to say goodbye. We weren’t lucky enough to be separated for five days or 10 days,” she…

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President Trump’s Executive Order, Explained

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Trump illegal immigration

Following days of fierce global criticism, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to end his policy of family separations along the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump signed the order Wednesday, saying he “didn’t like the sight or the feeling of families being separated.” Lawmakers had called for Trump to take unilateral action to end the policy instituted in April that resulted in more than 2,300 children being separated from their parents. The move reflects the enormous political pressure put on Trump. Images of children in metal cages and audio of them crying for their parents had prompted global outrage. What does the executive order do? Under the new U.S. policy, parents and children caught crossing the border illegally will be kept together at federal detention centers for the length of their criminal proceedings. Doesn’t that solve the issue of family separations? Not exactly. Because of a 1997 federal court decision known as the Flores settlement, the government cannot hold children in custody for more than 20 days. That’s a problem, since most illegal entry criminal proceedings take much longer than that. As part of the executive order, Trump is appealing to the U.S. District Court to overturn the Flores settlement, allowing…

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How Immigration Officials Cooked the Books and Fooled Congress for Years

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border wall

by Mark Metcalf   A recent Justice Department report on U.S. immigration courts provides a rare glimpse into the difficulties faced by the Trump administration as it repairs the damages inflicted on these tribunals over the last 20 years. But give credit to the courts’ new executive, James McHenry. Early on, he identified the need for transparency and has made accurate disclosure of court business one of his agency’s highest priorities. Candor, if not reform, demands no less. It’s a good start for an executive whose predecessors often avoided—and sometimes denied—the truth about the courts’ troubling dynamics. Yet the courts limped along, their annual reports masking a systemic dysfunction never shared with Congress. While transparency won’t cure the dysfunction, it should identify obvious areas for reform—among them failures to appear in court. [ The liberal Left continue to push their radical agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution. Find out more ] From 1996 through 2016, just under half of all aliens who were set free pending a trial date—1.25 million in total—were ordered removed, i.e. deported. Of that number, 952,291 were removed for evading court. Less than a quarter of this same group actually appeared in…

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Far-Left ‘Artist’ Doxxing ICE Agents is Sam Lavigne, an Adjunct Professor at NYU

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Sam Lavigne

by Kyle Perisic   The personal responsible for creating a database of over 1,500 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) employees’ personal information and spreading it to the terrorist organization Antifa is a professor at New York University. Sam Lavigne, a far-left artist and game designer, is an adjunct professor at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He created a database of 1,595 self-identified ICE employees using their LinkedIn profiles and shared it to his 3,600 followers on Twitter on Tuesday morning. Antifa, the formally recognized far-left terrorist organization, picked up the database and spread it to their followers on Twitter hours later. The database also spread to a subgroup on Reddit that encourages spreading personal information — such as where they live and their contact information, known as “doxxing” — of people who they consider “Nazis” or “alt-right,” which, according to them, includes ICE and the NSA. “Doxxing ICE agents is good and moral,” one Reddit user posted on a thread that shared the database. “Dox more Nazis,” another read. “I’ve downloaded and made available the profiles of (almost) everyone on LinkedIn who works for ICE, 1,595 people in total. While I don’t have a precise idea of what should be done with this…

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Corker, Alexander Oppose Trump on Child Separation Policy, WTN’s Brian Wilson Fires Back: ‘The President Is Enforcing the Rule of Law’

John Bryant
Lamar Alexander, Bob Corker

Tennessee Senators Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander, both Republicans, issued statements Monday criticizing the Trump administration for separating children from their parents when detained at the U.S./Mexico border, as the Times Free Press reported: “While the issues surrounding our immigration system are complex, we can all agree that innocent children should be protected and not used for deterrence,” said Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He said the administration “should use all tools available to stop needless family separation without delay, and Congress should act swiftly to address the serious challenges facing our nation’s immigration system.” Alexander’s statement read, “Illegal immigration is against the law but new enforcement policies have resulted in hundreds of children being separated from their parents. The administration should end that new policy immediately while Congress works with the president on a bipartisan immigration solution that secures the border, provides a status for those already here and prevents a humanitarian crisis at the border.” SuperTalk 99.7 WTN veteran broadcaster Brian Wilson, host of Nashville’s Morning News,took up the subject in his broadcast on Tuesday, explaining that “The president is enforcing the rule of law. President Obama did not.” The law requiring the separation of…

