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Sessions’s “Enforcement Only” Views On Immigration Detailed — “Nice Guy” Factor Expected To Smooth Comfirmation

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/at-the-justice-department-sessions-could-play-a-key-role-on-immigration/2017/01/07/84a94a54-c7c9-11e6-85b5-76616a33048d_story.html?utm_term=.

“As a senator from Alabama, Jeff Sessions has vigorously opposed any efforts to reform the U.S. immigration system in ways that might benefit those in the country illegally. He has advocated tempering even legal immigration, fearful that people from other countries might take Americans’ jobs.

Sessions (R), President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be the next attorney general, will face no shortage of questions at his confirmation hearing starting Tuesday about his alleged past racist comments, his prosecution of civil rights activists, and his views on voting rights and same-sex marriage. But civil liberties advocates say Sessions’s views on immigration concern them just as much because of the role the Justice Department plays in dealing with those who come to the United States from other countries, and because of the constitutionally questionable policies Trump has suggested that Sessions’s Justice Department would likely implement.”

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While there have been plenty of “negative vibes” about the Sessions nomination, based on his lack of sympathy for civil rights and immigrants, his “nice guy” persona during a long Senate career virtually assures his confirmation as described in this Washington Post article.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/jeff-sessions-should-have-been-a-tough-sell-in-the-us-senate-thats-not-likely/2017/01/07/2de7c280-d44f-11e6-9cb0-54ab630851e8_story.html?utm_term=.66b34036721a

PWS

01/07/17

Related posts:

  1. ELIZABETH BRUENIG & DANA MILBANK @ WASHPOST: Jeff Sessions Abuses Women & Children, Ignores Our Constitution, & Perverts Christian Teachings! — “Dealing compassionately with strangers seems to be a minimal requirement for just leadership in the model set forth by God, a theme that carries into the New Testament, where Christ’s followers are taught to view themselves as wanderers on earth, and to treat others with appropriate empathetic mercy.” — “You don’t have to be a theologian to see the difference between people who do God’s work on earth and those who pervert God’s word to justify inhumanity.”
  2. PAUL WALDMAN @ WASHPOST: Why True Bipartisan Immigration Reform In Our National Interest Will Require “Regime Change:” “[I]t’s highly unlikely that we’ll achieve such reform, even reform most Republicans could live with, without both houses of Congress and the White House in Democratic hands. But that will happen sooner or later. Then we’ll see if we can get closer to a solution that everyone can live with over the long run.”
  3. GREG SARGENT @ WASHPOST: “Good Guys” Apparently Gaining Legislative Traction Against The Trump-Miller White Nationalist Cabal!
  4. 🇺🇸⚖️🗽PROFESSOR CRISTINA RODRIGUEZ @ YALE LAW:  Biden’s Lasting Immigration/Human Rights/Social Justice Reforms & Legacy Will Depend On Replacing 🧹 The Bureaucratic Immigration Kakistocracy 🏴‍☠️☠️🤮 Left Behind By The Regime! — It’s Time For “The EOIR Clown Show” 🤡🦹🏿‍♂️☠️ To Go! — BONUS PWS MINI-ESSAY: “THE BATTLE FOR DUE PROCESS @ JUSTICE ISN’T OVER: Flailing, Failing Department Needs A Bureaucratic House-Cleaning, Now!”

Sessions Garners Support From Son Of “Marion 3” Defendants — N/W/S Controversy, Confirmation Appears Likely — As AG, He Will Administer One Of Our Most Important Court Systems: The United States Immigration Court!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/alabama-politician-whose-parents-were-prosecuted-by-sessions-endorses-him-for-attorney-general/2017/01/04/51c89608-d29b-11e6-945a-76f69a399dd5_story.html?utm_term=.6469f01a24e7

“Albert F. Turner Jr., the son of civil rights activists who were prosecuted by Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions in a controversial voting fraud case 32 years ago, said Wednesday he supports the Alabama lawmaker’s nomination to be attorney general.

“My family and I have literally been on the front line of the fight for civil rights my whole life,” said Turner, a county commissioner in Perry County, Ala. “And while I respect the deeply held positions of other civil rights advocates who oppose Senator Sessions, I believe it is important for me to speak out with regard to Senator Sessions personally. . . . He is not a racist.”

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Another article in the Washington Post discusses positive aspects of Senator Session’s character and career.  He appears to be someone who engenders strong feelings, both positive and negative.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/dueling-images-of-attorney-general-nominee-jeff-sessions/2017/01/05/e96bb796-d36e-11e6-9651-54a0154cf5b3_story.html?utm_term=.ecd459fbad2c

But, unless something quite unexpected comes up during his confirmation hearing, Senator Sessions appears to be well on his way to confirmation as the next Attorney General.

