By Douglas V. Gibbs
Immigrants and Illegal Aliens (Undocumented Aliens) are not the same. An immigrant is a person who has followed the immigration procedures for the purpose of residing in the United States legally. Illegal Aliens, or Undocumented Aliens are not immigrants. They have not followed the immigration procedures for the purpose of residing in the United States legally. So, when the words "immigration" or "immigrant" are used in articles or broadcasts as identifiers of illegal aliens or undocumented aliens, the words are being used in error, or by design for the purpose of confusing the reader or viewer about the definitions.
With the current DACA showdown in Congress, the immigration issue (and in reality we should call it the illegal alien issue) has been placed front and center with a lot of erroneous information being provided. So, first, just so that we understand the legal terminology, let's review what the words, and the law, really means and says (some punctuation, and all bold or italicization was added for emphasis or clarity).
On Wednesday, The White House budget office clarified the stance of the administration, sending Congress a letter expressing support for the overall bill and expressly wrote, “The Administration supports the bill’s multiyear funding extension of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).”
Homan said at the time that the federal government would not allow California to be “a sanctuary state for illegal aliens,” and would have no choice but to “conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and at worksites, which will inevitably result in additional collateral arrests, instead of focusing on arrests at jails and prisons where transfers are safer for ICE officers and the community.” These words were taken as a sign that a sweep was inevitable.
Homan told Fox News that “California better hold on tight.” He said that if local politicians “don’t want to protect their communities, then ICE will.”
California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is accusing the Trump administration of planning to carry out these sweeps for political purposes, not for the security of the country. The supporters of Trump carrying out immigration law as it currently stands on the books beg to differ.
An ICE spokesman in San Francisco, James Schwab, said in an email that the agency “doesn’t comment on future or current operations.” This tells us that at the moment, all of the fears and accusations of the coming sweeps are likely at best hyperbole.
As for the need for such a move by the federal government, time and time again we are reminded that among the illegal alien population exists criminals and violent offenders of the law who, if proper border security and immigration provisions were being addressed, would likely not be in the country in the first place. A recent California suspect who stabbed a person in a diner has been deported previously seven times. Why was he still walking the streets?
Official Immigration Terms and Definitions Involving Aliens, per U.S. Government and the IRS:
A general summary of U.S. immigration terminology follows. Any references below to USCIS refer to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Alien: An individual who is not a U.S. citizen or U.S. national.
U.S. National: An individual who owes his sole allegiance to the United States, including all U.S. citizens, and including some individuals who are not U.S. citizens. For tax purposes the term "U.S. national" refers to individuals who were born in American Samoa or were born in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands who have chosen to be U.S. nationals instead of U.S. citizens.
U.S. Citizen: An individual born in the United States.
An individual whose parent is a U.S. citizen. (NOTE: There are two general ways to obtain citizenship through U.S. citizen parents, one at birth and one after birth but before the age of 18. For more information, refer to the USCIS Citizenship Through Parents.
A former alien who has been naturalized as a U.S. citizen
An individual born in Puerto Rico
An individual born in Guam
An individual born in the U.S. Virgin Islands
Compacts of Free Association: The following countries are independent republics, which were once part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific administered by the United States on behalf of the United Nations; Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Marshall Islands, Republic of Palau.
Each of the above nations signed a Compact of Free Association (CFA) with the United States. As stipulated by each CFA, citizens of the above-named republics may freely enter the United States without a visa, remain in the U.S. for an indefinite period, and be employed in the U.S. without restriction. A citizen of one of the above republics who enters the U.S. should be issued a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Form I-94 Arrival-Departure Record bearing one of the following stamps:
CFA/FSM for the Federated States of Micronesia
CFA/MIS for the Republic of Marshall Islands
CFA/PAL for the Republic of Palau
However, even without an I-94 as noted above, a citizen of one of the republics named above may still enter the U.S. without a visa, remain in the United States for an indefinite period, and be employed in the U.S. without restriction.