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Commentary: The Answer Is Don’t Bring Your Kid Here Illegally

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by CHQ Staff   Have you noticed that every time establishment Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill try to ram through an amnesty for illegal aliens there’s a new immigration “crisis” to add a bit of pathos to their calls for open borders? The latest phony crisis is the plight of child border crossers who are being separated from their parents at the border. As our friend Michael F. Haverluck of OneNewsNow.com put it, Democrats and open borders Republicans are claiming the Trump administration is running concentration camps for children who illegally enter the United States alone or with parents who are being processed by the U.S. government. “We can’t find a solution to this problem without harming children without putting them in concentration camps?” former Obama 2012 Deputy Campaign Manager Stephanie Cutter asked on Live with Stephanie Ruhle, according to TheBlaze. Virulent anti-Trumper, former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, also chimed in on the issue by backing his Democratic colleague and going as far as to imply that President Donald Trump’s immigration policy resembles what was implemented under Nazis during World War II … or by slave holders before the Civil War. “And I would even say, Stephanie,…

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The Truth Behind 4 Wild Claims About Detaining Children at the Border

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Kirstjen Nielsen

by Fred Lucas   The Trump administration is taking heat from Democrats and Republicans for separating parents and children after they illegally crossed the southern border. Over the six weeks from April 19 through May 31, federal officials separated about 2,000 children from their families at the U.S.-Mexican border, the Associated Press reported last week. President Donald Trump blamed the procedure on Democrats in Congress. “They’re obstructing. They’re really obstructionists and they are obstructing,” Trump said Monday at the White House. “The United States will not be a migrant camp and it will not be a refugee holding facility. It won’t be.” [ The liberal Left continue to push their radical agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution. Find out more  ] “If you look at what’s happening in Europe, if you look at what’s happening in other places, we can’t allow that to happen to the United States–not on my watch,” he said. During the White House press briefing Monday, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said: “This is a very serious issue that has resulted after years and years of Congress not taking action.” Here’s a look at four of the more questionable claims made…

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President Trump on Illegal Immigration: ‘The United States Will Not Be a Migrant Camp’

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Donald Trump, Mike Pence

During the announcement of the new Pentagon ‘Space Force’ directive, President Trump took a moment at the beginning of his remarks to address the media’s outrage at his administration’s enforcement of laws regarding the arrest and prosecution of illegal aliens and the disposition of any minor children that may accompany them. After a brief recap of the recent economic numbers that show the lowest unemployment rates in recent memory – with historic lows in the minority sectors of Black, Hispanic, and women – Mr. Trump said, “If I might, I just wanted to make a brief statement on immigration and what’s happening.  And I’ll say it very honestly and I’ll say it very straight: Immigration is the fault, and all of the problems that we’re having — because we cannot get them to sign legislation; we cannot get them even to the negotiating table.  And I say it’s, very strongly, the Democrats’ fault.  They’re obstructing.  They’re really obstructionists.  And they are obstructing.” Democrats have, in fact, steadfastly refused to support any legislation that fully implements his four-part immigration and border security agenda of a physical barrier to entry to the United States (The Wall), and end to the practice of…

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US Ends Practice That Gave Some Immigrants Reprieves from Deportation