Although most of the focus has been on Civil Rights, as Attorney General, Jeff Sessions’s most important and largely overlooked role probably will be his authority over the hugely important and highly troubled — to the tune of a stunning 530,000+ case backlog which continues to grow — United States Immigration Court System, with both trial and appellate branches administered by the DOJ through the Executive Office for Immigration Review (“EOIR”).

Although many experts have called for establishing a truly independent Immigration Court System outside of the DOJ, the current reality is that the DOJ controls perhaps the largest and most important Federal Court System.  Whether as Attorney General Jeff Sessions nurtures, supports, and improves the independent due process mission of the Immigration Courts, or rather tries to undermine and “game” the Immigration Courts’ due process role, as some of his predecessors have done, will, to a much larger extent than most imagine, determine the future of our nation.

PWS

01/06/17

 

Related posts:

  1. HERE’S PT. I OF NBC4’s “CRISIS IN THE IMMIGRATION COURTS,” FEATURING JUDGE DANA LEIGH MARKS & ME DISCUSSING BACKLOGS!
  2. SOPHIA GENOVESE: “INJUSTICE AT JUSTICE” – The Immigration Court system should not be used as a political tool of the executive branch to effectuate anti-immigrant policies. Rather, it should be an independent system that is committed to the fair adjudication and implementation of our immigration laws.”
  3. HOW TO RUIN A COURT SYSTEM: SOME OF THE “BEST & BRIGHTEST” IMMIGRATION JUDGES QUIT IN PROTEST OVER REGIME’S BIASED POLICIES AND “WEAPONIZATION” OF IMMIGRATION COURTS INTO DHS ENFORCEMENT TOOL BY DOJ POLITICOS!
  4. NO EXPERTISE NECESSARY! – At The “New EOIR,” Immigration Judges No Longer Need to Demonstrate Immigration Experience – Just a Willingness To Send Migrants to Potential Death, Danger, or Misery Without Due Process or Fundamental Fairness – When Your Job Is To Impose Arbitrary “Death Sentences,” Maybe It’s Easier If You Don’t Understand What You’re Really Doing!

“Dreamers” Worry About Fate of DACA — Under Trump Administration, What Will Happen To The Lives They Have Built In America?

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2017/0104/For-immigrant-Dreamers-an-uncertain-future

“There is much at stake, too, for undocumented immigrants like Brady, who have grown up, gone to school, and struggled to make sense of their futures.

“I was just a kid when I came, and I really didn’t know what immigration status really meant,” says Brady, who grew up and attended public schools in Washington Heights, which New Yorkers often call “Little DR” because of the many Dominican immigrants who live there. “I wasn’t really worrying about it until my senior year in high school when I had to start thinking about colleges.”

“But when I started to really understand what my life was going to be like, I started freaking out, I started to panic,” she continues. “Why was I going to school? What is the point of going to college if I couldn’t get a career if I was an illegal immigrant?”

She pressed on, doing what a lot of low-income New Yorkers do. She volunteered at a home for the elderly, she attended summer academic programs, she made her high school honor roll and tutored younger peers.

And after getting accepted to John Jay College of Criminal Justice, she worked long hours as a bartender, off the books, to pay her way. It was overwhelming, she says, until she got a scholarship from a local civic group. “I was over the moon, full of joy and crying and happy after getting it,” she says.

She loved her days tutoring and eventually decided to become a teacher.

“As cliché and corny as this sounds, it’s like some people just have their calling,” the graduate student now says. “It took me a while to figure it out, but it truly makes my heart happy.”

Yet she still felt that she was “living in the shadows, being a part of something, but not really,” during her 20 years coming of age in the United States. Now married to a US citizen, she says Obama’s order finally helped her become “DACA-mented,” as many Dreamers call it, and be authorized to teach math in New York City public schools.”

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The possibility of a legislative compromise to help the “Dreamers” while beefing up immigration enforcement is discussed in this article by Nolan Rappaport in The Hill:

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/immigration/311243-gop-immigration-bill-gives-dreamers-a-break-hardliners-a-bone

It was also discussed in my blog of 12/30/16.