Immigrant: An alien who has been granted the right by the USCIS to reside permanently in the United States and to work without restrictions in the United States. Such an individual is also known known as a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR). All immigrants are eventually issued a "green card" (USCIS Form I-551), which is the evidence of the alien’s LPR status. LPR’s who are awaiting the issuance of their green cards may bear an I-551 stamp in their foreign passports.
Immigrant visas are available for aliens (and their spouses and children) who seek to immigrate based on their job skills. An alien who has the right combination of skills, education, and/or work experience, and is otherwise eligible, may be able to live permanently in the United States. Per USCIS, there are five employment-based immigrant visa preferences (categories): EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, EB-4 and EB-5. Refer to the USCIS Permanent Worker web site for more details.
Nonimmigrant: An alien who has been granted the right to reside temporarily in the United States. Each nonimmigrant is admitted into the U.S. in the nonimmigrant status which corresponds to the type of visa issued.
Aliens in some nonimmigrant statuses are permitted to be employed in the United States, and others are not. Some nonimmigrant statuses have strict time limits for the alien’s stay in the U.S., while others do not.
Each nonimmigrant status has rules and guidelines. A nonimmigrant who violates one of these rules or guidelines will fall "out of status." A nonimmigrant who remains "out of status" for at least 180 days is deportable and if deported will be unable to re-enter the United States for 3 years. A nonimmigrant who remains "out of status" for at least 365 days is deportable and if deported will be unable to re-enter the United States for 10 years.
Each nonimmigrant status has rules and guidelines, which must be followed in order for the nonimmigrant to remain "in status." A nonimmigrant who violates one of these rules or guidelines will fall "out of status." An nonimmigrant who remains "out of status" for at least 180 days is deportable and will be unable to re-enter the United States for 3 years. A nonimmigrant who remains "out of status" for at least 365 days is deportable and will be unable to re-enter the United States for 10 years.
See Taxation of Aliens by Visa Type and Immigration Status for a summary of visa types.
Details on the types of nonimmigrant visas may be found on the refer to the Department of State’s Travel web page. A list of nonimmigrant visa types, along with the corresponding employment authorization provisions, may be viewed at the Social Security Administration’s Employment Authorization for Non-immigrants web site.
Undocumented Alien: An alien who entered the United States illegally without the proper authorization and documents, or who entered the United States legally and has since violated the terms of his or her visa or overstayed the time limit. An undocumented alien is deportable if apprehended.
Visa Waiver Program (VWP): The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables citizens of participating countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for up to 90 days without obtaining a United States visa. The VWP is administered by the Department of Homeland Security in consultation with the Department of State. For a list of participating countries and for further information on the VWP, please visit the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Visa Waiver Program.
Currently, two "immigration issue" fronts are being fought. In Congress, there is a threat of a government shutdown if the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) executive order is not made into law, and provided for in the new budget. DACA was illegally enacted by President Barack Obama (for the purposes of being a part of his dismantling of American Immigration Laws procedures), and conservatives have long believed the action shouldn't even be up for discussion. It violates federal law, and was created by the President when Article I, Section 1 of the United States Constitution clearly states that all legislative powers belong to Congress. Nonetheless, President Trump, rather than kill DACA, decided to hand it over to Congress and let them legislatively deal with it. The move of delaying the expiration of DACA to March and asking Congress to come up with a legislative fix, rather than just killing it, should have thrilled leftist voters since Trump literally gave them an opportunity to work with it over at least six months.
Ultimately, the Democrats only want amnesty, and that is a part of what DACA is all about.
The other battlefront is regarding Sanctuary Cities and States, and the willingness of the Trump administration to take legal action, if necessary, against the officials who are openly defying federal immigration law in violation of the Supremacy Clause in Article VI. of the U.S. Constitution.