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Reuters   U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday barred immigration judges from a once-common practice of shelving deportation cases involving some immigrants with deep ties to the United States. The practice known as administrative closure allowed judges to clear low-priority cases off their dockets, effectively letting some immigrants remain indefinitely in the United States despite their lack of legal status. Under President Barack Obama there had been an effort to administratively close certain cases as a way of allowing judges to focus on higher-priority matters and reduce the immigration court backlog. More than 200,000 cases were closed during the last six years of his presidency. The closures were routinely used for people without criminal backgrounds who had lived for many years in the United States, often with U.S. citizen children or spouses. In many cases, the immigrants became eligible for work permits. The administration of President Donald Trump has taken a sharply different tack on immigration, declaring that all those in the country illegally, whether or not they pose a threat to public safety, are subject to deportation. Since immigration courts fall under the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice, the attorney general can issue opinions in immigration cases…

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Diane Black on Refugee Resettlement Appeal: ‘I Applaud State of Tennessee for Choosing to Defend our Constitutional Rights’

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Diane Black

On the heels of Tennessee’s decision to appeal a federal judge’s ruling to dismiss the lawsuit against the federal government’s resettlement of refugees Thursday, gubernatorial candidate Diane Black issued a statement supporting the decision. “I applaud the State of Tennessee for choosing to defend our Constitutional rights and appealing this decision,” Black said in a statement. “This is an issue of states’ rights. Tennessee withdrew from the refugee resettlement program over a decade ago, and it’s time the federal government listens to the will of the people of Tennessee.” As reported by The Tennessee Star earlier, the Thomas Moore Law Center is handling the case as no cost to the state: “We are grateful to the designated representatives of the General Assembly, State Representatives Terri Lynn Weaver and William Lamberth and State Senator John Stevens, for authorizing us to continue this significant legal battle. This case involves critical constitutional issues regarding the appropriate balance between the powers of the federal government and the states. The district court decision dismissing this case conflicts with several U.S. Supreme Court opinions upholding State sovereignty against overreach by the federal government,” Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, said in the…

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Texas AG Paxton Files Seven-State Lawsuit Against Feds To End DACA

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 by Will Racke   Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday in a bid to force the termination of a program that gives younger illegal immigrants a reprieve from deportation, saying the Obama-era amnesty is outside the scope of executive authority. Six other states joined Paxton’s lawsuit challenging the constitutional muster of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Trump had intended to wind down DACA by March 5, but several federal court decisions have forced immigration authorities to continue issuing work permits under the program. “Our lawsuit is about the rule of law, not the wisdom of any particular immigration policy,” Paxton said in a statement. “Texas has argued for years that the federal executive branch lacks the power to unilaterally grant unlawfully present aliens lawful presence and work authorization. Left intact, DACA sets a dangerous precedent by giving the executive branch sweeping authority to ignore the laws enacted by Congress and change our nation’s immigration laws to suit a president’s own policy preferences.” Although the lawsuit names Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Thomas Homan as defendants, it is actually intended to assist the Trump administration’s…

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FACT CHECK: Former Vice Presidential Candidate Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) Wrongly Asserts the Statue of Liberty Was to Recognize the US as a ‘Nation of Immigrants’

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by Emily Larsen   Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said in a tweet Wednesday that the French recognized the U.S. as a nation of immigrants with the Statue of Liberty. Verdict: False The statue’s French creators intended for the colossus to celebrate independence and enlightenment. It later came to symbolize the promise of immigration. Fact Check: French President Emmanuel Macron addressed both houses of Congress, and the Supreme Court heard arguments in a case challenging President Donald Trump’s travel ban Wednesday. Kaine tied the two events to the Statue of Liberty. As I listen to French President Macron address Congress, I'm struck that it's the same day that the Supreme Court will hear the Muslim travel ban case. The French people recognized the U.S. as a nation of immigrants when they gifted us the Statue of Liberty. — Tim Kaine (@timkaine) April 25, 2018 “As I listen to French President Macron address Congress, I’m struck that it’s the same day that the Supreme Court will hear the Muslim travel ban case,” he tweeted. “The French people recognized the U.S. as a nation of immigrants when they gifted us the Statue of Liberty.” While the statue is now associated with the promise of immigration, its French creators…

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US Seeks Denaturalization of Two Convicted Bosnian Muslim War Criminals

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The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday asked courts to denaturalize two Bosnian Muslims who have been convicted in their native country of carrying out an execution-style massacre of Croatian villagers during the Balkan wars. Edin Dzeko, 46, and Sammy Rasema Yetisen, 45, both alleged former members of an elite Bosnian military unit responsible for carrying out the 1993 attack that killed 22 civilians, are accused of hiding their crimes on their refugee, permanent resident and citizenship applications.

