immigration

Boehner & the White Man’s Party Prepare to Kill Immigration Reform

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Partyofnoby Pamela Powers Hannley

Knuckle-dragging Republicans in the US House of Representatives have said that they will NOT– that is NOT with capital letters– pass an immigration “reform” bill that includes a path to citizenship for 12 million immigrants living in the US.

After all, the Republican Party’s corporate masters are making big bucks exploiting and imprisoning undocumented workers; I guess their motto is: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” For big business, immigration ain’t broke (except that they would like easier access to  cheap, skilled labor from India).

The US Senate’s much-celebrated bill did have a path to citizen (plus lots of other stuff the Democrats agreed to in order to get a handful of Republicans to vote for it.)

In the spirit of full disclosure, I didn’t like the US Senate’s version of Immigration Reform for multiple reasons. Read them and more about the White Man's Party after the jump.

Arrests, deportations, protests: Is Tucson an immigrant-friendly city or not?

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On Sunday, Tucson Police and the Border Patrol arrested Rene Meza Huertha, in front of his wife and children, and arrested activist Raúl Alcaráz Ochoa, who was trying to prevent the arrest of Huertha. This action by TPD is in direct violation of the City Council's vote in August 2012– making Tucson an "immigrant friendly" city. From the Arizona Daily Star…

"We don't want people to feel fear when traveling to work, to school, to the store," [City Councilwoman Regina] Romero said before the meeting. "We also don't want people to be afraid to call the police to report a crime."

She said a conversation now will begin among the city, immigrant communities, businesses, the Tucson Police Department and others about how to make the city more welcoming.

Activists are calling for a protest and press conference today, Monday, February 18 at 4 p.m., outside of TPD. 

On a related note, the American Friends Service Committee, Border Links, Derechos Humanos, and other immigrant supporters, including the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson, will hold a press conference and protest of Operation Streamline on Tuesday, February 19, at 12:30 at the Federal Courthouse. The Operation Streamline action leads up to a Congressional hearing on this policy on February 22 in DC. Details and background on both of these actions after the jump.

Jan 29: Barber hosts meeting on Border Patrol Operations

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by Pamela Powers Hannley U.S. Rep. Ron Barber (D) will host a meeting to discuss the Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on Border Patrol Operations– today. Please RSVP at AZ02.RSVP@mail.house.gov. The meeting is 5:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29 at Pima Communitiy College East Campus, 8181 E. Irvington Rd. Here is a link to GAO … Read more

ACLU/Feds smack down Brewer’s drivers license stance for Dreamers

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by Pamela Powers Hannley The ACLU is claiming that, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), young people eligible for deferred deportation are  "authorized to stay and lawfully present in the country" — not "illegal people." Within the last year, Governor Jan Brewer had issued an executive order stating that Dreamers were not eligible to … Read more

Ward 6 Roast: From immigration reform to potholes, politicians answer voter questions (videos)

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K-r-g-b-712-sm72by Pamela Powers Hannley

Although gun enthusiasts threatened to disrupt last week's Ward 6 Roast, the event featuring a dozen politicians who represent midtown/downtown Tucson came off without a hitch. 

Organized by City Councilman Steve Kozachik and moderated by political cartoonist and commentator David Fitzsimmons, the roast featured local, state, and federal politicians answering questions from the audience, which numbered about 400. Rather than severely edit nearly two hours of video, I have created separate videos for candidate introductions, the immigration reform question, the gun violence question, the F35 question, and the neighborhoods/roads questions. Watch the first three videos after the jump. More to come.

For me, the biggest surprise of the evening– besides how outnumbered former State Legislator Frank Antenori and the gun nuts were– was Congressman Ron Barber. Check out his responses to the questions on immigration reform and gun violence; he sounds far less Republican than he has in the past on those issues.