News Clips March 19, 2010

Immigration advocates to gather in Orlando to prepare for D.C. march

“This march is not only for the immigrants, but is also for civil and human rights in our country,” said Yanidsi Velez, a junior organizer in Orlando with Democracia Ahora.

As of Friday afternoon, advocacy groups had booked 14 buses to transport about 800 protesters. Another 30 buses from the Florida Immigrant Coalition are expected to join the caravan, leaving after the Saturday rally and expected to arrive for an interfaith service and the national march Sunday at the National Mall.

Orlando’s immigration advocates are gearing up for a local rally and trip to Washington this weekend, where they expect to join hundreds of thousands calling on the Obama administration and Congress to enact reform that would allow millions of illegal immigrants to stay in the U.S.

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-03-18/news/os-immigration-march-for-america-20100318_1_immigration-advocates-illegal-immigrants-florida-immigrant-coalition

Immigration reform: Stuck on back burner?

Rigoberto Lopez will be one of an expected tens of thousands of people who will descend on Washington on Sunday to press Congress to pass a bill on comprehensive immigration reform.

Lopez, 41, of the Eastwick section of Philadelphia, said he came into this country illegally from Mexico when he was a child after his father was murdered and his mother crossed the border to support him and his siblings.

He is now a U.S. citizen, following a 1986 amnesty that granted legal status to 2.6 million illegal immigrants in the country.

Groups going to D.C. from this area include the Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia, Juntos and Democracia Ahora.

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/88526342.html

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Calls for Passage of Health Care Reform

WASHINGTON, March 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) today called for passage of President Obama’s health care reform proposal, saying that it would greatly improve the quality of life for millions of Latinos. The measure is expected to expand coverage to 8.8 million Latinos, or 60% of the currently uninsured Hispanic community.

“With one in three Latinos lacking a steady source of health care, the current system has been devastating to our families and communities,” said Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez (D-NY), the Chair of the CHC.  “The legislation before Congress offers a historic opportunity to address these problems and make quality, affordable medical care accessible for millions of Latinos.”

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/congressional-hispanic-caucus-calls-for-passage-of-health-care-reform-88504127.html

Highlights of health care bill

Some of the key changes that House Democrats made to the Senate health care bill:

CONGRESS: Health care bill heads for showdown
FULL TEXT: Read the proposed bill
TIMELINE: Path to health care legislation
Issue   Context         Senate bill     House change
Accessibility   Both bills aim to increase Americans’ access to health care coverage by expanding Medicaid, providing subsidies to middle-income families and imposing a host of new taxes and fees to pay for it.      Would cost $871 billion in the first 10 years and would provide coverage to 31 million Americans who wouldn’t otherwise have it.        Would cost $940 billion in the first 10 years and would cover 32 million Americans.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-03-18-health-bill-table_N.htm

Factbox: Details of final healthcare bill

(Reuters) – Congressional Democrats have unveiled the final changes to a sweeping healthcare overhaul they hope will clear the House of Representatives on Sunday.

Democrats are using a two-step process that involves the House approving the Senate-passed version of the bill and passing the proposed final changes. The Senate must act on the changes before President Barack Obama can sign them into law. Here are key provisions of the legislation including the proposed changes.

INSURANCE MARKET REFORM

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE62H5AK20100319

Arizona sheriff launches immigration sweep

PHOENIX — The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office in Arizona has launched a two-day, countywide crime and immigration sweep that authorities say will focus on drop houses, drug violators and human smuggling vehicles.

Four hundred deputies and volunteer posse members are taking part in the patrols. The sweep, which began Thursday, is Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s 14th since early 2008.
During the sweeps, deputies flood an area of a city – in some cases heavily Latino areas – to seek out traffic violators and arrest other alleged lawbreakers

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/18/AR2010031805083.html

Would Legalizing Illegal Immigrants Help the GOP?

Republicans, who have been under fire in the Latino community for junking immigration reform in the Bush administration
and promoting some policies that appear anti-immigrant, think they can win back Hispanics, in part because President Obama has largely ignored the issue. One way they see to do it is to legalize illegals.

“Conservative leaders see opportunity for the party,” says a Republican immigration reform advocate. “Due to Obama’s lack of action on his promise of immigration reform, we believe Latino voters are open to being wooed by Republicans,” the conservative activist
said.

The wooing began today at an immigration reform forum sponsored by the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles on Capitol Hill. Proponents say they want the plan to suggest that border security isn’t enough to form an immigration bill. They also want to figure out how to deal with current illegals, perhaps through legalization or a guest worker program. But, says one involved, they don’t support “amnesty, per se.”

http://www.usnews.com/blogs/washington-whispers/2010/03/18/would-legalizing-illegal-immigrants-help-the-gop.html

Weekly Diaspora: No sleep ’till march on Washington

This Sunday, tens of thousands of people plan to march on the National Mall in Washington, DC in an effort to persuade Congress and the Obama administration to tackle immigration reform in 2010. More than 700 buses are bringing an estimated 100,000 supporters to the nation’s capital for the March for America. Participants are hoping to show strength in numbers on the ground, and flex muscle on Capitol Hill as well.

Advocacy groups are organizing countless phone banks and Congressional office visits to encourage lawmakers to support a pathway to citizenship for the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants who live and work in the United States.

http://rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/media-consortium-blog/2010/03/weekly-diaspora-no-sleep-%E2%80%98till-march-washington

Census Says “Hispanic” Not A Race

Bronx, NY – With millions of US Census forms hitting mailboxes this month, Latin Americans are noticing a confusing quirk in the 10-part questionnaire.

The Census does not consider Hispanic to be a racial category.

Responders have the option to label themselves as White, Black, American Indian, or under one of several Asian / Pacific Islander classifications. The race question offers no check box for Latino or Hispanic.

“For me to see this I feel kind of offended,” said Richard Robles, a Puerto Rican security guard who works in the South Bronx.

The Census form does have a question about Hispanic origins where responders can classify themselves as Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban, or one of several other Latino ancestries. Those categories, though, are not considered “races.”

The Census form does consider “Chinese,” “Filipino,” and “Korean” to be racial categories.

Professor Juan Flores, a Latino Studies expert at New York University says designers of the 2010 questionnaire have confused race with nationality, leaving some Hispanic responders frustrated.

http://www.wpix.com/news/local/wpix-census-hispanics,0,4163472.story

News Clips March 17, 2010

Immigration Reformers Will March in Washington, D.C.