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Bill Making It A Felony For Local Elected Officials To Vote In Conflict With State Or Federal Laws On Immigration May Die In Summer Study

Laura Baigert

NASHVILLE, Tennessee — After hearing the presentation and debate on a bill that would make it a felony for local officials to vote in conflict with state or federal laws on immigration or historical memorials, the House Criminal Justice Committee voted to send the bill to where many go to die — summer study, especially during an election year. The sponsor of the bill, State Rep. Dawn White (R-Murfreesboro), told The Tennessee Star following a voice vote, “They just voted for sanctuary cities.” White’s bill, sponsored by State Senator Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) in the Senate, would make it a Class E felony for a local official to knowingly vote for an ordinance or resolution that is in direct conflict with state or federal laws relative to immigration, such as sanctuary cities, or historic monuments. As previously reported by The Star, the crime would be punishable only by a fine, any elected official convicted of a felony is subject to the removal from office. The bill passed the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee the week prior, and then headed to the full Committee where there was debate for more than 30 minutes, primarily coming from State Rep. Antonio Parkinson (D-Memphis) toward the…

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Commentary: How To Make Nancy Pelosi Speaker Of The House

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by CHQ Staff   Multiple establishment media outlets are reporting that White House officials have told key Republican leaders on Capitol Hill that President Trump is open to cutting a deal in an upcoming spending bill to protect young immigrants from deportation in exchange for border wall funding, according to four GOP officials briefed on the talks. This possible change in policy would be a significant cave-in for Trump, who, as The Washington Post’s Mike DeBonis and Josh Dawsey remind us,  in January insisted on a much broader package of immigration restrictions in exchange for any protections for the so-called “dreamers” –  the illegal aliens brought to the United States illegally as children, some of whom have been protected under Obama’s unconstitutional Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that Trump rightly canceled in September. The immigration framework that Trump issued in January called for $25 billion in wall funding, alongside changes to immigration law that would curtail two key pathways for legal immigrants by ending the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, which distributes 50,000 visas a year through a lottery system, and by scaling back family-based immigration rules. In exchange, Trump proposed offering legal status and an eventual pathway to citizenship for…

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Commentary: Attorney General Jeff Sessions Wakes Up

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by CHQ Staff   To many conservatives it appears that Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who as a Senator was one of the few principled conservatives serving in the upper chamber of Congress, has been asleep at his desk at the Department of Justice. For the past year it has often looked as though Obama holdovers were in charge and few conservative priorities were being pursued. While things are far from perfect at DOJ conservatives can take heart that the Attorney General has taken on one of the most important challenges facing the Trump presidency and constitutional government; California’s “sanctuary” for illegal aliens policies. Yesterday, in remarks to the California Peace Officers’ Association, Attorney General Sessions laid down the law to the state of California: I understand that we have a wide variety of political opinions out there on immigration.  But the law is in the books and its purpose is clear. There is no nullification.  There is no secession.  Federal law is “the supreme law of the land.”  I would invite any doubters to Gettysburg, and to the graves of John C. Calhoun and Abraham Lincoln. A refusal to apprehend and deport those, especially the criminal element, effectively rejects all immigration law…

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Trump Administration Strikes Multiple Deportation Deals; What’s in Them?

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The Trump administration reports it has succeeded in reducing the number of countries that refuse to accept citizens deported from the United States. The administration says more than a dozen countries have been removed from the “recalcitrant” list. That opens the path for deportations to begin for some of the roughly 100,000 people from recalcitrant nations who have final orders of removal.

