pappu
10-07-2010, 10:31 AM
Lou Dobbs has long railed against illegal immigration and the employers who hire undocumented workers. Dobbs generated controversy — and faced boycotts — for attacking "illegal aliens" as host of a nightly CNN show. And since leaving the network in December, Dobbs has kept talking about the issue in interviews, in which he's also left open the possibility of running for senator or president.
Report: Lou Dobbs employed illegal immigrants | The Upshot Yahoo! News - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101007/cm_yblog_upshot/report-lou-dobbs-employed-undocumented-immigrants)
But Dobbs might want to pause before making illegal immigration a signature campaign issue: At least five illegal immigrants have reportedly worked on his properties.
The liberal Nation magazine, in a yearlong investigation conducted with the Investigative Fund at the Nation Institute, found that "Dobbs has relied for years on undocumented labor for the upkeep of his multimillion-dollar estates and the horses he keeps for his 22-year-old daughter, Hillary, a champion show jumper."
The Nation's Isabel Macdonald writes that while Dobbs has bashed employers for hiring immigrants without papers, he "has been far from vigilant about the status of workers laboring on his own properties." (The Nation has long editorialized against Dobbs and those who agree with him on immigration.)
Dobbs owns a 300-acre estate in Sussex, N.J., and a winter home in West Palm Beach, Fla. His daughter keeps five show horses worth about $1 million each at several stables; the horses are owned by the Dobbs Group, of which Lou Dobbs is president.
Macdonald spoke with several immigrants who were employed to work on winter property and helped with the upkeep of Dobbs' horses at stables in Vermont and Florida. "I looked after Dobbs' horses while I was illegal," said one man. Another worker said that he believed Hillary Dobbs knew they didn't have papers. (The workers did not give their real names for fear of deportation.)
Macdonald wrote that another worker worked on the garden at Dobbs' Florida property. On one occasion, that worker said, Lou Dobbs — who referred to himself as "Luis" — instructed him in Spanish to talk to his boss about moving a specific plant. Macdonald interviewed other immigrants who worked at the holiday home.
Hillary Dobbs did not comment for the article. And Lou Dobbs, through a radio producer on "The Lou Dobbs Show," declined to comment. Robert Zeller, Dobbs' attorney, said Dobbs would answer questions only on his live radio show; the Nation agreed to be on the show, but only after publication.
Dobbs has not yet responded to a request from The Upshot to discuss the allegations, which are sure to get attention given the commentator's very public views on the subject. The Nation compiled a video of Dobbs' past statements:
Report: Lou Dobbs employed illegal immigrants | The Upshot Yahoo! News - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101007/cm_yblog_upshot/report-lou-dobbs-employed-undocumented-immigrants)
But Dobbs might want to pause before making illegal immigration a signature campaign issue: At least five illegal immigrants have reportedly worked on his properties.
The liberal Nation magazine, in a yearlong investigation conducted with the Investigative Fund at the Nation Institute, found that "Dobbs has relied for years on undocumented labor for the upkeep of his multimillion-dollar estates and the horses he keeps for his 22-year-old daughter, Hillary, a champion show jumper."
The Nation's Isabel Macdonald writes that while Dobbs has bashed employers for hiring immigrants without papers, he "has been far from vigilant about the status of workers laboring on his own properties." (The Nation has long editorialized against Dobbs and those who agree with him on immigration.)
Dobbs owns a 300-acre estate in Sussex, N.J., and a winter home in West Palm Beach, Fla. His daughter keeps five show horses worth about $1 million each at several stables; the horses are owned by the Dobbs Group, of which Lou Dobbs is president.
Macdonald spoke with several immigrants who were employed to work on winter property and helped with the upkeep of Dobbs' horses at stables in Vermont and Florida. "I looked after Dobbs' horses while I was illegal," said one man. Another worker said that he believed Hillary Dobbs knew they didn't have papers. (The workers did not give their real names for fear of deportation.)
Macdonald wrote that another worker worked on the garden at Dobbs' Florida property. On one occasion, that worker said, Lou Dobbs — who referred to himself as "Luis" — instructed him in Spanish to talk to his boss about moving a specific plant. Macdonald interviewed other immigrants who worked at the holiday home.
Hillary Dobbs did not comment for the article. And Lou Dobbs, through a radio producer on "The Lou Dobbs Show," declined to comment. Robert Zeller, Dobbs' attorney, said Dobbs would answer questions only on his live radio show; the Nation agreed to be on the show, but only after publication.
Dobbs has not yet responded to a request from The Upshot to discuss the allegations, which are sure to get attention given the commentator's very public views on the subject. The Nation compiled a video of Dobbs' past statements: