HR 2892-FY10 Homeland Security Appropriations bill

[WeldonSprings]

First of all, I am creating a new thread under IV Agenda and Legislative Updates; since I do not see this issue being discussed in other threads.

AILA is reporting that an amendment to make E-Verify permanent has been introduced by Sen. Sessions (spokeperson for NumbersUSA) has been passed by the Senate on a 'Voice Vote'.

This is bad for us because-

1. If the bill becomes law, then we would loose ALL negotiation capabilities on the Family and Employment Recapture Immigration bill introduced by respected Sen. Menendez of New Jersey.

Secondly, this amendment has not yet been introduced in the House Bill.

I do not know if this issue is being discussed in the Donor's forum, but I am trying to create an awareness for the IV Core and the I-485 Visa Gate community in general that this amendment should not be made into law.

I am quoting two references herewith-

Reference 1=>AILA - Senate Adds Two Immigration-Related Enforcement Amendments to FY10 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill (http://www.aila.org/content/default.aspx?docid=29472) (AILA)

Senate Adds Two Immigration-Related Enforcement Amendments to FY10 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill
Cite as "AILA InfoNet Doc. No. 09070869 (posted Jul. 8, 2009)"


The Senate has thus far agreed to include two immigration enforcement-related amendments to the FY10 Homeland Security Appropriations bill (HR 2892).

The first amendment (#1371) sponsored by Senator Sessions (R-AL) would permanently reauthorize the Basic Pilot/E-Verify program and mandate its use among federal contractors and subcontractors. After a Motion to Table (kill) the amendment failed 44-53, Senator Leahy (D-VT) introduced a second-degree amendment to the Sessions amendment which would permanently authorize the EB-5 regional centers program. Both amendments were agreed to by a voice vote.

The second amendment (#1399) sponsored by Senator DeMint (R-SC) would require the completion of at least 700 miles of reinforced fencing along the southwest border by December 31, 2010. The amendment passed 54-44.

Debate on the DHS appropriations measure is on-going at this time and we expect additional amendments to be introduced as the debate continues so stay tuned to InfoNet for more updates.

If regular order is followed, once the Senate passes its version of the FY10 DHS Appropriations bill, it will go to conference where leaders from both chambers will attempt to reconcile differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.

Reference 2- Greg Siskind on Immigration Law and Policy: SESSIONS AMENDMENT PASSES (http://blogs.ilw.com/gregsiskind/2009/07/sessions-amendment-passes.html)

Senator Schumer attempted to table the amendment which would permanently reauthorize the E-Verify program and codify the contractor rule (see post below). That effort failed by a 44 to 53 margin and the amendment then passed by voice vote. The underlying bill already had a three year extension for E-Verify.

This is not the end of the story. The House version will likely have different language and then the two chambers must agree in conference on final language. So the fight goes on.

[WeldonSprings]

Also, I am trying to see if there is an opportunity here to add the Menendez bill as an amendment to the Senate bill and the Honda bill as an amendment to the House bill on Family and Employment Visa recpture.

[rsharma]

Also, I am trying to see if there is an opportunity here to add the Menendez bill as an amendment to the Senate bill and the Honda bill as an amendment to the House bill on Family and Employment Visa recpture.

I think we all should contact Senator Mendez request him to bring in an amendment to this bill to recapture the lapsed Immigration visa numbers. We also should thank him for his earlier efforts to help us.

IV Core please guide us.

[Raji]

I support this. Can IV Core provide some input and insight into this idea and also the recent memo that emerged on on AoS.

Thanks!!

Raji

[vbkris77]

I support this. Can IV Core provide some input and insight into this idea and also the recent memo that emerged on on AoS.

Thanks!!

Raji

I am not usually not a nay sayer. But with CIR discussion around corner, it is an easy shot to say wait for your turn. So could have been this E-Verify, But our rightwing friends did a very hard sell (Look at their websites with banners to call etc.) and I think administration supported it in private because that is going to put pressure on House Democrats and conservatives from south. They will have to face angry hispanics next year if house fails CIR this time. With strict E-Verify and tough economy they are going to face bad time and will boot out all the Nay sayers for CIR in next election.

I think we need to wait and watch.

Besides If they try to attach our provisions in this omnibus, CHC very well know that they can kiss a good bye to CIR for good. So they will do their best to take ouir provisions for hostage. My 2 cents!!!..

If they attach our provisions though, I will be very happy..

[WeldonSprings]

I agree- See what Roy Beck President of Numbers USA, has to say. They will do anything ALSO to defeat CIR -

8 SENATORS WHO SWITCHED TO THE GOOD SIDE TODAY

E-Verify won today because these Senators -- who voted to kill the E-Verify mandate in March -- switched today and voted for using E-Verify to keep illegal aliens out of federal contractor jobs.

Kent Conrad (D-N.D.)
Bryan Dorgan (D-N.D.)
Kay Hagan (D-N.C.)
Mary Landrieu (D-La.)
Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.)
Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.)
Mark Pryor (D-Ark.)
John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.)
All of you who live in those states -- especially North Dakota and Arkansas -- take a bow. Thanks for all you have done to help these Senators see the error of their March vote.

5 OTHER DEMOCRATS WHO VOTED TO HIRE AMERICANS

We have to give special thanks to the Democrats who stood with us and unemployed Americans today, because they had to defy their Party leadership to do it.

These Democrats voted for mandating E-Verify both today and back in March:

Max Baucus (D-Mont.)
Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)
Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.)
Ben Nelson (D-Neb.)
John Tester (D-Mont.)