PWS

01/05/17

Related posts:

  1. THE HILL: NOLAN UNIMPRESSED BY “GANG OF SIX’S” DREAMER COMPROMISE EFFORT!
  2. NOLAN RAPPAPORT @ THE HILL: PERHAPS, THE PARTIES NEED TO COME UP WITH A NEW SYSTEM THAT COMBINES “FAMILY REUNIFICATION” WITH “MERIT-BASED” FACTORS!
  3. PAUL WALDMAN @ WASHPOST: Why True Bipartisan Immigration Reform In Our National Interest Will Require “Regime Change:” “[I]t’s highly unlikely that we’ll achieve such reform, even reform most Republicans could live with, without both houses of Congress and the White House in Democratic hands. But that will happen sooner or later. Then we’ll see if we can get closer to a solution that everyone can live with over the long run.”
  4. TAL @ CNN SAYS “GANG OF SIX” STILL WORKING FURIOUSLY TO GET BIPARTISAN SUPPORT AS BUDGET CRISIS LOOMS EVER CLOSER!

Good To His Word, “The Leader Of the Pack” Takes Them Into The Playoffs — AR’s 4 TD Passes Tame Lions!

In mid-October, the Green Bay Packers were 4-6, wallowing in the throes of a four game losing streak. In Green Bay, where the home-town Packers aren’t everything, just the only thing, the conspiracy theories abounded — Aaron Rodgers was “over the hill,” he was preoccupied with girlfriend Olivia Munn, Vladimir Putin was hacking the signals and relaying them to the opposition.

But, AR remained cool. Acknowledging that he hadn’t played up to par, he predicted that the Pack would “run the table” — win their remaining six games — and make the playoffs. Many observers were skeptical.

Tonight, AR silenced the skeptics. Overcoming hamstring and calf injuries, the lack of a consistent running game, and an unreliable defense suffering from numerous key injuries, Rodgers threw four touchdown passes (giving him 40 for the season) in leading the Packers to a 31-24 road victory over the Detroit Lions that clinched the NFC North title. AR eluded rushers who seemed to have him in their grasp, ridiculously extended plays, and made several key runs .

Kudos to the Pack’s under-appreciated offensive line, which provided outstanding protection while controlling the line of scrimmage. Additionally, the defense, under beleaguered coordinator Dom Capers, made key stops and generally contained the Lions’ high-octane passing attack led by quarterback Matthew Stafford.

The Pack’s victory earned them a home playoff date against the NY Giants at Lambeau Field next Sunday. But, beware Packer fans: The last two times these teams met at Lambeau in the postseason, quarterback Eli Manning led the Giants to impressive wins.

Meanwhile, all was not lost for the Lions. They journey to Seattle to take on the Seahawks in the first round of the playoffs next Saturday.

PWS

01/01/17

Related posts:

  1. AR & REST OF PACK ASK FANS TO JOIN THEM IN STANDING UP FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE BEFORE TOMORROW NIGHT’S GAME WITH BEARS AT LAMBEAU!
  2. NFL PLAYERS, OWNER, COACHES STAND UP AGAINST RACIST IN CHIEF!
  3. SPORTS/GOSSIP/THE PACK: It’s Official: AR & Danica Patrick Are “An Item!”
  4. 🏈G.O.A.T.-BUTTED AGAIN — Pack Season Dissolves In NFC Championship Again As Tom Brady Takes Them Apart For The Second Time!

More From Nolan Rappaport in “The Hill” on How the Trump Administration and Congress Could Agree on Immigration Reform

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/immigration/310078-to-control-immigration-trump-needs-to-think-outside-the-wall

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/immigration/311243-gop-immigration-bill-gives-dreamers-a-break-hardliners-a-bone

I found some common themes:

  1.  The Trump Administration needs to “Think Outside the Wall.”  Without some fundamental changes from Obama Administration policies and Trump rhetoric, nothing is going to change.
  2. There must be some type of legalization for “Dreamers” and others to get Immigration Court dockets back under control.
  3. Interior enforcement must be reinstated and employer sanctions enforced to cut off the “magnet” for undocumented immigration.
  4. Everyone involved must work together and compromise for our immigration system to be credible.

PWS

12/29/16

Related posts:

  1. PAUL WALDMAN @ WASHPOST: Why True Bipartisan Immigration Reform In Our National Interest Will Require “Regime Change:” “[I]t’s highly unlikely that we’ll achieve such reform, even reform most Republicans could live with, without both houses of Congress and the White House in Democratic hands. But that will happen sooner or later. Then we’ll see if we can get closer to a solution that everyone can live with over the long run.”
  2. N. RAPPAPORT IN THE HILL: DEMS’ DREAMER BILL OFFERS FALSE HOPE!
  3. NO SURPRISES HERE – “GONZO” IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT IS BAD LAW ENFORCEMENT!
  4. JULIAN CASTRO: A Democrat With A Sane & Sound Immigration Plan!

