Immigration

09/11/2007 -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, joined by Governors from 12 other states, today sent the following letter to the leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives urging Congressional action this year on immigration reform that recognizes states’ needs to remain competitive in a global economy:

September 11, 2007

The Honorable Harry Reid
Majority Leader
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Minority Leader
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi    » read more »

Mobile unit will assist agency's outreach efforts to immigrant workers

August 31, 2007 -- New York Governor Eliot Spitzer today appeared with Department of Labor Commissioner Patricia Smith as well as state and local officials and community groups, to launch “Labor-On-Wheels,” a new Department of Labor initiative to promote outreach among immigrant workers throughout New York City.    » read more »

30 August 2007 -- Months ago, an ambitious attempt to overhaul America's immigration system failed in Congress, and there is little talk of reviving the proposal anytime soon. Absent reform, some federal agencies are redoubling efforts to enforce existing laws and crack down on the hiring of illegal aliens. The moves are eliciting few cheers from the business community, defenders of undocumented workers or even those who favor a hard-line approach to combating illegal immigration.    » read more »

August 30, 2007 -- JEFFERSON CITY - Missouri Governor Matt Blunt’s tough directive against illegal immigration is already getting results. Just one day after Gov. Blunt announced his law enforcement initiative to fight unlawful immigration, his directive lead to the detention of an illegal immigrant in Camden County who is now awaiting deportation.    » read more »

August 30, 2007 -- BOSTON—Thursday, August 30, 2007– Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. JudyAnn Bigby announced today that she has appointed Richard Chacón as Executive Director for the Office of Refugees and Immigrants (ORI). Mr. Chacón will begin this work on September 10.    » read more »

Aug. 29, 2007 -- Richmond - Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell issued the following statement regarding today’s immigration proposals announced by the Republican leadership in the General Assembly:

“Today, the Republican leadership in the General Assembly announced the outline of a broad set of proposals to combat illegal immigration in Virginia.    » read more »

August 29, 2007 -- KANSAS CITY – As part of his tough strategy to fight illegal immigration in Missouri, Missouri Governor Matt Blunt today outlined his new plan to best position the state to combat this illegal activity.

“We cannot wait for Washington to stop unlawful immigration,” Blunt said. “I want to employ every available resource to ensure tax dollars are not funding illegal immigration and that the laws against illegal immigration are enforced.”    » read more »

August 24, 2007 -- Washington, DC – United States Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) today sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Michael Chertoff, asking for further clarification regarding a policy announced by United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) that will require 750,000 legal permanent residents to replace their green cards. The cards, issued between 1977 and 1989, do not have expiration dates. USCIS has announced that they will not contact the card holders, will only allow 120 days to replace their cards, and will need to pay nearly $400.    » read more »

Blunt: "We cannot wait for Washington to stop unlawful immigration"

August 27, 2007 -- JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Governor Matt Blunt today said he is not waiting for Washington to enforce federal immigration law as he outlined tough new initiatives to enforce the laws against illegal immigration.    » read more »

August 21, 2007 -- As he raises campaign cash in Nevada today, smooth talking Mitt Romney is hitting the airwaves with a new radio ad aimed at convincing Iowa and New Hampshire voters to ignore his record of flip-flops and hypocrisy on immigration reform. The new ad, entitled "Exceptional," is Romney's latest desperate attempt to hide the fact that he defended the Bush-McCain immigration proposal in 2005 by saying it was different than amnesty, and supported a "path to citizenship" for undocumented workers as recently as 2006.    » read more »

August 23, 2007 -- TRENTON - New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram and Criminal Justice Director Gregory A. Paw announced that a West Windsor woman pleaded guilty today to forcing a young Filipino woman who came to the U.S. as a nanny to instead care for her ailing husband and do her housekeeping for two years.

The young woman’s passport and visa were taken away, and she was told not to leave the house without family members because she would be arrested. She was paid only a small fraction of what she was supposed to receive for coming to work in the U.S.    » read more »

Milgram Says Federal Immigration Authorities Should be Notified if Undocumented Immigrants Arrested

August 22, 2007 -- Trenton, NJ – New Hampshire Attorney General Anne Milgram today issued a directive to state law enforcement agencies regarding their relationship with federal immigration authorities.    » read more »

20 August 2007 -- U.S. immigration authorities have deported a Mexican illegal immigrant who took refuge in a church for a year to avoid being separated from her U.S.-born son.

The pastor of the church, Reverend Walter Coleman, says Elvira Arellano was deported to the Mexican border city of Tijuana late Sunday.

Police arrested the 32-year-old activist earlier Sunday in Los Angeles after she spoke at a rally in support of illegal immigrant rights.    » read more »

Hybrid form of communication is a “key to open the American door”

15 August 2007 -- Washington -- Spanglish, a hybrid form of English and Spanish especially popular among young people, is one of the most striking ways two of the world’s most widely used languages are evolving in response to immigration and globalization.

Spanglish is “a very creative, jazzy way of being Latino in the U.S. today,” said Ilan Stavans, a professor of Latin American and Latino culture at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts, who has studied and defended this hybrid language.    » read more »

August 16, 2007 -- Rudy Giuliani, under attack from rivals who claim he presided over a sanctuary city for undocumented immigrants as Mayor, is unlikely to find any sanctuary himself as he tours New Hampshire today given his blatant reversal on the issue. Giuliani's visit comes as he launches a new ad promising to be tough on immigration in New Hampshire and Iowa. [AP, 8/15/07] But Giuliani's record as Mayor paints a different picture.    » read more »