Hispanic Organization Democracia USA hosted a forum at USF on Tuesday to discuss Comprehensive Immigration Reform and the DREAM Act, two bills before the U.S. House of Representatives that call for improvements on a variety of issues involving undocumented immigrants in America.
Democracia USA, partnered with Reform Immigration for America (RIFA) and Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC), detailed the legislation and promoted an upcoming march in Washington, D.C on Sunday, March 21 to show support for reform. The national organizations are busing supporters to D.C. from states across the country. Florida alone is sending 43 buses.

http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/dailyloaf/2010/03/17/immigration-reformers-will-march-in-washington-d-c/

Healthcare reform ‘fixes’: What does the House want to change?

House Democrats are considering a package of ‘fixes’ to the Senate healthcare reform bill. Among the demands: lowering the cost of the bill and removing sweetheart deals for some states.
Washington

With Republicans on the sidelines, the endgame for healthcare reform is playing out within divided House Democratic ranks, where a decisive vote is expected as early as this week.

Since Senate Democrats lost their filibuster-proof majority with the election of Sen. Scott Brown (R) of Massachusetts, Democratic leaders have decided to try to pass the Senate’s version in the House – in part to avoid the Senate’s procedural hurdles as much as possible. The problem is, many in the House don’t like the Senate bill and won’t pass it.

The proposed solution has been a package of “fixes” to the Senate bill. It’s not a perfect answer, because the Senate will also need to pass the fixes – and will need to resort to the controversial process of reconciliation to avoid a filibuster. But Democrats see it as the least worst option.

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2010/0317/Healthcare-reform-fixes-What-does-the-House-want-to-change

Budget Cut for Fence on U.S.-Mexico Border

Citing a plague of “cost overruns and missed deadlines,” Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said Tuesday that she would cut millions of dollars intended for a high-tech “virtual fence” along the Mexican border that has produced little more than headaches for the federal government.

Ms. Napolitano said her department would divert about $50 million in federal stimulus money intended for the project to other technological needs on the border, including laptops, radios, thermal-imaging devices and cameras requested by border guards.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/17/us/17fence.html

Secure Border Initiative to undergo overhaul

Washington (CNN) — Another brick is falling from the Bush administration’s highly touted “virtual wall” that was intended to keep illegal immigrants from entering the United States.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said Tuesday she will take $50 million in federal stimulus money away from the Secure Border Initiative, also known as SBInet, and spend it on proven, off-the-shelf technology to protect U.S. borders.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/03/16/us.border.security.initiative/

Immigration reform: Stuck in the shadows

On Sunday, tens of thousands of Americans who supported Barack Obama’s presidential campaign in 2008 will gather on the Mall to protest the president’s lack of action on a cause to which he had committed himself throughout the campaign: immigration reform.

As a candidate, Obama spoke eloquently of the need to bring the estimated 11 million immigrants here without documentation “out of the shadows.” As president, he stepped up the number of deportations to an all-time high: 298,401 in fiscal 2009, a 13 percent increase over the last year of George W. Bush’s presidency. But reforming our ridiculous immigration laws so that the millions of immigrants here illegally could have a path to legalization was deferred, like so many administration commitments, until health-care reform was enacted.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/16/AR2010031604611.html?hpid=opinionsbox1

Obama on Immigration: Then and Now

Three years ago, when I met with Senator Barack Obama in his Chicago office and we contemplated his possible run for the presidency, I was enthusiastic.

On that day, it was hard for me to imagine a time I would have to say no to Barack Obama when he asked me for support. But last week, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus sat down with the president, and he asked us to vote for the health care reform bill — a bill that denies immigrants the opportunity to purchase health care with their own money. It was one more in a string of disappointments for the Hispanic community, and today, I no longer find myself able to confidently say “yes” when President Obama asks me for his support.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-luis-gutierrez/obama-on-immigration-then_b_502074.html

Hispanic Youth Marketing Takes Center Stage on Newly Expanded Agenda of Hispanic PR & Social Marketing Conference,

May 10-12 in Dallas

DALLAS, March 16 /PRNewswire/ — Hispanic youth marketing best practices are the focus of four new sessions added to the professional development agenda of the Hispanic PR & Social Marketing Conference, May 10-12 in Dallas, TX. The conference, a co-presentation of the Hispanic Public Relations Association (HPRA) and the Hispanic PR Blog, now features an amazing 20 sessions of training.

“Our conference now represents the ultimate annual marketers’ boot camp for a wide range of topics related to Hispanic PR and social marketing,” said Manny Ruiz, conference organizer and publisher of the Hispanic PR Blog. “Our new case study-driven sessions on marketing to Latino youth strengthen our convention’s unique value proposition.”

The new sessions include case study focused presentations by the U.S. Army, Microsoft Zune and Major League Soccer. These sessions join a fourth one featuring Latino urban youth marketing expert Fred Sotelo. The full conference agenda with days and times will be unveiled on Wednesday, March 17 at http://www.HispanicPRConference.com.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hispanic-youth-marketing-takes-center-stage-on-newly-expanded-agenda-of-hispanic-pr–social-marketing-conference-may-10-12-in-dallas-87839052.html

Immigration detainees moved to N.J. protest boost in phone charges

KEARNY — Immigration detainees who were moved here when New York City shut its detention center last month face an 800 percent increase in telephone charges to contact relatives or lawyers, according to a report in The New York Times.

The report said more than 180 detainees were moved to the Hudson County Correctional Center here. Phone calls from the center cost more than 89 cents per minute and system was described as difficult to use, according to detainees who contacted the American Bar Association for help. Detainees threatened to conduct a hunger strike.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/03/immigration_detainees_moved_to.html

Ariz. House to act on immigration enforcement bill

PHOENIX (AP) – The Arizona House is scheduled Wednesday to debate and vote on a sweeping bill to strengthen immigration enforcement laws.

The bill has already been passed by the Senate so House approval would complete legislative action and send it to Gov. Jan Brewer.

Provisions include banning local governments from adopting policies that prevent police from asking people about their immigration status and making it a state crime to be in Arizona illegally or to transport or conceal an illegal immigrant.

http://www.kgun9.com/Global/story.asp?S=12154131

News Clips March 15, 2010

Health care foes have 200 no votes in House

Washington (CNN) — Even as a top House Democrat expressed confidence in passing legislation to overhaul health care, a new CNN analysis shows that opposition in the House of Representatives to the Senate health care plan has reached 200 members.