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Mexican Leader’s Visit with Trump Shelved Over Wall

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Mexico and the United States have shelved tentative plans for a visit to Washington by President Enrique Pena Nieto as tensions persist over a proposed border wall, US media reported Saturday. Pena Nieto had already cancelled a visit in January last year because of US President Donald Trump’s insistence that Mexico pay for the wall, which he wants as part of his efforts to curb immigration.

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Promise Kept: President Trump Creates ‘National Vetting Center’

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President Trump signed a National Security Presidential Memorandum Tuesday, establishing a National Vetting Center (NVC) to, according to a White House statement, “coordinate the efforts of departments and agencies to better identify individuals seeking to enter the country who present a threat to national security, border security, homeland security, or public safety.” Led by the Department of Homeland Security, the NVC, will fulfill President Trump’s campaign promise for “extreme vetting,” and help meet the requirement that all departments and agencies improve their coordination and use of intelligence and other information in the vetting process. “The Federal Government’s current vetting efforts are ad hoc, which impedes our ability to keep up with today’s threats,” Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said, adding: The NVC will better coordinate these activities in a central location, enabling officials to further leverage critical intelligence and law enforcement information to identify terrorists, criminals, and other nefarious actors trying to enter and remain within our country. The NVC’s operations will adhere to America’s strong protections for individuals’ privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties. The Administration’s top priority is the safety and security of the public, and the NVC will empower our frontline defenders to better fulfill that obligation.” Read…

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Republican State Senator Todd Gardenhire Re-Re-Re-Files Bill to Grant In-State Tuition Benefits to Illegal Alien Students

Christina Botteri
Gardenhire White

State Senator Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga) filed bill SB2263 Thursday which would grant in-state tuition discount benefits to illegal alien students. Dubbed ‘Tuition Opportunity,’ the measure was unsurprisingly co-sponsored by the Chattanooga-area lawmaker’s friend and ally, State Representative Mark White (R-Memphis), who filed HB2429, a state house version of the same bill. The bills’ summary reads: Education, Higher – As introduced, exempts certain students from paying out-of-state tuition at state institutions of higher education. – Amends TCA Section 4-58-102; Title 49, Chapter 7; Title 49, Chapter 8 and Title 49, Chapter 9. This year will be the fourth time the duo has sought to extend the education benefits. In 2015, the proposal passed the state Senate and failed in the state House by a single vote. Gardenhire and White tried again in 2016, where is failed to pass out of committee, despite and emotion discussion leading up to the vote. Last year, in 2017, they tried yet again, and the proposal did not make out it of committee. Nashville-based refugee, immigrant, and illegal alien advocacy group, the Tennessee Immigrant and Refuge Rights Coalition (TIRRC) celebrated the bill’s introduction with a statement: For months, we’ve been fighting to defend DACA and to fight for Dream Act…

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Diane Black: Even Democrats Are Unhappy with Pelosi’s ‘Venomous’ Talk

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Diane Black appeared on Fox Business’ After the Bell with Melissa Francis Monday to discuss the ongoing immigration reform negotiations. As an introduction to the segment, Francis aired Nancy Pelosi’s recent claim that President Trump’s ‘America First’ immigration framework is a ploy the “make America white again.” Francis asked, “You know, I always wonder: Does it impact the negotiation when politicians go out to the camera and say things like that, or do you understand that she’s sort of talking to her base, and everybody has this rhetoric, and when you come back together, it’s like that didn’t happen. What’s it really like behind closed doors?” Black replied, “I’m just going to tell you my experience with Ms. Pelosi, and that is that she has a pretty good heavy hand with her own conference. But I know behind the scenes, with having dealt with her own members, that they are not all in agreement with her. And I think they are getting worn out with the kind of political partisanship that she just spews all over the place. Most people that are rational people here willing to sit down and talk about this issue of DACA and of securing our borders.” The Republican…

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Actually, It’s Lindsey Graham Who Is Out of Mainstream on Immigration

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Sen. Lindsey Graham ripped senior White House aide Stephen Miller as holding immigration views that are out of the American political mainstream, but a new poll suggests it is the South Carolina senator who is alienated form public sentiment. The Harvard CAPS/Harris poll indicates a majority opposed the partial government shutdown that Graham supported and suggested broad support for many of the immigration views that Miller — and his boss, President Donald Trump — advocate.