In Congress, the open-border Democrats say they are willing to shutdown the government if they don't get what they want regarding DACA, and other immigration issues. The Republicans, however, hold the majority in both Houses, so to achieve the ultimate prize of their shutdown goals, the Democrats will need to convince members of the GOP to join them in the House. The Senate poses a whole different challenge for Republicans, but we'll get to that in a moment.
Reality is, the Democrats have turned their back on other groups they claim to champion, like the black community ... illegal aliens are now more important to the Democrats because they possess a new political power that the Democrats are lusting after. If enacted, the plans the Democrats are pushing would legalize over 10 MILLION Illegal Aliens with almost No Enforcement and Security right out the gate - and that's not considering the massive flood that would follow. How many jobs and housing in their communities do you think the black community will lose as a result?
House Speaker Paul Ryan says he's not worried. The Republicans will at least be able to pass a stopgap government-wide funding bill, despite attacks from the liberal left.
House Speaker Paul Ryan says he's not worried. The Republicans will at least be able to pass a stopgap government-wide funding bill, despite attacks from the liberal left.
Even if the bigger budget bill, or a stopgap measure, passes the House of Representatives, it still has to work its way through the Senate, where the GOP majority is hair-thin. Republicans hold a slim 51-49 majority in the Senate and most legislation, including spending bills or an immigration deal, will require 60 votes for passage due to the current cloture rules. If, and only if, it gets past the Senate, President Donald Trump still needs to sign it. Trump's signature has become a question in some circles because he's not thrilled about the short-term inclusion of the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, and a called-for extension of the program for six years. The President Tweeted, “CHIP should be part of a long term solution, not a 30 Day, or short term, extension!”
On Wednesday, The White House budget office clarified the stance of the administration, sending Congress a letter expressing support for the overall bill and expressly wrote, “The Administration supports the bill’s multiyear funding extension of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).”
Federal financing for the program that serves nearly 9 million children expired in October and several States are close to exhausting their money, and Congress has passed several short-term patches to keep their programs afloat. Technically, federal funding for the program is unconstitutional, and should be permanently provided by the States, if they choose to even carry the program. That said, politics is the game of the possible, and currently, removing federal tentacles from several unconstitutional intrusions is just not entirely possible, right now.
House Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows has indicated that establishment GOP leaders have rejected demands by conservatives to add military funding to the four-week stopgap spending bill.
House Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows has indicated that establishment GOP leaders have rejected demands by conservatives to add military funding to the four-week stopgap spending bill.
“They still don’t have the votes here,” Meadows said.
Then, there's the demand for a "bipartisan" DACA solution.
Then, there's the demand for a "bipartisan" DACA solution.
Democrats are demanding a deal on legislation to offer protection from deportation to persons who fall under the requirements of DACA, claiming that the "younger immigrants" who were brought to the country as children and now are here illegally are not here as a fault of their own, and deportation would be "mean" and "Un-American." Statistics don't necessarily support the definitions provided by the Democrats, however.
If it comes to the point of a government shutdown, Republicans seem pretty confident that for once, the Democrats would get the blame. McConnell said that any filibuster by Senate Democrats would pin the blame for a possible shutdown on them. And, if any Democrats cast nay ballots, Republicans plan to also try to turn that decision against vulnerable lawmakers in the midterm elections.
“My friends on the other side of the aisle do not oppose a single thing in this bill,” said McConnell, R-Ky. “They know they can’t possibly explain to our warfighters and veterans, to our seniors, to our opioid treatment centers, to the millions of vulnerable children and their families who depend on S-CHIP for coverage, or to all the Americans who rely on the federal government for critical services like food inspections and Social Security checks.”
The truth is, in the event of a shutdown, food inspections and other vital services would continue, as would Social Security and other federal benefit programs.
The task of dealing with Sanctuary States and Cities is a little messier. For example, when the Oakland, California, City Council voted unanimously to end any cooperation with agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Mayor Libby Schaaf said she would go to jail if needed in her opposition to ICE raids.
