Positive news :
Illegal immigrant population drops in Va.
Virginia was one of only three states to see a significant drop in its illegal immigrant population from 2008 to 2009, but it still ranked 11th in number of illegal immigrants in the state — with Maryland just in front at 10th.
The number of illegal immigrants in Virginia dipped from an estimated 300,000 to 240,000, while Maryland’s held steady at 250,000, according to a report released Wednesday by the Pew Hispanic Center.
That liberals lie, about just about everything, is hardly news. Still, I’d like to discuss one lie in particular — that entering the United States in violation of the law, or remaining here in violation of the law, is not a crime, but merely a “civil offense.”
This particular lie is a response to the A.G.’s opinion that police officers can ask about one’s immigration status at a traffic stop. The lie in response comes from Aaron Haas, writing in the Roanoke Times:
[The Attorney General] says that officers may briefly detain and question a person if they have a reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed. This is called an “Adams” stop, but does not apply to immigration violations because they are civil offenses, not crimes.
Apparently, Mr. Haas has not actually read the law:
§ 1325. Improper entry by alien
(a) Improper time or place; avoidance of examination or inspection; misrepresentation and concealment of facts
Any alien who(1) enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, or(3) attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact, shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.
Civil penalties under this subsection are in addition to, and not in lieu of, any criminal or other civil penalties that may be imposed.
A friend of mine, and of this blog, has really taken a financial beating lately because the family breadwinner happens to be in one of the U.S. and Virginia governments’ most un-favored classes:
Citizen, carpenter.
If any of you need any work done that does not require high-ladder work, please respond in the comments and I will connect you with him. Even if it is a small job, it would make a difference. This is a family that does not want to ask for handouts but just wants a chance to do something useful and get paid for it. What a shame that that proposition has now become completely iffy in today’s pro-illegal environment.
As most of our readers know, American blue-collar tradespeople have been relegated to the dumpster by Virginia’s state government and the disastrous presidencies of Clinton, Bush and Obama. Companies using illegal workers have been undercutting the bids of those playing by the rules to such a degree that American workers have been completely shut out. Both Virginia and the federal government have winked at this and given tacit approval for years. Bob McDonnell gives absolutely no indication of wanting to balance the playing field for those who play by the rules, so we can assume that life is going to pretty much suck for any legal resident of Virginia who was unlucky enough to learn a trade.
I, frankly, welcome any opportunity to stick it to the man while supporting my fellow citizens, and therefore have made it a point to make sure that anyone doing work for us uses legal workers. It is not easy, actually, because it is like navigating a black market to find a company still in existence that actually plays by the rules.
Please note, the Bulletproof Monk has exactly one such company, and if you need work done, by all means contact that man.
But it would also be good if you were interested in contacting this American carpenter in Sterling who just wants a chance to do some work, and whose family is really in a lot of pain right now as a result of Virginia’s employment law enforcement which is entirely skewed toward companies that use illegal workers.
At least, give him and the Monk a shot at your job. Leave a note in the comments if you want a job quote. Thank you.
“There’s a place I know where there’s gonna be jobs real soon ….”
Hat tip to old buddy Bob in Herndon.
For this interested in reading the Arizona legislation making it a state crime to the in the U.S. illegally, here is a link to the .pdf file: SB1070 as engrossed by HB2162
Two national opinion polls – Pew Research:
• 73 percent indicated approval of “requiring people to produce documents verifying legal status.”
• 67 percent indicated approval of “allowing police to detain anyone unable to verify legal status.”
• 62 percent indicated approval of “allowing police to question anyone they think may be in the country illegally.”
• 59 percent indicated approval of the new Arizona law.
McClatchy-Ipsos:
Sixty-one percent of Americans – and 64 percent of registered voters – said they favored the law in a survey of 1,016 adults conducted May 6-9.