That figure is 16 votes shy of the 216 needed to prevent President Obama from scoring a major victory on his top domestic priority.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/16/house.health.care/?hpt=Sbin

House may try to pass Senate health-care bill without voting on it

After laying the groundwork for a decisive vote this week on the Senate’s health-care bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested Monday that she might attempt to pass the measure without having members vote on it.
The tactic — known as a “self-executing rule” or a “deem and pass” — has been commonly used, although never to pass legislation as momentous as the $875 billion health-care bill. It is one of three options that Pelosi said she is considering for a late-week House vote, but she added that she prefers it because it would politically protect lawmakers who are reluctant to publicly support the measure.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/15/AR2010031503742.html?hpid=topnews

Latino clergy urge undocumented to boycott census

PHOENIX (AP) — The National Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders is urging undocumented immigrants not to fill out the U.S. Census forms that are starting to arrive in mailboxes.

The coalition’s chairman, the Reverend Miguel Rivera, says undocumented immigrants should boycott the census unless comprehensive immigration reform offers them a path to citizenship.

http://www.wtsp.com/news/national/story.aspx?storyid=127600&catid=81

False word of fed immigration bust has Trenton Latinos in hiding

TRENTON — It might have been bogus, but a rumor that federal agents raided a city shopping center in search of Latino illegal aliens forced many immigrants into hiding over the weekend.

Latino leaders said the hoax interrupted lives as false word spread that U.S. immigration agents raided Trenton’s Roebling Market shopping center in Chambersburg.

http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2010/03/16/news/doc4b9f1d57e989c701590829.txt

Latinos lobby on payday loans, other issues

What started as a car-repair emergency quickly escalated into a financial crisis that Mercy Salazar would rather have kept secret.

But instead of hiding her story about how she got tangled up in a cycle of payday lending, the University of Colorado Denver graduate student now tells her story to help move legislation that Latino activists say is intended to protect them.

The recession has hit the Latino community in different ways, in the cost of getting a small payday loan, budget cuts in already poor schools and less access to health care.

More than 100 activists, community leaders and youths met Sunday and Monday for the fourth annual Colorado Latina and Latino Advocacy Day, focusing on those issues and discussing policies to change the way those issues affect Latinos.

Read more: http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14682142#ixzz0iLIQyi0U

Hispanics decry House bill

The proposal would require schools to verify and report all students’ immigration status.

A bill that would require Oklahoma public schools to verify the immigration status of all students and report it to the state Department of Education drew fire from Tulsa Hispanic leaders Monday as well as criticism from Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Keith Ballard.

“I don’t think it’s wise to make schools responsible for gathering that kind of information,” Ballard said. “It would be a huge undertaking and detract from our mission, which is to teach kids.”

Earlier in the day, representatives of the Tulsa Hispanic Chamber of Commerce said the measure, House Bill 3384, by Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, would create an unfunded mandate for already-strapped schools and is a step toward shutting illegal immigrants out of public education.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=16&articleid=20100316_16_A9_TulsaH677493

News Clips March 12, 2010

Stakes Getting Higher for Obama, Latino Voters, and Immigration

Maybe there’s a game on. The President had three meetings on immigration reform at the White House today.  He is increasingly under pressure to act on promises he made as a candidate to enact immigration reform in his first year in office and, now in his second year, the patience of pro-reform advocates – and Latino and immigrant voters – is wearing thin.
The power of the Latino vote is a big reason the Democrats won the White House and control of both houses of Congress in 2008.  If the Democrats fail to address the immigration issue – an issue to which Latino voters are particularly sensitive and which helped drive their increased turnout in 2008 – the Democrats face even longer odds with voters in 2010.

http://newsjunkiepost.com/2010/03/12/stakes-getting-higher-for-obama-latino-voters-and-immigration/

Gut Check Time for GOP on Immigration

There is a quiet battle underway within the Republican Party that may soon break out into the open – and it will heavily impact whether the GOP can continue as a national political party in the decades ahead.

The conflict is over how the Party will position itself with respect to the question of immigration reform – and just as importantly – the fastest-growing demographic group in country: Hispanic Americans.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-creamer/gut-check-time-for-gop-on_b_496341.html

Lindsey Graham: Immigration reform in peril

A pair of White House meetings Thursday designed to chart a path forward for immigration reform instead spotlighted the daunting obstacles ahead — and showed why many Capitol Hill insiders believe it’s quite unlikely an immigration bill will happen this year.

After meeting with President Barack Obama, the leading Republican backing a comprehensive approach warned that a Democratic health care push could scuttle any chance of action on immigration in this Congress.

“I expressed, in no uncertain terms, my belief that immigration reform could come to a halt for the year if health care reconciliation goes forward,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in a statement issued just after he and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) met with Obama.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/34299.html

Senators give Obama a bipartisan plan on immigration

Reporting from Washington – A pair of influential senators presented President Obama with a three-page blueprint for a bipartisan agreement to overhaul the nation’s immigration system, but the proposal’s viability is threatened by politics surrounding the healthcare debate.

Sens. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), in a 45-minute meeting Thursday in the Oval Office, also asked for Obama’s help in rounding up enough Republican votes to pass an immigration bill this year.

Although details of their blueprint were not released, Graham said the elements included tougher border security, a program to admit temporary immigrant workers and a biometric Social Security card that would prevent people here illegally from getting jobs.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-immigration12-2010mar12,0,5784564.story

Why the 2010 Census will target Valley Hispanics

PHOENIX, AZ — A Census public service announcement will be out in a couple of days calling on the Hispanic community to come forward and be counted.

The PSA emphasizes the importance of participating in the 2010 Census which will in turn bring money into the community for transit, infrastructure and political representation.

http://www.abc15.com/content/financialsurvival/azstories/story/Why-the-2010-Census-will-target-Valley-Hispanics/eJBWMQ9p60yyRyzbKS0xMA.cspx

Census workers aiming to coax undocumented immigrants out of shadows

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. —  Sure, he has seen the ads on television and heard the public service announcements on Spanish radio, but Alejandro Martinez said he had no intention of filling out the U.S. Census questionnaire.

