3,400 Border Patrol Agents on the Chopping Block
By Janice Kephart
CIS Blog, October 18, 2012
Excerpt: In an amazing untold story reflecting President Obama’s doubletalk on immigration, during Tuesday’s town hall-style debate with Mitt Romney he claimed responsibility for putting more Border Patrol agents on our border than ever before. What he did not say is that come January 2, 2013, the president’s failure of leadership could result in 3,400 Border Patrol agents losing their jobs. Also on the chopping block are 3,400 Customs and Border Protection inspectors, 932 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents, and 802 ICE deportation and removal officers.
We now learn that budget sequestration — which will slash the federal budget by 9.4 percent in 2013 for discretionary defense appropriations and by 8.2 percent in 2013 for discretionary nondefense appropriations — is actually worse than thought. A law passed 14 months ago required another 1.9 percent reduction in 2013 if the Congressional Super Committee failed to come to agreement on a budget, which is exactly what happened.
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Thousands of illegal immigrants paying in-state tuition rates also get Texas financial aid
AUSTIN — Tea party conservatives will push next year to rescind a state law that allows illegal immigrants to pay state-resident tuition rates, and when they do, a little-known fact could be at the center of the debate: Students who aren’t citizens are also eligible for state financial aid.
Nearly 2,500 students who are in the country illegally received more than $9.5 million in state higher education grants in fiscal year 2010, the most recent figures available from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. There were 16,476 illegal-immigrant students paying resident tuition rates, meaning more than 1 in 7 get state financial aid as well.
The law allowing both the tuition and the aid has been on the books for a decade, mostly without controversy. But it became a focal point of Gov. Rick Perry’s opponents in the Republican presidential contest last year, and with conservatives rallying to limit benefits for illegal immigrants, some GOP lawmakers will seek to change the law when the Legislature meets starting in January.
“For every dollar that we give to someone who is here illegally, that’s a dollar less that we’re giving to someone who’s here legally,” said Rep. Bill Zedler, an Arlington Republican who says he intends to offer legislation to revoke the benefit.
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http://www.americanpatrol.com/
“Yes” Fly Zone on Border
DHS gives UltraLight free reign
SecureBorderIntel.org — October 21
Violation of US Airspace by Drug Smuggling Aircraft - (Midnight 10/20/2012)
Omaha “Hi-Flier” aircraft detected an UltraLight “bogie” aircraft, 12 miles north of the US/Mexico Border on the Tohono O’odham Reservation, headed northeast. Ultralight aircraft was tracked to a location near Sunland Gin and Ellis Road — 13 miles south of Interstate 8, south of Arizona City… some 60 miles northeast of where the aircraft was first detected.
At this location, the UltraLight aircraft was observed dropping bales of marijuana to individuals on the ground. Responding agents took 3 smugglers and 10 bales of marijuana (approx. 250 lbs) into custody.
There was no apparent effort to interdict or disable the Ultralight aircraft before or after the “drug drop” and it is assumed that it flew back toward Mexico. Sources indicate that it is US Government policy not to interfere with such incursions into US airspace…. only track them to the “drop zone”. Sources also indicate that these incursions occur regularly, with a high frequency of incursions near Douglas, AZ.
Glenn Spencer — American Border Patrol Comment
It would have taken this aircraft more than two hours to make this trip. It could have been carrying a WMD. It should have been intercepted and forced to land.
I was once intercepted by two F-16s, even though I was not a threat.
Technology is available to detect ultralights if our government is serious about protecting us.
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FROM FAIR
Los Angeles to Issue City IDs to Illegal Aliens
The Los Angeles City Council is moving ahead with its so-called “Universal City Services Card,” an official city library ID and debit card that can be used by illegal aliens to open bank accounts and access city services. (
LA Times, Oct. 17, 2012) Last week, the City Council’s Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee voted to approve a recommendation from the Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa that bids be solicited from third-party vendors to implement the card. (
Id.;
see also October 15, 2012 Letter from Richard L. Benbow, Los Angeles City Manager, to Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee, Los Angeles City Council) The plan could potentially benefit over 300,000 illegal aliens. (
LA Times, Oct. 17, 2012)
City Council Member Ed Reyes said the measure is needed to enable illegal aliens to open bank accounts and obtain other city services. (
Id.) Under the Patriot Act, however, banks are already permitted to open bank accounts for illegal aliens with as little documentation as a matricula consular card. (
P.L. 107-56 § 326, Oct. 26, 2001) Despite the unanimous vote to move ahead with the ID card, not everyone in the Los Angeles City area is pleased with the Council’s efforts. The Granada Hills North Neighborhood Council passed a resolution protesting the City’s plans. The resolution states that “the library should not be turned into Financial Literacy Centers, nor should the city enter into the Debit card business.” (
Resolution, Granada Hills North Neighborhood Council)
If Los Angeles adopts the library ID proposal, it will follow in the footsteps of other cities, such as San Francisco and New Haven, that issue city IDs to illegal aliens. (
See, e.g., FAIR
Legislative Update, July 11, 2011) The ordinances in each city vary somewhat, but have all been used to accommodate the continued residence of illegal aliens in those cities.