Strikingly, nearly half of Democrats like the law, under which local law enforcement officers are tasked with verifying people’s immigration status if they suspect them of being in the country illegally. While the Democratic Party generally is regarded as more sympathetic to illegal immigrants’ plights, 46 percent of Democrats said they favored the law for Arizona and 49 percent said they’d favor the law’s passage in their own states.
More than eight in 10 Republicans and 54 percent of independents favor the law.
In addition, about 69 percent of Americans said they wouldn’t mind if police officers stopped them to ask for proof of their citizenship or legal rights to be in the country; about 29 percent would mind, considering it a violation of their rights; and about 3 percent were unsure.
Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2010/05/12/20100512arizona-immigration-law-poll.html#ixzz0pqmwhhJM
Here is an aggregation of opinion polls on immigration issues – it helpfully includes some comparative tracking going back four years.
An honest assessment of the varied and sometimes inconsistent responses would say that at this time no particular narrative on immigration enforcement is winning in the court of public opinion. This could be an series of blog posts … someday. But take a look and see for yourself as it is interesting reading.
Note for instance that 52% of Hispanics think the U.S. should do more to keep illegal immigrants from entering and staying in this country (42% disagree).
A very positive development; on 900 AM, July 10th.
per the bulletproof one ….
I encourage you all to visit the blog of my friend Nathanael Snow.
We were at the public meeting about the proposed day labor center in Centreville, Virginia.
Nathanael Snow is a rather intense liberal – which those of you who know me know, is how I like them. He made a bit of a name for himself tonight. I had a discussion with Nathan in which I explained the problems we experienced in Sterling from the boarding houses run by landlords renting to illegals, and Nathan asked me – “why don’t you just pay the landlords out of your own pocket so they do not have to rent to illegals?” My response to Nathan was:
…………
I described the problems we had in Sterling with houses converted to industrial complexes.
I told Nathan why this was generally a bad thing. Here is the conversation we had:
Nathan Snow: “I don’t think anyone has a right to feel safe walking down their street.”
Joe Budzinski: “You’re an idiot.”
Here is Nathan at tonight’s public meeting in Centreville, Virginia.
Nathan Snow At Centreville Immigration Forum from Joe Budzinski on Vimeo.
Now Nathan said afterwards:
I made the statement, “I don’t think anyone has a right to feel safe walking down their own street.
First, everyone has a right to protection of person and property. SO, what I am not saying is that “no one has a right to be safe on their own street.” The key to my thought is “feel.”
What makes me feel safe may not be what makes you feel safe. Sam may feel safe knowing that his neighbor Bob owns a 12 gauge shotgun. Bob might not feel safe knowing Sam owns a Bazooka.
But where does the law begin?
How can we know what law should be?Many people do not feel safe walking on the sidewalk in front of Centreville Library. But the actual number of incidents of physical harm are few and far between. Sure some men make cat-calls at women. That’s uncouth and rude and inappropriate. But it is not illegal.
FYI “Haymarket” in Fairfax County is akin to my friends from Ashburn and Lovettesville who would lecture us in Sterling about neighborhood quality of life issues. I hope Nathan sees the irony.
The controversy over local immigration enforcement efforts has moved to the Centreville portion of Fairfax County.
Things sure are a lot different from a couple years ago. Back then, our public meetings brought 100 people out, evenly divided. Today, there were over 200 people – maybe 300 – at Centre Ridge Elementary School and the audience was 5-1 in favor of enforcement. The speakers were 10-1.
Centreville Immigration Forum from Joe Budzinski on Vimeo.
This is a quick video summary of the night’s activities.
I think the public opinion tide is turning for the rule of law in northern Virginia.
UPDATE: Excellent summary of the meeting by Blog Fu.
When a MSA student is asked if they support the idea of all jews gathering to Israel so they don’t have to “hunt them down globally” the student replies “for”.
Is there any doubt that some people here in this country are supporters of terrorists?