“It’s not worth the effort; it doesn’t really relate to the immigrant community,” said Martinez, of Port Richmond, in Spanish, as he stood yesterday with other day laborers on the service road, at the Forest Avenue exit off the Martin Luther King Jr. Expressway. “I’m not scared. I just don’t see the importance.”

But when a friend of his, Juan Perez, explained he would respond when the letter arrives in the mail in the next week or two because doing so could bring more funds to their neighborhood — it prompted Martinez to warm to the idea, musing: “Maybe, if it comes right to my house, I’ll fill it out. Why not?”

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/03/census_workers_aiming_to_coax.html

Rights Groups to ICE: Stop Raids for Census

OAKLAND, Calif. – Immigrant rights advocates have sent a letter to President Barack Obama and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano asking them to immediately suspend all immigration enforcement activities through the end of the year in order to decrease fear within immigrant communities and encourage their participation in the 2010 Census.

Questionnaires for the 2010 Census are due to arrive in the mailbox of every U.S. household between now and April 1.

“We are genuinely concerned that the climate of fear will seriously impact the census form return rate of immigrant households — and if people do not return the form, they will be reluctant to open the door to a follow-up visit from a census worker,” said Catherine Tactaquin, director of National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (NNIRR). “We really need the leadership of the administration right now to make a difference in the success of the census among our diverse immigrant populations.”

http://news.ncmonline.com/news/view_article.html?article_id=5b7a2f63b847f0ce9b9a6505a810604e

Health Reform Myths

Health reform is back from the dead. Many Democrats have realized that their electoral prospects will be better if they can point to a real accomplishment. Polling on reform — which was never as negative as portrayed — shows signs of improving. And I’ve been really impressed by the passion and energy of this guy Barack Obama. Where was he last year?

But reform still has to run a gantlet of misinformation and outright lies. So let me address three big myths about the proposed reform, myths that are believed by many people who consider themselves well-informed, but who have actually fallen for deceptive spin.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/12/opinion/12krugman.html?src=twt&twt=NytimesKrugman

News Clips March 11, 2010

Aldermen Blast Obama for Lack of Immigration Reform

Some Chicago aldermen are criticizing President Barack Obama and national Democratic leaders over immigration reform.

They say Democrats have so far failed to live up to campaign promises. Twenty-sixth ward Alderman Roberto Maldonado says enough is enough.

MALDONADO: And what we have seen by both President Barack Obama and Senator Durbin is a betrayal, a betrayal to the Latino community.

The aldermen and other Latino community leaders are calling for a moratorium on raids, deportations and the separation of families until immigration reform is passed. They will march in Washington later this month.

http://www.wbez.org/Content.aspx?audioID=40583

Immigration provision has Hispanic Caucus threatening ‘no’ health vote

A group of Hispanic lawmakers on Thursday will tell President Barack Obama that they may not vote for healthcare reform unless changes are made to the bill’s immigration provisions.
The scheduled meeting comes as Democratic leaders and the White House are struggling to craft a final bill that will attract 216 votes in the lower chamber.
Unlike abortion, immigration has flown beneath the radar, and almost seemed to vanish altogether as House Democrats have wrestled with how to accept a Senate healthcare bill far different from the one they passed in November.

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/86125-hispanic-caucus-threat-to-vote-no-on-healthcare

Immigrants prep for march on D.C.

Talk is cheap. That’s what immigrants and their supporters – fed up with empty promises about reform – are ready to tell to President Obama on March 21.

Carrying signs reading “Friends make good on their promises,” thousands will rally in the nation’s capital to demand immigration reform.

“One year and three months into the Obama administration, who would’ve ever imagined that tens of thousands of immigrants would march on Washington to protest its destructive immigration policies?” asked Chung-Wha Hong, the New York Immigration Coalition executive director.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/03/11/2010-03-11_immigrants_prep_for_march_on_dc.html#ixzz0hsJM1jRi

A Little Momentum on Immigration Reform

It’s always amusing to watch political leaders trying to catch up with the people. The White House is now sprinting to catch up with those demanding practical solutions to our broken immigration system. After more than 14 months and no progress, the grassroots finally lost their patience.

One would like to think that this belated effort from the administration is being stoked by a renewed understanding of the moral dimensions of the crisis and comprehension of the desperate need our economy has for the infusion that immigration reform would bring.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deepak-bhargava/a-little-momentum-on-immi_b_493447.html

Karl Rove says George Bush missed chance for immigration reform

Karl Rove now says he is sorry that immigration reform was not President Bush’s top priority at the beginning of his second term rather than social security reform.

Speaking to The New York Times Rove said
” As I said in the book, (Courage and Consequences) I wish we had led the second term with immigration reform.

If we had led with immigration reform at the beginning of the second term we could have had bipartisan cooperation with a Republican majority in the House and the Senate and done something important for the country that was tilted more toward what the Republicans wanted but couldn’t have passed without Democratic votes instead of Social Security which Democrats wouldn’t participate in until they had a taste of victory.

http://www.irishcentral.com/story/news/people_and_politics/karl-rove-says-george-bush-missed-chance-for-immigration-reform-87261957.html

Immigration measures draw demonstrators

Bills involve trespassing, law-enforcement assistance

Dozens of demonstrators rallied Monday at the state Capitol against bills that would make it trespassing to be in the country illegally and require local law enforcement to assist in enforcing federal immigration laws.

Members of several organizations carried signs and chanted outside the Executive Tower where Gov. Jan Brewer’s office is located.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2010/03/11/20100311politics-immigration0311.html

Wal-Mart Raid Rumors Concern Houston Hispanics

“This is an issue of human rights. It’s an issue of community panic. I think we all know how panic in the community can lead to very dangerous things,” said Hector Chavana Jr., who’s with the La Raza Justice Movement in Houston.

This dangerous rumor, apparently sent through text messages, began about immigration and customs enforcement activity taking place at Houston-area Wal-Marts. Chavana Jr. is trying to seek witness accounts of immigration raids in the area.

“As far as we can tell, a lot of it is just rumors. The last thing that I’m trying to verify is whether or not there was some I-9 verification going on, which is known as desk raids.” Lauda, a long time server at Rosita’s Mexican restaurant, says Hispanics are concerned about those desk raids.

http://www.39online.com/news/local/kiah-walmart-raid-story,0,2402060.story

Could Immigration Split the Tea Party?