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Commentary: Don’t Believe the Hype Behind the Low Immigration Numbers

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by Printus LeBlanc   Every day the mainstream media is hysterical about the DACA, the Dreamers (because American kids aren’t allowed to have dreams), and Amnesty. They will spit out numbers and shady poll results trying to paint a rosy picture of illegal immigration. But a small amount of research will show they are spitting out lies to achieve the desired outcome, the importation of millions of progressive voters. To quote a famous rap group, “Don’t Believe the Hype.” One of the biggest lies being told about immigration is how many illegal immigrants are in the country. The media often touts the 11-12 million number put out by the Census Bureau. The Census Bureau reaches the number through a flawed method. It counts on a survey done by the federal government. If we are to believe the liberal logic that illegal immigrants are “in the shadows,” then the number cannot be right because people “in the shadows” do not voluntarily speak to people working for the government. Remember, they’re “in the shadows.” The actual number is between 20-30 million illegal immigrants. The figure comes from a report titled The Underground Labor Force Is Rising To The Surface. The report was put together in 2005…

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Commentary: Trump Says What Normal Americans Think, Establishment Goes Nuts

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by George Rasley, CHQ Editor   [Editor’s note: This commentary contains strong adult language not suitable for young children.] We’ve observed an interesting phenomenon since Donald Trump was elected President; it is now common for almost any political discussion to include the phrase “normal Americans” to contrast what people outside the Beltway think about issues versus what the establishment elite think about the issues. Does that mean that liberals are not “normal?” We think it does, and we cite the liberal explosion of outrage over the President asking why we need more immigration from “shithole” countries as evidence. In an Oval Office meeting at the White House Thursday, ABC News reports that President Trump grew frustrated at a proposed bipartisan immigration plan that would scale back the visa lottery program, but not eliminate it, asking those in the room why they would want more people from Haiti, Africa and other “shithole countries” coming into the United States, according to multiple sources either briefed on or familiar with the discussion. ABC reports the president suggested instead that the U.S. should have more people from places like Norway, whose prime minister he met with Wednesday, according to these sources. Note there’s no firsthand…

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Mae Beavers Rejects Democrat and Republican Leadership’s ‘Amnesty First’ Demands

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In light of Democrats – and some Republicans – push for “amnesty now, reforms later,” gubernatorial hopeful Mae Beavers issued a statement Tuesday reiterating her support of President Trump’s plans to secure the nation’s borders, as well as implement critical reforms to the immigration system including ending the practice of so-called “chain migration” and the Visa lottery, making mandatory the use of the federally run E-Verify by every employer in America. “The cornerstone of President Trump’s campaign was to secure our border and stop the flood of illegal immigrants into our country,” Beavers pointed out. “Millions of Americans voted for him based on that campaign promise alone, and I have every confidence that President Trump intends to fulfill his promise,” adding: I encourage the Tennessee Congressional delegation to stand solidly with President Trump in rejecting any and all attempts to water down his campaign promises with some sort of ‘we will get to border security later’ scheme. Congress has promised to secure our border AFTER we grant certain levels of amnesty before. We always get the amnesty…but never the increased border security and enforcement of our immigration laws. I am calling on our entire Tennessee Senate and Congressional delegation to make it…

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State Senator Todd Gardenhire Considering Renewal of In-State Tuition Push for Illegal Aliens, Despite Poll Showing Widespread Opposition