So if Mexico’s illegal immigrant law is tougher than Arizona’s, why is it that Arizona is so bad? Can we say those south of our border are hypocrites?
Answer: You damn bethca they are! It has begun that “PC” or political correctness is now a death thro for Constitutional Americans. No longer are we going to sit back and be drug through the mud or made to feel guilty about something that is right and is the law.
It appears that Al Sharptounge and Jesse Jackass are fighting a “new” civil rights movement for…..NON U.S. citizens. The Arizona law to stop suspected illegals and ask for documents is being characterized as terrorism. Excuse me? San Francisco wants to break any contracts or ties with Arizona because of this law. Can you guess who is the most outspoken group againest it? That’s right-the illegals. Imagine that. Problem is, the only people listening are the liberals; who don’t want to lose what they believe to be a new voting base, and those individuals who already hate our laws and want to just give “open arms” to the world….at the cost, of course, of the American citizen.
Now people are oh so worried about violating civil rights-which our current administration gives to the world citizens. Okay. I have a solution for that. I believe that a set amount of police should set-up un-announced vehicle checkpoints every day in different areas of Arizona until further notice. Now they can check for valid liscense, stickers and green cards. This is prudent especially when the illegals usually drive around with a full car. That will decrease the number thru deportation drastically and then they can move on to hospitals and government services. Crime would abate; money would be saved thru services and English may come back as the primary language. Then when the protests ramp up, check those in the crowd yelling for their rights, for THEIR I.D.’s!
I can have loads of fun with this because it is long overdue. I don’t give a crap about WHY illegals are here and the sob stories of their plight in their own countries. Do it right or get caught and deported. I’m just glad that Cooch didn’t come up with the idea first on this one. Not that I don’t want or expect him to jump on this bandwagon. I just hope that the radicals that protest with the illegals forget THEIR I.D.’s. Then they can be deported also. You can never have enough free space in America for American citizens!
You may not agree with me but, heh, it’s a free country. All I can say is “kiss my ass and go back where you came from”. Amnesty is not an option here. “it’s my money and I want it now!”
With the unemployment rate in the U.S. over 10 percent and showing no signs of imminent improvement, the Democrats’ push for amnesty for illegal workers is shaping up as a purely partisan gambit to import a new class of voters.
Giving voting rights to felons is one step. Giving voting rights to non-citizens is the next, in the Democrats’ desperate effort to curtail the will of the American people. Thank goodness, this is not looking like a repeat of past failures:
As President Obama and Senate Democrats push to pass an immigration bill this year, one key ingredient is still conspicuously missing: a second Republican to co-sponsor the legislation.
Most Republicans considered likeliest to join Sens. Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, and Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican, in writing a bill either have taken a pass or are still on the fence. Key figures say the country does not have the kind of consensus needed to tackle the issue.
“It just doesn’t exist anymore,” said Sen. Jon Kyl, the Arizona Republican who in 2007 took the lead on writing a bill with Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat, only to see it fail when a bipartisan majority of senators joined a filibuster against it.
Republicans in Congress are growing both a brain and a spine, finally.
It is refreshing and inspiring when a citizen-activist decides to throw their hat in the ring. Phil Jones, co-founder of Help Save Herndon, is running for Herndon Town Council in the election which will be held on May 4. Though he modestly describes himself as a “relatively new resident,” Phil has been involved in civic issues in Herndon for nearly ten years.
He became well-known as a result of the immigration enforcement imbroglio in the town (click here for NVTH coverage of Herndon), but in recent years Phil has been a powerful voice on critical issues related to commercial development. Visit the Herndon United Web site for the full background.
With regard to political alliance Phil has not been in 100% lockstep with the current Herndon elected leadership, most of whom he worked hard to elect in the last two cycles. Phil is an independent thinker, and if he is elected the citizens of Herndon will have an advocate on the Council who is thoroughly conservative but committed to evaluating each new issue on its merits. You can’t pigeonhole Phil Jones when it comes to quality of life decisions for the town of Herndon. He is going to vote his conscience rather than any ideology, which in my view is what you want from your local government officials.