With the Tea Party movement gaining political clout, the question arises: what issue can divide them? Guest-hosting the Rachel Maddow Show, Chris Hayes reports that immigration may be the key to splitting the Tea Party, and potentially, the Republican base. Earlier on Charlie Rose, Dick Armey, former Republican House Majority Leader and current head of Freedom Works, critiqued former Congressman and anti-immigrant activist Tom Tancredo for advocating a voter literacy test.

“I was, for example, not really happy to see Tom Tancredo on the stage calling himself a tea party guy because of his harsh and uncharitable and mean-spirited attitude on the immigration issue,” said Armey.

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100322/hayes_video3

Multimedia campaign urges Latino youth to participate in the U.S. Census

Community leaders and celebrities announced a new multimedia campaign in Los Angeles on Wednesday aimed at getting young Latinos to participate in the U.S. Census.

During the news conference at Miguel Contreras Learning Complex, speakers invited students to download an interactive mobile application, to participate in a texting campaign (text “LA” to 738674) and to spread the word to family and friends about the importance of the census.

“Your voice literally does matter,” actress Rosario Dawson told students in the campus library. “You have the right to live with dignity in your communities. This is the opportunity to fight for that.”

Dawson and actor Wilmer Valderrama joined leaders of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Voto Latino and the California Community Foundation to show public service announcements and hand out census-themed I-tunes cards to students.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/03/multimedia-campaign-urges-latino-youth-to-participate-in-the-us-census.html

News Clips March 2, 2010

Census question confuses

EL PASO – Many Hispanics do not know they are white. But, in the U.S. Census Bureau’s eyes, they probably are.

For people such as former baseball star Sammy Sosa, who is a black Dominican, it may be easy to fill out a 2010 Census form.

But Hispanics may be confused over the questions of race and ethnicity found in the form being mailed out this month.

“The race question is the question I get the most queries about,” U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said Monday in a national conference call. “This is a question that changes every decade.”

In question No. 8, the bureau asks if a person is of Hispanic origin. Then, in the following question, the person must mark his or her race.

The Census Bureau gives respondents many options, but classifies data into five races – white, black, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native and other Pacific Islanders.

“This is one of the stickier issues,” said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund. “About half of Latinos who respond to the census consider being Latino their racial category.”

http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_14495736

Research Reveals Hispanic-Americans Mark Education as a Top Priority in 2010

Many Hispanics believe they are less likely to achieve a college education due to a lack of funding

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., March 2 /PRNewswire/ — Due to the economic uncertainty many Hispanic-Americans are placing a new emphasis on what is important to them and their families. A new survey* by Sears Holdings finds that although a majority (84 percent) of Hispanic-Americans report that education will be a priority in 2010, most (92 percent) believe that there are barriers standing in the way of receiving an education beyond high school, with close to three-quarters (71 percent) citing lack of money to cover school expenses as the biggest roadblock.

Among those respondents who believe there are barriers in receiving a higher education, more than half (53 percent) attribute a lack of information about the opportunities and options available to get an education as an obstacle. Also weighing in as a hurdle for many Hispanic-Americans (60 percent) is the need to work and support the family right after high school.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/research-reveals-hispanic-americans-mark-education-as-a-top-priority-in-2010-85944862.html

Tea Party Holds Risks for GOP

American politics reached a milestone when Ronald Reagan, then the Republican presidential nominee, traveled to a convention of evangelical Christians in Dallas in August 1980 and said something mainstream politicians hadn’t been willing to say previously: “I want you to know I endorse you and what you are doing,” Mr. Reagan told the 15,000 or so conservative church leaders there assembled.

From that point on, the “religious right,” earlier seen by many as almost a fringe movement, became an important force within an ascendant Republican coalition.

Republicans today are trying something similar with the Tea Party movement. Yet even as Republicans relish this thought, it’s worth remembering that, just as their embrace of the religious right created occasional heartburn alongside electoral success, so too does their slow embrace of the Tea Party movement carry downside risks as well as upside potential.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748703429304575095441763635842.html

Washington Hispanic website now offers Daily News & Multimedia Online

Washington DC, [CapitalWirePR]  –March 1, 2010— With a redesigned web site featuring sleek visuals, The Washington Hispanic today launched a fresh new look on line. The Capital’s largest Spanish language newspaper is now repositioning with a robust web presence to better serve its readers and the community at http://www.washingtonhispanic.com.

“The redesigned site has been in development for some time. Our community is seeking faster access and greater coverage to keep growing and prospering. Our readers want to stay informed. The Washington Hispanic intends to meet their news needs. Our news will now be even more timely and ever more relevant to our reader’s interests,“ said founder Johnny A. Yataco.

http://www.capitalwirepr.com/pr_description.php?id=c416fd81-b938-af87-bd2c-4b8c3d3d6195

The Dream that Keeps on Marching for America

The man handed us several crumpled $20 bills. “I would like to donate $200 to help a household worker or a day laborer go to Washington and speak for us,” he said, turning to walk away. He was referring to the rally planned for March 21 in Washington, DC, for the purpose of raising awareness about the need to fix our nation’s broken immigration system. We asked to get his name and nationality but he chose to remain anonymous: “Like many of us, without a name or country of origin, but ever present,” was his response.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jorgemario-cabrera/the-dream-that-keeps-on-m_b_476724.html

News Clips Feb. 11, 2010

Same day registration for early voting moving forward

Legislation that would allow a person to register to vote then immediately cast a ballot at early voting sites is scheduled in final committees in both the House and Senate this week. Proponents say it would increase access to elections at the same time it improves the accuracy, transparency, and efficiency of how voter registration files are maintained. Detractors voice concern that without an official government issued photo ID, the possibility of voter fraud will increase.

http://newmexicoindependent.com/46915/same-day-registration-for-early-voting-moving-forward

Illegal immigrant numbers plunge

California’s number drops by 250,000, the nation’s nearly 1 million. The sharpest drop in three decades renews the debate over what to do about those still here.
A new report that the nation’s illegal immigrant population has declined by nearly 1 million has sharpened the debate over whether to legalize those remaining or allow their numbers to shrink through attrition.

The number of illegal immigrants living in the United States dropped to 10.8 million in 2009 from 11.6 million in 2008, marking the second consecutive year of decline and the sharpest decrease in at least three decades, according to a report this week by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-immig11-2010feb11,0,4502287.story

Arizona Sheriff, U.S. in Standoff Over Immigration Enforcement

An Arizona sheriff said he planned to defy Washington’s attempts to roll back his staunch enforcement of federal immigration law, a move that could put him on a collision course with the U.S. government.