Not All Undocumented Migrants Are From South of the Border — Politicians Should Represent Everyone

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/undocumented-immigrants-armenian-trump_us_584edd21e4b0bd9c3dfdb444

Here’s an account by freelance reporter Gohar Chichian, an Armenian American, of growing up in America with undocumented parents.  Eventually, her parents were able to obtain legal status.

The U.S. Supreme Court agrees with her that American politicians have a responsibility (often ignored) to represent the interests of everyone, including  immigrants both legal and undocumented.  In the 2016 case Evenwel v. Abbott (link below), the majority opinion by Justice Ginsburg said:

“As the Framers of the Constitution and the Fourteenth Amendment comprehended, representatives serve all residents, not just those eligible or registered to vote. Nonvoters have an important stake in many policy debates—children, their parents, even their grandparents, for example, have a stake in a strong public-education system—and in receiving constituent services, such as help navigating public-benefits bureaucracies. By ensuring that each representative is subject to requests and suggestions from the same number of constituents, total-population apportionment promotes equitable and effective representation.”

Here’s an excerpt from Chichian’s article in Huffpost:

“Our battle was finally over. But the war over immigration will continue with the start of the Trump administration. As Trump’s policies begin to unfold, politicians in Washington should remember that the immigration debate isn’t just about a few particular groups. The rhetoric of Donald Trump over the past year may have focused on Mexicans and Muslims, but my parents are Christian, and they are from a country that was devastated by a totalitarian left-wing ideology. Their story makes clear just how broad an impact the immigration decisions made in Washington will have on diverse communities nationwide. We are a nation built by immigrants — our politicians should work to represent them. All of them.”

The link to the full article is at the top.

Click to access 14-940_ed9g.pdf

PWS

12/26/16

Related posts:

  1. GOV WINS A “BIGGIE:” 6th Cir. Defers To BIA’s Interpretation Of “Pereira Notice” in Matter of Bermudez-Cota — Hernandez-Perez v. Whitaker!
  2. PODCAST “REVEALS” DUE PROCESS DISASTER IN IMMIGRATION COURTS, PARTICULARLY FOR TRANSGENDER INDIVIDUALS — Deep Seated Problems Existed — This Administration Made Them Worse!
  3. CHILD ABUSE BY COWARDLY REGIME OFFICIALS RAMPS UP AS COURTS TANK IN FACE OF LATEST ASSAULT ON RULE OF LAW & HUMANITY ☠️ — “This incredibly callous treatment of young migrants as well as their families is part of the Trump administration’s attempt to erase any vestige of due process at the border with Mexico.“
  4. JULY 4, 2020: Colbert I. King @ WashPost With a “Declaration of  Independence” For Our Time! 🗽👍🏼⚖️💥 — DUMP TRUMP! ☠️🤮⚰️👎🏻

Just Doing The Right Thing — Canadian Businessman Invests in Saving 200 Syrian Refugees

http://torontolife.com/city/life/jim-estill-the-man-who-saved-200-syrian-refugees/

From Toronto Life.

“Estill has codified his life into a set of what he calls “success habits.” Some of them are very specific: spend 20 minutes outside every day, no matter the weather, and have a “creative oasis” where you can do your best thinking (one of his is a rocking chair by the fireplace in his basement). Other maxims are much broader, like do the right thing—a principle that figured prominently in his decision to sponsor Syrian refugees.

. . . .

Estill is prototyping an ambitious sponsorship program that he hopes will grow into a full-scale humanitarian movement. He wants to show other wealthy businesspeople across the country how they can front the money, set volunteers in motion and use their professional networks to find jobs for refugees. “If you can run a company with 800 employees, then you can run an organization with 800 volunteers,” he says. He has a clear definition of success for the program: 50 families who work, pay taxes, buy their own groceries and speak English. “We’re not encouraging them to be dependent on us,” he told me. “You’re not doing anyone any favours if you just hand them cheques.””

PWS

12/24/16

 

Related posts:

  1. The Nation: Ivanka’s Husband, Beloved Son-In-Law, Trusted Advisor — Jared Kushner Probably Wouldn’t Here Under His Father-In-Law’s Restrictive Policies!
  2. NY TIMES OPINION: James Traub Says Refugee Issues Are More Nuanced Than Most Of Us Want To Admit!
  3. HON. JEFFREY CHASE DISCUSSES ASYLUM BASED ON FEAR OF HONOR KILLINGS!
  4. CHRISTMAS 2017: Pope Francis Makes Migrants’ Humanity, Plight, Rights Focus Of Christmas Message To World’s Christians!