Longtime readers here know that my interest in Herndon stems from the fact that I can walk to the Herndon town limits in three minutes, which is roughly 1/5 the time it takes me to drive to Wegmans. What happens in Herndon affects Sterling. Herndon is also the closest municipality to where I live – Leesburg is by comparison a county away – and the good government actions by the Herndon Town Council over the past four years have been a benefit to my neighborhood. When they shut down that day labor center on Sterling Road, just south of my subdivision, they did us all a favor, so the elected officials of Herndon are heroes in my book. As an activist Phil Jones helped make that happen, and I want to see Phil get a chance to have a direct impact on town decisions.
Furthermore, I have seen firsthand the effort Phil has committed to the Herndon community. He is intelligent and extremely articulate, and with the prospect of Metro landing in Herndon in the near future the town needs people like Phil who will pay close attention to the important decisions that must be made. Also, considering all that is happening in our country right now, it seems relevant that Phil Jones is a man of impeccable conservative credentials – just the type of person we need to move into the public policy leadership chain of command.
So my advice to the residents of Herndon, and all of my fellow U.S. citizens, is to please send a message of support to Phil Jones. Go to his Web site and contribute a few bucks (you need to “hover” over the Donate tab to get the “Donate” button).
Fellow conservatives: Phil Jones, like Ken Cuccinelli, is one of our own. Let’s help him out.
California’s governor Schwarzenegger’s State of the state address includes the following:
Californians carry also a special burden since we are a border state. The federal government alone controls immigration policy, it alone controls border security. While acknowledging its responsibility, the federal government is not even funding a 50-50 split of the costs of undocumented immigrants.
We no longer can ignore what is owed to us or what we are forced to spend on federal mandates. We are currently owed billions of dollars by the federal government for various different programs. We need to work with the feds so that we can fix the flawed formula that demands that the states spend money that we do not have.
And now Congress is about to pile billions more onto California with the new health care bill. Now, as you know, while I enthusiastically supported health care reform, it is not reform to push more costs onto states that are already struggling while other states are getting sweetheart deals. Health care reform, which started as noble and needed legislation, has become a trough of bribes, deals and loopholes. Yet you’ve heard of the bridge to nowhere. Well, this is health care to nowhere.
California’s congressional delegation should either vote against this bill that is a disaster for California or get in there and fight for the same sweetheart deal that Senator Nelson of Nebraska got for the Cornhusker State. (Applause) Because that senator got for the Cornhusker State the corn and we got the husk. (Laughter)
Of course he is commenting on the federal government. The former is more an issue for California than any other state, but the later, health care, is important to everyone in the country. Here you have the governor of California telling the delegation of that state they should oppose the health care bill based on the sweetheart deals being made. What is really sad, is that this should be the response even of the people of Nebraska. No person within this country ought to be satisfied with any bill that is passed through such deals. There are very few people that will look at something that is to their benefit, and say “no, it isn’t right”.
We are seeing the destruction of democracy … when the people think of themselves before they think of the whole, democracy cannot work. If everyone asked themselves “what if everyone did this” before they do anything, it would go a long way toward making things better.
Forget cursing or mud slinging. It doesn’t do anyone any good.
What can do some good is working to undo much of what was done. I would suspect there are plenty of laws that need to be removed from the books … instead of wasting time on beating a dead horse, work to get the course of the country back on track.
National health-care is just about dead, but it needs to be put to sleep.
No Child Gets Ahead needs to be repealed.
Real immigration reform (closing the boarders) needs to be passed.
Those three ought to be enough to get people moving. It would help to push a national prohibition on restriction of firearms as well. There are a number of things that might be possible to push. Don’t waste breath on what changes nothing. Get motivated. Start working to push appropriate legislation through.
Limit the power of the central government to what the constitution says.