Late last year, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the largest arm of the Department of Homeland Security, stripped Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio of the authority to use 100 of his deputies to enforce federal immigration in his jurisdiction, which includes Phoenix. The customs agency took the action because Mr. Arpaio’s aggressive immigration crackdowns had drawn criticism from human-rights groups and had run afoul of the U.S. Justice Department, which is investigating whether he has used racial profiling and abused his authority.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703455804575057650062572536.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5

A Progressive Game Changer: Immigration Reform In 2010

Success in politics requires moving people to act. Unless people are motivated, mobilized, and given something to fight for, they stay home, they don’t vote, they don’t participate. In that scenario, the status quo goes merrily along unchanged and unchallenged or those few who are motivated and mobilized win – even if they carry misspelled signs and have an incoherent and backwards policy prescription for the country.

http://newsjunkiepost.com/2010/02/11/a-progressive-game-changer-immigration-reform-in-2010/

Governor Perry speaks out against illegal immigration

Gov. Rick Perry today visited San Antonio on Wednesday and called on the federal government to reimburse the state of Texas for costs associated with detaining criminals in Texas jails who are undocumented immigrants.

Gov. Perry announced he will send a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano asking the federal government to begin reimbursing the state for such costs. The state will begin submitting monthly invoices to the federal government for these costs in hopes that it will start meeting its obligations to uphold immigration policy.

http://www.kens5.com/news/Governor-Perry-speaks-out-against-illegal-immigration-84067997.html

Texas governor Rick Perry says Predator drones should patrol U.S. border

IRVING, Texas – Texas Gov. Rick Perry tried to shore up his border security credentials Monday as he campaigned for re-election by calling for a Predator drone at the Texas-Mexico border and highlighting a transnational gang initiative.

Perry, a Republican seeking his third full term as governor, said he has asked the Defense Department to deploy an unarmed drone to the Texas border to assist in border security and provide “real-time” data. “Why not fly them from Brownsville to El Paso?” Perry said in remarks at the Irving Police Association Hall.

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Texas+governor+Rick+Perry+says+Predator+drones+should+patrol+border/2542449/story.html

Getting the Facts Straight About Immigration

Despite Pessimism, Support for Immigration Reform Has Always Been High, We Just Don’t Realize It

Scott Brown’s election to the Senate, stalled healthcare reform legislation, and Obama’s 30 words about immigration reform in this state of the union address have once again raised the volume of naysayers that claim immigration reform is dead or has permanently stalled. A significant number of comments in response to my article last week, also express the same pessimism accompanied by hateful and derogatory remarks about undocumented immigrants. As a social scientist, I am dismayed by such categorical claims that completely ignore the facts and creates a self-fulfilling prophecy that paralyzes politicians and denies undocumented immigrants a better way of life .

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/will-perez-phd/getting-the-facts-straigh_b_457319.html

News Clips Feb. 10, 2010

Hispanic Democratic group endorses Shami for governor

AUSTIN – A leading group of Hispanic Democrats endorsed businessman Farouk Shami for governor Tuesday, saying the Palestinian-American immigrant personifies the American dream.

“He is inclusive of all people from all walks of life and can identify with those of us who were not born in the United States,” said Dallas City Council member Steve Salazar, state chairman of the Mexican American Democrats.

Salazar said the group met with Shami on Saturday and particularly liked his stances on immigration and crime. The Houston hair products entrepreneur has criticized federal and state border security policies.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/politics/state/stories/DN-shami_10tex.ART.State.Edition1.4bfa040.html

U.S. illegal immigrant population declines for second year

The number of illegal immigrants living in the United States fell by 1 million, or 8 percent, between 2007 and 2009, the U.S. government reported Tuesday.

The decline, to 10.8 million people in January 2009 from 11.8 million in 2007 and 11.6 million in 2008, coincides with the national economic downturn. It marked the first back-to-back drops in the number of illegal immigrants since the federal government allowed many to obtain legal status after a 1986 amnesty.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/09/AR2010020903702.html

New report says illegal immigration population plummeted last year

The number of illegal immigrants living in the United States dropped by 1 million people in two years, according to new estimates by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The government believes 10.8 million illegal immigrants lived in the country in January 2009, down from a peak of nearly 12 million in 2007. If the official estimates are correct, not since 2005 has the population of illegal immigrants been as low as it was last year.

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_14370889?source=most_viewed&nclick_check=1

Census outreach to hard-to-count groups ratchets up

Koreans and Vietnamese descended upon Doraville for a chance Tuesday to land one of the coveted, $18.45-an-hour census-taking jobs.

An hour later, along Buford Highway, Hispanic leaders implored business owners to prod their customers into participating in the all-important census.

And downtown, in midafternoon, Mayor Kasim Reed endorsed a “census blitz” across Atlanta on April 10.

http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/census-outreach-to-hard-295367.html?cxtype=rss_news_128746

PCC may face grant squeeze
Colleges serving Hispanics on rise

The competition soon will be tougher for federal funds to help Hispanic college students as more colleges are designated as serving Hispanics.

There are 265 colleges that have the federal designation of “Hispanic Serving Institution.” At least 25 percent of their students are Hispanic and the colleges are eligible for Title V federal grants to help improve academic outcomes for Hispanic and low-income students.

An additional 67 colleges are very close to receiving the designation – with 20 percent to 24 percent Hispanic enrollment, according to a new study by Excelencia in Education.

http://www.azstarnet.com/news/local/education/college/article_bd7eb9a4-016e-5bf4-b92e-a88670590cbc.html

All Eyes on Health Care Reform

With one in three U.S. Hispanics lacking health insurance, it’s little wonder recent nationwide surveys show that the Hispanic population considers healthcare reform to be the No. 1 issue of the day — surpassing even immigration reform and the economic downturn. Now, with a historic effort underway on Capitol Hill to merge two recently approved health bills — the House’s in November and the Senate in late December — the implications for Hispanics are monumental.

http://www.hispanicbusiness.com/news/2010/2/9/all_eyes_on_healthcare_reform.htm

Arpaio’s Immigration Numbers Questioned

PHOENIX — Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio takes credit for putting 37,000 illegal immigrants in jail but a closer look at the numbers reveals it’s not his deputies who are making most of the arrests.
Arpaio held a press conference on Monday afternoon to announce he is in the process of training his nearly 900 deputies to enforce federal and state immigration laws.

http://www.kpho.com/news/22505869/detail.html

Immigration crackdowns hurt kids—US study

WASHINGTON DC, United States—Immigration enforcement takes a heavy toll on children, according to a recent study by the Urban Institute.

