Saturday, December 7, 2002

Past Features   ABP Updates  Poll on Militia

N.Y. Times (Free Registration)   For Immigrants, the Watchword Suddenly Is Enforcement In the annals of Washington policy debates, few have been as emotional, and seemingly insoluble, as those involving immigration. -- Should the government's immigration agencies focus on law enforcement - policing the borders to block the entry of illegal immigrants - or on services to welcome hard-working new immigrants to American shores? Should the government's priority be keeping the bad guys out, or helping the good guys in?

Orange County Weekly -- Gustavo Arrelano Malkin finds home amongst local 'immigrant-bashers' (he means illegals) The way the young woman with the flaming-red hair sees it, the War on Terror should make an immigrant-hater out of any leftist. -- "I thought I used to be liberal," the Fullerton resident says, her backpack a marquee of her abandoned politics-a rainbow patch and an alien giving the peace sign. "I used to believe in welfare, peace and helping out the poor. But if you allow unfettered immigration, this is what happens." -- She points to an anti-immigration pamphlet with a picture of the exploding Twin Towers....

Sham ID Cards

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Spencer on sham ID's: "Accepting them is insane" ...So far this year, the consulate has issued nearly 20,000 of the photo ID cards, known as "matriculas consulares" -- a 25 percent increase over all of 2001, said Jorge Madrazo, consul of Mexico for Washington and Alaska. -- The cards are "a way of getting around the crackdown on phony IDs that followed 9/11," said Glenn Spencer of American Patrol, a California-based anti-immigration group. "It is part of Mexico's overall plan of conquest of the American Southwest. Accepting them is insane."

Richard Salvatierra

Tucson Citizen Fox yaps about border, but U.S. isn't interested ...Getting back to Mexico, it is absolutely amazing how Fox can speak about the constant flow of illegal entrants into this country as though there is no issue of American law. -- In this context, what also amazes is how that country's foreign minister, the leftist Jorge Castaneda, will brazenly speak about the need for a "militant" campaign in this country in order to win U.S. public support for Mexico's objectives. -- For a country that always has been hyper-sensitive about even a hint of American interference in its internal affairs, all of this really takes the cake.

Associated Press Prostitution ring broken up Authorities announced charges against six alleged leaders of a prostitution ring they said employed more than 50 smuggled Russian women. -- The ring allegedly earned as much as $8 million while operating in the Los Angeles area over 22 months, said Det. Keith Haight, who headed the two-year investigation. Officials said the prostitution bust was one of the largest in city history. -- "Russian prostitution is changing the face of prostitution in Los Angeles right now," said Haight, an investigator with the Los Angeles Police Department's organized crime and vice division.

Tucson Citizen Editorial Paper wants invasion chat resumed It's time for the United States to again undertake serious immigration discussions with Mexico after an understandable delay necessitated by last year's terrorist attacks. -- There are some things that could be accomplished fairly quickly. But one of the top items on Mexico's agenda - amnesty for immigrants now in the United States illegally - is much more problematic. -- In an article on this page, Juan José Bremer, Mexico's ambassador to the United States, reflects his government's call for re-establishing the dialogue halted by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and subsequent U.S. security concerns.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution Coweta County closes prenatal unit as too costly Coweta County Health Department officials had so few women in their prenatal program four years ago that they considered closing it. -- Now they've decided to shut down the program because they have too many clients --- nearly all of them Hispanic. -- "The needs have just outgrown the services that we can provide," said Alice Jackson, the department's nurse manager. -- The problem is directly tied to Coweta's shifting demographics. Nearly all of the program's clients are Hispanics who aren't U.S. citizens.

Santa Fe New Mexican Waiting for Work A recent altercation at De Vargas Park has a state Department of Labor official frustrated because he believes city leaders are doing little to improve conditions for laborers who gather there in search of work each day. -- Gilbert Romero said he has been asking city leaders to help him locate an office where the men - mostly Mexican immigrants - can gather to sign simple contracts with employers who hire them. -- [A local] resolution prohibits the city from using its resources to identify or apprehend undocumented immigrants and prevents police from asking people about their immigration status. [Also see: Aiding and abetting illegals is a crime]

Gainesville Times Illegal alien license hearing draws 200 A hearing Friday on legislation permitting illegal immigrants to obtain Georgia driver's licenses evoked strong responses from a standing-room-only crowd at the Georgia Mountains Center. -- "Why would we want anyone here who doesn't abide by the laws?" said Gainesville business owner Susan Collins. -- Hall [County] is more than 19% Latino. An unknown number of Latino and other immigrants are here illegally, which is a felony. -- "What part of illegal don't you understand?" asked retired Army Col. A.R. "Mac" MacCahan, a Gainesville resident. -- Public safety is the main issue, said Jerry Gonzalez of MALDEF, touting endorsements by three police chiefs.

Star Tribune Airport restaurant, manager fined over illegal workers A Chinese fast-food restaurant at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and its manager face civil and criminal fines totaling $30,400 for hiring people who didn't have authorization to work in the United States. -- Wok & Roll, a franchise based in New York, is the first airport business to be fined after months of intensified operations by the INS office in Bloomington. -- Lina Wong, company vice president, said Friday that the franchise had learned about the INS' notice to fine this week and had retained an attorney. She declined to elaborate.

EFE Richardson wants closer ties with Mexico New Mexico Governor-elect Bill Richardson said Friday that the U.S.-Mexican border should not be militarized, calling instead for strengthened bilateral trade and revisions to Washington's immigration policy. -- "I don't think it's necessary to militarize the border. I think we must improve economic and cultural relations with Mexico," he said during a visit to Washington. -- Richardson was honored on Friday for his role as the head of the Energy Department under the administration of former President Bill Clinton...

The Arizona Republic Pimentel bemoans Tombstone militia Chris Simcox has said that his vigilante Civilian Homeland Defense team will be peaceful as it zealously protects us from menacing Mexican migrants crossing into Arizona to do the work we won't do ourselves. -- Don't believe him. -- His group just graduated from foolishly dangerous to earnestly and purposely deadly. -- It did so with Simcox's assertion, published recently in Tucson's Arizona Daily Star, that his vigilantes intend to patrol routes leading to desert water stations. -- Let's be clear. This will almost certainly kill people.

Tucson Citizen Emergency medical services for lawbreakers costing Arizona $100M The federal government has to pony up cash to help border communities and hospitals cover the costs of emergency medical care to illegal immigrants, the state's two U.S. senators and two congressmen representing border districts said yesterday. -- Sen. Jon Kyl, accompanied by fellow Republicans Sen. John McCain and U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe, and Democratic congressman-elect [Mechista, reconquista] Raúl Grijalva, visited Tucson and the border cities of Nogales and Douglas yesterday for briefings with health-care and immigration officials.