Ethnic Media Outlets Urge House Republicans to Pass Immigration Reform
Media serving immigrant communities insist ‘There is no room for failure.’
Tag: border security
Obama’s Speech on Immigration Intended for Many Audiences
The President addressed both supporters and opponents of comprehensive immigration reform (CIR), as well as business owners and immigrants. In his speech, Mr. Obama asserted that CIR is a bipartisan issue.
Vigilante Found Guilty of Murder in Arizona; Could Face Death Penalty
Shawna Forde, the founder of a vigilante border group, could face the death penalty after she was found guilty on Monday of killing 9-year-old Bricenia Flores and her father Raúl Flores in 2009. By Valeria Fernandez reporting for New America Media.
Stories
Giffords Shooting Leaves Gap in Immigration Debate
Giffords advocated sealing the U.S.-Mexico border at the same time she supported immigration reform, and opposed Arizona’s SB 1070.
With U.S. Borders More Secure, An Emphasis on Enforcing Immigration Laws
U.S. Customs and Border Protection chief Alan Bersin says border security is not enough. He wants tougher enforcement of laws designed to weed out immigrants who have committed serious crimes and target employers who exploit undocumented workers.
Poll Shows Border Residents Feel Safe: Advocates Argue Border Security Threat Exaggerated
Despite claims of “murder and mayhem” on the U.S.-Mexico border, a new opinion poll shows that residents in Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and California feel secure in their neighborhoods.
New Homeland Security Chief Napolitano To Focus On Employers Who Hire Undocumented Immigrants
By Diego Graglia, FI2W web editor
Napolitano - Photo: New York Times.
Hours after President Barack Obama was sworn in, the Senate confirmed now-former Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano to head the Department of Homeland Security, an agency created in response to the attacks of 9-11.
Napolitano’s confirmation did not face any opposition: only a voice vote was taken on the Senate floor — no need for a roll call, according to Azstarnet.com.
The former governor succeeds Michael Chertoff as Secretary of Homeland Security, and is the first Democrat to head the agency. She comes to the job pledging to get tougher with “the demand side” of illegal immigration, namely employers who hire undocumented workers.
“You have to deal with illegal immigration from the demand side as well as the supply side,” she told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee during her confirmation hearing last week.
Immigration Implications: What Does Janet Napolitano at Homeland Security Mean for Reform?
As Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano appears ready to become the first Democratic secretary of Homeland Security, pro- and anti-immigration observers are trying to decipher what her designation will mean for the future of immigration laws under President Barack Obama.
Napolitano, Spanish wire Agencia EFE remembered today, declared a state of emergency on the U.S.-Mexico border and was the first governor to ask for National Guard troops to be deployed to secure the border between the two countries. She has also vetoed tough immigration enforcement bills put forward by state Republicans and advocated measures like the prosecution of companies that hire undocumented workers. Overall she is seen as more of a hardliner on immigration than most Democrats.
Napolitano’s approach on immigration is fundamentally pragmatic, her friend and think tank founder Fred DuVal told the Christian Science Monitor, adding her philosophy is, “Drop the ideology and let’s talk about what we need to both make the border secure and the relationship with Mexico functional.”
“Napolitano is probably the closest the Democrats could get to an immigration hawk,” Mark Kirkorian of the Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank advocating low immigration rates, told reporter Matthew Bell of nationally-syndicated radio show The World. [You can hear Bell’s report here.]