The study, “Facing Our Future: Children in the Aftermath of Immigration Enforcement,” puts young people into the national immigration debate by assessing their experiences.

There are 5.5 million children with unauthorized parents in the United States and when it comes to immigration enforcement, “it is often the children who pay the price,” said Carola Suárez-Orozco, co-director of immigration studies at New York University.

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20100210-252385/Immigration-crackdowns-hurt-kidsUS-study

A new move against illegal immigrants

Bill would require Md. prisons to notify U.S. of an inmate’s status

Some Maryland lawmakers want to require the state prison system to notify federal authorities when an inmate may be in the country unlawfully – potentially resurrecting last year’s debate about how the state is responding to an influx of illegal immigrants.

The proposal, backed by a group of powerful Democratic senators that includes Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, came before a committee Tuesday. Sen. James E. DeGrange Sr. of Anne Arundel County said the measure could save the state millions by shifting incarceration costs away from the state by deporting more illegal immigrants.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bal-md.immigrants10feb10,0,255515.story

Students Walking to D.C. for Immigration Law Changes

Some South Florida students are walking for change in connection with the nation’s immigration laws.

Some South Florida students are walking for change in connection with the nation’s immigration laws.

Four students from Miami-Dade College are walking from Miami to Washington, D.C. stopping along the way to talk with community leaders they hope will bring reform to current immigration laws.

Earlier Tuesday, they met with an aid for Florida Governor Charlie Crist in Tallahassee and several other state legislators about their mission.

http://www.wctv.tv/news/headlines/83986137.html

News Clips Feb. 9, 2010

Latino voters will be a force in midterm elections, report argues

How potent will the immigration issue be for Latino voters in 2010?

Advocacy groups representing the community predict it will remain a “litmus test” in key mid-term races.

In a report out Monday, the immigration reform advocacy group America’s Voice outlined 40 mid-term races where Hispanic voters could have a significant impact on the outcome.

“Most politicians understand the importance of the Latino vote in presidential years, but what we’re saying is that Latino voters will have a huge impact in the mid-term elections,” Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice, said on a conference call with reporters Monday. “The number of voters coming of age and registering continues to grow. You have seen growth even when a presidential race isn’t at the top of the ticket.”

Nearly one in five Congressional Districts has a Latino population that is at least a quarter of the district.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/02/latino-voters-will-be-a-force.html?wprss=44

Lawyers Back Creating New Immigration Courts

Responding to pleas from immigration judges and lawyers who say the nation’s immigration courts are faltering under a crushing caseload, the American Bar Association called Monday for Congress to scrap the current system and create a new, independent court for immigration cases.

In a vote at its semiannual meeting in Orlando, Fla., the lawyers’ organization endorsed a recommendation for a separate immigration court system that would be similar to federal courts that decide tax cases.

Immigration overhaul called a vital issue

A group that supports an immigration policy overhaul said candidates could lose the Latino vote if they don’t support it.

WASHINGTON — Failing to overhaul the nation’s immigration system, currently a back burner issue for Congress and President Barack Obama, could play a pivotal role in key mid-term election in November, according to a new study on Latino voting patterns.

The report by America’s Voice, which supports comprehensive new immigration policies, says revising the laws is the defining issue for Latino voters. The report says that progress — or the lack thereof — in revamping immigration laws and regulations could affect as many as 40 congressional races in areas with sizable Latino populations, including the reelection bids of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., just two years ago his party’s presidential candidate.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/story/1470014.html

Sheriff: Big Change in Immigration Enforcement

PHOENIX — Sheriff Joe Arpaio held a press conference Monday afternoon to announce some big changes in the way he enforces immigration laws.

The sheriff is under investigation by the Justice Department for racial profiling, and has taken heat for his crime suppression sweeps. But Arpaio still says he won’t back down, despite the fact the government has stripped some of his power from him.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/immigration/immigration-enforcement-change-2-8-2010

MCSO deputies will undergo training to target illegal immigrants

PHOENIX – When the federal government stripped Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his deputies of their power to enforce federal immigration laws on the streets, the sheriff repeatedly said nothing would change.

Nevertheless, something did change on Monday. The sheriff raised the stakes in his battle against illegal immigration. The sheriff said that starting Monday every one of his deputies will go through training to specifically target illegal immigrants.

Sheriff Joe says, “I have been saying over and over again that my deputies can enforce the illegal immigration laws.”

http://www.azfamily.com/news/MCSO-deputies-to-undergo-training-to-target-illegal-immigrants-83850037.html

SCHUMACHER-MATOS: Obama can’t duck immigration

PRAYING FOR SANTA CLARITA

WASHINGTON —- The Los Angeles suburb of Santa Clarita has long served as a backlot for Hollywood films, but for the last three weeks it has been a live stand-in for America.

Bob Kellar, a city councilman and former mayor, spoke at a rally against unauthorized immigrants where he repeated Theodore Roosevelt’s admonition that the United States has a place for only one flag and one language. After some accused Kellar of being racist, he responded that if believing in America causes people to think he is one, then “I’m a proud racist.”

His remarks were posted on YouTube and provoked a firestorm on the Web and in Santa Clarita, where a tumultuous town hall meeting last week was marked by opposing protesters, angry speeches and tears. But no apology from Kellar.

http://www.nctimes.com/news/opinion/columnists/schumacher-matos/article_d7df6669-0190-5aec-8001-c287fac98df1.html

Managing the 2010 Census and planning for 2020

The 2010 decennial census is just getting underway, but Daniel Weinberg is already thinking about 2020 and how the Internet might be used to collect the nation’s population data.

Weinberg, the assistant director for the Decennial Census and American Community Survey, spends his time in two primary areas: helping make sure everything is in order for the 2010 census and coming up with ways to improve the massive undertaking 10 years from now.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/08/AR2010020801404.html

Census Bureau Super Bowl Ad: “Spot On” Or “Waste Of Money”?