Based on some of the language coming out of the White House, according to the Democrats, it is believed that ICE is planning to launch a series of Bay Area raids — with the goal of arresting as many as 1,500 illegal aliens — because California has become a Sanctuary State and several communities have adopted Sanctuary City policies.
The alleged sweep is believed to be retaliation against California's statewide sanctuary law that Governor Jerry Brown signed last October. Acting ICE Director Thomas Homan slammed Brown for signing SB54, which he said undermined public safety.
“My friends on the other side of the aisle do not oppose a single thing in this bill,” said McConnell, R-Ky. “They know they can’t possibly explain to our warfighters and veterans, to our seniors, to our opioid treatment centers, to the millions of vulnerable children and their families who depend on S-CHIP for coverage, or to all the Americans who rely on the federal government for critical services like food inspections and Social Security checks.”
The truth is, in the event of a shutdown, food inspections and other vital services would continue, as would Social Security and other federal benefit programs.
The task of dealing with Sanctuary States and Cities is a little messier. For example, when the Oakland, California, City Council voted unanimously to end any cooperation with agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Mayor Libby Schaaf said she would go to jail if needed in her opposition to ICE raids.
Based on some of the language coming out of the White House, according to the Democrats, it is believed that ICE is planning to launch a series of Bay Area raids — with the goal of arresting as many as 1,500 illegal aliens — because California has become a Sanctuary State and several communities have adopted Sanctuary City policies.
The alleged sweep is believed to be retaliation against California's statewide sanctuary law that Governor Jerry Brown signed last October. Acting ICE Director Thomas Homan slammed Brown for signing SB54, which he said undermined public safety.
Homan said at the time that the federal government would not allow California to be “a sanctuary state for illegal aliens,” and would have no choice but to “conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and at worksites, which will inevitably result in additional collateral arrests, instead of focusing on arrests at jails and prisons where transfers are safer for ICE officers and the community.” These words were taken as a sign that a sweep was inevitable.
Homan told Fox News that “California better hold on tight.” He said that if local politicians “don’t want to protect their communities, then ICE will.”
California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is accusing the Trump administration of planning to carry out these sweeps for political purposes, not for the security of the country. The supporters of Trump carrying out immigration law as it currently stands on the books beg to differ.
An ICE spokesman in San Francisco, James Schwab, said in an email that the agency “doesn’t comment on future or current operations.” This tells us that at the moment, all of the fears and accusations of the coming sweeps are likely at best hyperbole.
As for the need for such a move by the federal government, time and time again we are reminded that among the illegal alien population exists criminals and violent offenders of the law who, if proper border security and immigration provisions were being addressed, would likely not be in the country in the first place. A recent California suspect who stabbed a person in a diner has been deported previously seven times. Why was he still walking the streets?
Americans in all communities who are currently at the lower wage level in the work force should be angry because a sanctuary status means that even more illegal aliens will be available to take their jobs, and send more Americans into a deeper level of poverty as a result of leftist policies.
The reality is, the liberal left Democrat Party does not truly care for these people. They are simply another way for them to add to their power. The fact is, uninformed people are quick to head into the Democrat Party tent because the promises made by Democrats sound good on the surface, even if they are not sustainable. Therefore, a majority of illegal aliens support leftist politicians (despite the conservative nature of the culture), and while the Trump administration has erroneously abandoned their investigation into voter fraud, the truth is that illegal aliens not only directly affect the vote, but when it comes to the census, when they are counted they actually change the balance of power in the House of Representatives and the Electoral College.
When push comes to shove, it really all comes down to the rule of law. Are we a nation of laws?
The funny thing is, at one time Democrats like California's Senator Feinstein, Bill Clinton and Chuck Schumer were big time proponents of immigration law and deporting illegal aliens ... then they discovered those people may help them in their power, and they shifted against the best interests of America, and into a position that best interests the power-grab their political party is trying to accomplish.
-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
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