If 10 of these 13 Senators continue to put American workers first in their voting, they spell absolute doom for plans to legalize 12-20 million illegal aliens with an amnesty.

If you live in their states, do all you can to express your appreciation for what they did today -- and encourage them to stop all government policies that import foreign workers while 15 million Americans are officially unemployed.


I am not usually not a nay sayer. But with CIR discussion around corner, it is an easy shot to say wait for your turn. So could have been this E-Verify, But our rightwing friends did a very hard sell (Look at their websites with banners to call etc.) and I think administration supported it in private because that is going to put pressure on House Democrats and conservatives from south. They will have to face angry hispanics next year if house fails CIR this time. With strict E-Verify and tough economy they are going to face bad time and will boot out all the Nay sayers for CIR in next election.

I think we need to wait and watch.

Besides If they try to attach our provisions in this omnibus, CHC very well know that they can kiss a good bye to CIR for good. So they will do their best to take ouir provisions for hostage. My 2 cents!!!..

If they attach our provisions though, I will be very happy..

[WeldonSprings]

Today the Vitter (DC Madam) amendment also passed by a 'Voice Vote'.

[WeldonSprings]

That is correct- that enforcement is for law-breakers...but the lawmakers and organizations who are proposing such restrictions stand for just ONE thing- LOWER IMMIGRATION NUMBERS- THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT HIGH SKILLED FOLKS LIKE US WHO ARE STANDING IN LINE FOR YEARS WITHOUT MERCY AND PAYING TAXES TO BECOME PERMANENT RESIDENTS.

That is why I have strong objection on their motives and intentions. They do not CARE about cross-border trade and commerce. They FLOUT all rules and regulations on which INternational relations are built upon.

They do not care about HIGH SKILLED PEOPLE FROM INDIA offering their services and growing their GDPs.

They just care about COLGATE, GM, FORD, PROCTER & GAMBLE, COCA COLA and MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES OPERATING IN INDIA AND EXPANDING THEIR OPERATIONS IN EMERGING MARKETS LIKE INDIA.

Maybe it is HIGH TIME that people going back to India should REMEMBER THIS AND ALWAYS STRIVE TO MAINTAIN AN ANTI-MULTINATIONAL REHTORIC in countries like India and China.

MESSAGE IS CLEAR- IF THEY DO NOT NEED OUR SERVICES WE DO NOT REQUIRE THEIR GOODS...SO POLITELY KICK THEM OUT BY REJECTING BUSINESS LICENSES THEIR.

[akred]

Maybe it is HIGH TIME that people going back to India should REMEMBER THIS AND ALWAYS STRIVE TO MAINTAIN AN ANTI-MULTINATIONAL REHTORIC in countries like India and China.

MESSAGE IS CLEAR- IF THEY DO NOT NEED OUR SERVICES WE DO NOT REQUIRE THEIR GOODS...SO POLITELY KICK THEM OUT BY REJECTING BUSINESS LICENSES THEIR.

Such reflexive actions won't help. Trade liberalization is good for India and China as it helps to grow their economies. The desired response should be to help the developing economies grow to the point where the locals do not need to emigrate and foreigners desire to immigrate.

Much of the white nationalist rhetoric that feeds the anti-immigration camp would be shown for the trash it is when that happens.

[WeldonSprings]

I agree that it won't help in the short run...but a WAR is a WAR (trade that is). In the short run, if US is becoming protectionist, then we should be too.In the long run (maybe in 15-20 yras.) who knows but when we have good welcoming people at that time we can liberalize...that is why there are talks of trashing the dollar as an international monetary instrument.

_------------------Coming back to immigration purposes-

There are a select group of politicians who favor illegals becasue of large hispanic voter populations n their jurisdiction. So, even if though they break laws and enter and stay illegally, you can't do anything about them beacuse it has local politician cover. On the other hand there are politicians from states like North Dakota and Arkansas where there is NO hispanci population and so they tend to be anti-illegals.

NO body thinks about us... or the politicans from both latin and anti-latin districts do not see what is actually wrong, what needs to be fixed, to needs to be removed and who needs to stay.

In the process they DAMAGE International relations!!! This can lead to dollar bashing, trade war retaliations etc... Organizations such as Numbers USA do not even imagine this...They are concerned with people INSIDE USA, in the process they damage relations for PEOPLE outside USA.

[akred]

I agree that it won't help in the short run...but a WAR is a WAR (trade that is). In the short run, if US is becoming protectionist, then we should be too.

I would say, we should do what helps us. If the US wants to be protectionist, it is welcome to as long as we do what helps us most. And in this case becoming protectionist will not help us.

[WeldonSprings]

This is how NumbersUSA (Anti-Immigrationist) is salivating to the Senate ammendments on adding E-Verify to the Appropriations bill. Disgusting...


NEXT 2 WEEKS OUR BEST CHANCE FOR IMPROVEMENT THIS YEAR

Friends, we spend most of our time trying to get good legislation just looked at somewhere.

We are in a totally different -- and better -- position at this moment. What we have now is amazingly good legislation already passed by the U.S. Senate -- by easy margins! The good stuff is on the table. It's on its way to law. It is ours to lose right now. We haven't been in a better position than this in a very long time. Instead of fighting for our lives to stop something really bad, we have something very good to protect and preserve.


I would say, we should do what helps us. If the US wants to be protectionist, it is welcome to as long as we do what helps us most. And in this case becoming protectionist will not help us.