Buffalo, NY- Should the US Census Bureau have spent $2.5 million taxpayer dollars on a thirty second commercial which aired during the Super Bowl?

It’s a debate which may continue well after the excitement over the big game ebbs.

Although he had nothing to do with creating or placing the ad, the Regional Office Manager for the Census Bureau in Buffalo believes it was a wise use of taxpayer money because the Census Bureau was able to convey a message to 100 million people at an average cost of 25 cents per viewer — which is far less than the cost of a postage stamp.

http://www.wgrz.com/news/investigative/youpaidforit/story.aspx?storyid=74312&catid=220

Daniel Weinberg, the man behind the nation’s census

American Community Survey and Decennial Census, U.S. Census Bureau

Best known for: Playing a key management role in 2010 Census count while also planning for the 2020 Census, which will make greater use of the Internet in collecting the nation’s population and household data. Weinberg also supervises the American Community Survey Office, which collects and produces population and housing information every year, and has gained recognition for improving the measurements of poverty to help policymakers make more informed decisions.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/08/AR2010020803801.html

Immigration activists concerned about anti-Latino sentiment at Tea Party Convention

This weekend’s Tea Party Convention in Nashville featured a speech by former Congressman Tom Tancredo. He suggested President Obama was elected by folks who couldn’t spell “vote” or say it in English. Immigration activists say they’re watching the growth of the Tea Party movement closely.
Immigration reform advocates say they are concerned that an anti-Latino sentiment could grow within the Tea Party crowd.

http://www.scpr.org/news/2010/02/08/immigration-activists-concerned-about-anti-latino-/

News Clips Feb. 8, 2010

Climate could be right for GOP’s Sandoval to capture Hispanic vote

Republican Brian Sandoval could capture the attention of the Hispanic community, thanks in part to Democrats’ inability to hold that voting bloc on issues such as health care, but on immigration …

When Republican Party leaders engaged last summer in a vitriolic attack on then-Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, calling her a “racist” and a member of the “Latino KKK” and questioning her credentials despite her elite schooling, it seemed to be a final nail, driven home with gusto, into the coffin of GOP outreach to Hispanic voters.

It was a swift and dramatic alienation from the fastest growing bloc of voters in the entire electorate.

President George W. Bush won at least 40 percent of the Hispanic vote in 2004 with the help of his conservative social policies, his support of immigration reform, and his abiding popularity in the heavily Hispanic Texas and his occasional use of the Spanish language.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/feb/07/hispanic-voters-may-feel-alienated/

ACLU attorney debunks immigration ‘lies, myths and urban legends’

Misconceptions about immigration — both legal and illegal — continue to cause problems in a system that produces more questions than answers, according to attorney Philip Berns.

Berns spoke in the fourth-floor cafeteria of the Government Center on Sunday morning, and he tried to impress upon the 15 people gathered the “Catch-22” nature of immigration at the event, sponsored by the American Civil Liberties Union of Fairfield County.

“We have to commit to learning immigration law,” Berns said. “The two most complex areas of U.S. law are tax law and immigration law. When someone makes a mistake in an immigration case, it can have lifelong effects. Being deported means exile to a country that’s changed since (those affected) were there.”

http://www.thehour.com/story/481871

Prospects for Immigration Reform Legislation

Given the jockeying that goes on to get mentioned in a State of the Union speech, it is not surprising that insiders pushing the immigration reform agenda celebrated success. Their issue made it into the speech, reaffirming that the president’s commitment remains alive and well.

Outsiders, however, were disappointed and displeased because the call “to continue the work of fixing our broken immigration system” fell far short of the rallying cry they wanted to hear. The blogosphere kicked into high gear, mostly pronouncing immigration legislation dead for 2010.

That a single sentence at a precarious political moment could be seen so differently is a fitting metaphor for assessing the prospects for comprehensive immigration reform in 2010. This latest round has again delivered a glass-half-full, half-empty outlook.

On the half-full side, there is the new importance of bipartisanship as the platform for progress in the wake of the Republican Senate election victory in Massachusetts. Senators Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) continue work on a bill that they hope to introduce as a bipartisan measure for their colleagues to take up.

http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=ae169357660bcd9b46d907e7c3f15030

Up for the count: Effort encourages Berks County Latinos to take part in census

Latinos in poor communities are among those who stand to benefit the most from the 2010 Census, and yet they are the group that is least likely to participate.

So local census volunteers and community activists are attempting to educate Latinos about the census, what it means to them and why they should participate.

The message, simply put, is that funding for social services and other government programs that benefit Latinos will be hurt if fewer Latinos are counted.

Many of those programs receive funding based on population.

http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=193949

Census chief works to calm deportation fears

Laredo, Texas (CNN) — The hardened dirt road turns off Highway 359 and runs under a simple iron archway. It’s an easily forgettable entryway into one of the nation’s poorest neighborhoods, the San Carlos “colonia” on the outskirts of this Texas border town.

When you cross, it’s like entering a different world.

Anabeli Rendon, a 14-year-old high school freshman, stands outside a dilipated orange cinder-block shed where she lived with her mother and young sister just a couple years ago. They had to run an extension cord from a nearby house to get electricity.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/02/02/census.poor.communities/?hpt=C2

Obama Plans Bipartisan Summit on Health Care

WASHINGTON — President Obama said Sunday that he would convene a half-day bipartisan health care session at the White House to be televised live this month, a high-profile gambit that will allow Americans to watch as Democrats and Republicans try to break their political impasse.
Mr. Obama made the announcement in an interview on CBS during the Super Bowl pre-game show, capitalizing on a vast television audience. He set out a plan that would put Republicans on the spot to offer their own ideas on health care and show whether both sides are willing to work together.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/us/politics/08webobama.html

President Obama Grilled on Superbowl Sunday

Obama Addresses Health Care, Economy and National Security in Wide-Ranging Interview
The Indianapolis Colts and New Orlean Saints weren’t the only ones under pressure on Superbowl Sunday.
President Obama, wearing a casual blue button-down shirt and tan khakis, was grilled in a live, pre-game interview by CBS’s Katie Couric on issues ranging from health care reform, national-deficit reduction, and national security.

The president defended his push for health care reform, saying health insurance premiums would “keep on beating down families, small businesses, large businesses — it’s going to be a huge drain on the economy. We’re going to have to do something about it. I think we can.”

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-obama-discusses-health-care-economy-national-security/story?id=9773410