Government Employees Pressured to Rubber-Stamp Visas

By Frosty Wooldridge

Fraud and National Security Concerns Ignored by Supervisors

Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, www.fairus.org , brings readers up to date with the weekly fraud going on in Washington DC as to the various aspects of illegal and legal immigration.

“Today, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report revealing that senior U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officials are pressuring employees to rubber-stamp applications for immigration benefits despite questions of fraud or ineligibility,” said Stein.  “The report is based on a survey of 254 rank-and-file USCIS officers and the result of an investigation requested by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). The OIG report found that nearly 25% of officers had been asked by a supervisor to approve applications that should have been denied. An overwhelming 90% of officers felt they did not have sufficient time to complete thorough interviews of applicants seeking immigration benefits.

“The report reveals that “getting to yes” has become the accepted policy of USCIS. Immigration Services Officers tasked with reviewing visa applications expressed concern that the quantity of visa approvals was “at least as important to their supervisors as quality.” Officers interviewed felt the agency was under intense pressure to serve the interests of visa applicants by expediting their requests for entry, rather than taking time to fully consider whether each application was fraudulent or represented a national security risk. Some also alleged they were forced by superiors to approve cases against their will – for fear of retaliatory reprimands, transfers or demotions.

“FAIR observes that if the current review process for legal immigrant visas is rushed and risky, what does that forecast for ICE’s future review of 300,000 illegal alien pending removal cases for which the stated purpose is to dismiss most of the “low-priority” cases?”

ICE Agents Say No to Forced “Reprogramming”
Agency’s Backdoor Amnesty School Hits a Snag

“The Obama’s DHS has been steadily, yet quietly, altering its deportation procedures and priorities since ICE director John Morton released his administrative amnesty memos in June 2011,” said Stein. “Now, one of the final stages of completion has been reached – training ICE agents in the field on how to implement the administration’s new “priorities.””

One problem – the ICE Union representing agents is refusing to participate in training.

“With a quick half-day training course, ICE aimed to have all agents and attorneys schooled on the new deportation priorities and use of prosecutorial discretion by mid-January,” said Stein. “However, the National ICE Council, which represents over 7,500 ICE agents, will not allow its members to participate in the training. The move effectively halts the full roll-out of ICE’s plan to extend administrative amnesty to large categories of non-criminal illegal aliens.

“The ICE Union has been a vocal opponent to the administration’s effort to circumvent Congress and allow potentially millions of illegal aliens to remain in the U.S. In June 2010 the Union issued a “vote of no confidence” for ICE leadership, expressing concern that they had “abandoned the Agency’s core mission of enforcing U.S. immigration laws and providing for public safety.”

“Representing the Union before a House Subcommittee last July, Union President Chris Crane testified that by broadly expanding the use of prosecutorial discretion the administration was manipulating immigration enforcement “to satisfy complaints from immigrants’ advocacy groups.” He also warned bluntly that, “law enforcement and public safety are no longer the priority at ICE; politics are the priority at ICE.”

“The National ICE Council will decide whether to participate in training or pursue negotiations with ICE by the end of this month.”

Longstanding Law to Prevent Illegal Alien Reentry May Be Scrapped

“With a newly proposed rule announced Friday, the Obama administration is hoping to check yet another item off its administrative amnesty “to-do list,” said Stein. “A U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) rule would allow illegal alien relatives of U.S. citizens to stay in the country while seeking waivers from a law barring their reentry for 3 or 10 years, rather than doing so from outside the U.S.

“In 1996, Congress passed the 3 and 10-year bars to inadmissibility to discourage illegal immigration and marriage fraud. The law provides that an alien who has been in the U.S. unlawfully for 180 days to one year and leaves (either through removal or voluntary departure) is inadmissible to the U.S. for three years. An alien who has been unlawfully in the U.S. for a year or more and leaves is inadmissible for ten years.

“DHS has the authority to waive the bars for some spouses and parents of U.S. citizens where “extreme hardship” exists, but until now illegal aliens had to apply for the waiver from outside the U.S. The Department’s proposed rule, however, will now allow an entire class of illegal aliens to apply for hardship waivers from inside the United States—undermining the very purpose of the law.

“Yet again, breaking the law isn’t enough for an illegal alien to be removed under the Obama administration.