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State Senator Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga) is considering another try at getting in-state tuition for illegal aliens, despite a recent Tennessee Star Poll released just before Christmas that shows likely Republican primary voters oppose the proposal by an astounding 88 percent to 6 percent margin. (See question 12 on page 3 below.) [pdf-embedder url=”https://tennesseestar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/171219-Triton-Dec-2017-TN-Star-GOP-Primary-Survey-Topline-Results.pdf” title=”171219 Triton – Dec 2017 TN Star GOP Primary Survey – Topline Results”] The Tennessee General Assembly is set to reconvene at noon, January 9, and the Chattanooga-area legislator told the Times Free Press he hasn’t yet “tested the waters” to see if there has been any significant movement by the state’s lawmakers toward granting the significant discounts to would-be students whose legal status is dubious, at best. One reason for Gardenhire’s hesitation to push for the measure likely stems from the fact that every gubernatorial candidate has come out against the proposal, which he says “surprised” him. “Mark White and I need to sit down and talk about it,” Gardenhire said to the Times Free Press. “So we’ll have to see what the temperature is before we sit down and try to take that on.” The proposal passed the state Senate on 2015, but failed in the state House by a single vote.…

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Marsha Blackburn: ‘It’s Time to Move to Merit-Based Immigration’

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U.S. Senate candidate Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07) appeared with Shannon Bream Wednesday evening on “Fox News @ Night” for an interview covering Congress members’ reaction to President Trump’s call for ending the visa lottery system, chain migration, and other policies that inch the United States ever closer to an open-border nation. Bream opened the interview asking how Congress will “tackle” the issues President Trump mentioned, and if there would be any bipartisanship to do so. “I would hope so,” Representative Blackburn replied, and the pointed out that the RAISE Act, introduced earlier this year by Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton and Georgia Senator David Perdue, is a specific piece of legislation that addresses both of the issues the president identified. “This is one thing that we know,” she said, wrapping up her opening remarks. “It’s time to move to a merit-based system.” Blackburn added that, “we are a country that recognizes merit, so let’s move to that.” Bream used the remarks of Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski to the Miami Herald to challenge Blackburn’s assertion, quoting: Derisive comments on ‘chain migration’ forget that a foundational principal of our immigration law has long been to help reunite families. But this principle has been seriously…

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Commentary: The Real Immigration Battle Is Going to Be Over Chain Migration

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by Printus LeBlanc   Following the New York City terrorist attack last week, many people were shocked to find out the attacker was an invited guest to the U.S., via the visa lottery program. The visa lottery program is the shiny object in the media right now, but the real danger is the chain migration that eventually brings an immigrant’s entire family to the U.S. Current U.S. immigration policy is based on family reunification. This includes immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, a separate category from the families of legal permanent residents. Immediate relatives include spouses, children under 21, and parents. But family reunification of immigrant arrivals in addition to U.S. citizens has also been a basis for admitting immigrants, but the priority went to the highly-educated and skilled. The promotion of family reunification originated with the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). The INA established a hierarchy of family-based preferences, like parents, adult children, and adult siblings. However, priority still went to highly-educated or skilled immigrants. The Immigration Act of 1965 (Hart-Celler Act) was the next piece of legislation to influence chain migration. The bill went beyond simply promoting family reunification and made it the priority of U.S. immigration policy.…

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Representative Diane Black Stands with President Trump on ‘Immigration Policies and Principles’

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Gubernatorial hopeful Representative Diane Black (TN-06) issued a strong statement of support Monday of President Trump’s extensive series of memos outlining the White House Immigration Policies and Principles. The new outline is, by and large, a restatement of previous positions together into a single, comprehensive document (see embedded .pdf below). “I applaud President Trump for taking a strong step to secure our borders and keep Americans safe,” Representative Black stated, adding: The President has been consistent in his efforts to stop illegal immigration and make sure that we put Americans first. I support him and I hope every Republican does the same. I’m glad the President has included some of the provisions from my bill with Senator Toomey (H.R.400 –  Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act) to end sanctuary cities and make sure that liberal politicians around the country can’t ignore the law and put their citizens in danger. It’s something we need to do, and I support President Trump’s efforts to do it.” The Principles, which were included in a letter sent by President Trump to Senate and House leadership Sunday, were also tweeted via the White House pool: Enforce Immigration Laws Across the United States https://t.co/4ZDIYTWpHv — Public Pool (@WHPublicPool) October…

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