“FAIR observes that this rule change has been a part of its administrative amnesty plan since at least 2010 and represents one more step toward the complete dismantling of most immigration law and a comprehensive illegal alien amnesty plan accomplished entirely by executive fiat and administrative action.”

California DREAM Act to Stand

“California Assemblyman Tim Donnelly (R-Twin Peaks) announced Friday that his referendum campaign to overturn the California DREAM Act (AB 131) has been unsuccessful,” said Stein. “Despite a hard-fought campaign by Donnelly and his group of dedicated activists, Donnelly conceded that petitioners were only able to obtain 447,514 of the 504,760 signatures needed by the deadline in order to qualify the question for the November 2012 ballot.

“Under the California DREAM Act, illegal aliens in the State are eligible for state funded student financial aid programs, as well as Cal Grant A and B Awards after legal California residents receive grants.

“Assemblyman Donnelly called the loss “disappointing.” Nonetheless, he said his efforts served as “a warning to Governor Brown, and every Democrat legislator who voted to create a new entitlement program for illegals while the state still has a budget deficit over $9 billion….”

“This summer, pro-enforcement activists in Maryland were able to garner enough signatures to get an initiative on its November 2012 ballot in an effort to overturn their State’s in-state tuition law.”

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Dan Stein may be reached at www.FAIRUS.org

Frosty Wooldridge is a member of the board at FAIR.

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In a five minute astoundingly simple yet brilliant video, “Immigration, Poverty, and Gum Balls”, Roy Beck, director of www.numbersusa.ORG, graphically illustrates the impact of overpopulation.  Take five minutes to see for yourself:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPjzfGChGlE&feature=player_embedded

“Immigration by the numbers—off the chart” by Roy Beck

This 10 minute demonstration shows Americans the results of unending mass immigration on the quality of life and sustainability for future generations: in a word “Mind boggling!”  www.NumbersUSA.org

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muw22wTePqQ

This is the best website to start:  www.numbersusa.org ; watch Roy Beck’s “Immigration by the Numbers” at 14 minutes. Bi-partisan and very effective. Become a faxer of pre-written letters to your reps to make positive  change.

Visit www.TheSocialContract.com for the best information on what we face as a civilization as to overpopulation, energy, immigration and much more.

Canada www.immigrationwatchcanada.org ; in Australia www.population.org.au and[email protected]; in Great Britain www.populationmatters.org ; and dozens of other sites accessed at www.frostywooldridge.com.   In Florida, www.flimen.org .

Must see DVD: “Blind Spot” www.snagfilms.com/films/title/blind_spot/ , This movie illustrates America’s future without oil, water and other resources to keep this civilization functioning. It’s a brilliant educational movie! www.blindspotdoc.com

Visit www.populationmedia.org for up to date information on overpopulation worldwide.

Must see: Rapid Population Decline, seven minute video by Dr. Jack Alpert-

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTWduFB_RX0

Must see and funny: www.growthbusters.org ; www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXSTrW_dARc
Dave Gardner’s Polar Bear in Bedroom:

growthbusters.org/2010/03/save-the-polar-bear-in-your-bedroom ; Dave Gardner, President, Citizen-Powered Media ; Producing the Documentary, GROWTH BUSTERS; presents Hooked on Growth: Our Misguided Quest for Prosperity, Join the cause at www.growthbusters.org ;760 Wycliffe Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80906 USA; +1 719-576-5565

Check out this link with Wooldridge on bicycle and Lester Brown and panel discussion:

www.upnorthmedia.org/watchupnorthtv.asp?SDBFid=1631

Tomorrow’s Americaproject on www.youtube.com/contemporarylearning.

Producer: GEORGE A. COLBURNwww.tomorrowsamerica.com

DC: 202-258-4887

Email: [email protected]

Link to www.tomorrowsamerica.com for more discussions on America’s predicament.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

www.starbrightmediacorp.com

www.tomorrowsamerica.com

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Frosty Wooldridge has bicycled across six continents – from the Arctic to the South Pole – as well as six times across the USA, coast to coast and border to border. In 2005, he bicycled from the Arctic Circle, Norway to Athens, Greece. He presents “The Coming Population Crisis in America: and what you can do about it” to civic clubs, church groups, high schools and colleges. He works to bring about sensible world population balance at www.frostywooldridge.com He is the author of: America on the Brink: The Next Added 100 Million Americans. Copies available: 1 888 280 7715