Senators May Vote On the Dream Act Soon!

It is not too late to call your senators! Call them, let them know that Dream Act is the best solution to deal with the immigration!!

Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL), Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) have introduced the DREAM Act as an amendment (SA 2237) to H.R. 1585, the Department of Defense authorization bill, which is now being debated in the Senate. The amendment will need 60 votes to pass. Its adoption would be a giant step forward for the DREAM Act, which would then stand an excellent chance of becoming law this year. It is imperative for all DREAM Act supporters to call your Senators. You can find your Senators’ phone numbers here.

CALL BOTH OF YOUR SENATORS AND TELL THEM

“PLEASE VOTE FOR THE DURBIN-HAGEL-LUGAR
DREAM ACT AMENDMENT TO H.R. 1585
SO THAT IMMIGRANT STUDENTS BROUGHT HERE AS CHILDREN
CAN REALIZE THEIR POTENTIAL”

Your Senators’ phone numbers are online at:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

The DREAM Act in Brief:

The DREAM Act is narrowly tailored

It would apply only to individuals brought to the U.S. at least 5 years ago as children, who have grown up here, and who have remained in school and out of trouble. They could get a green card 6 years after graduating from high school if during that time they continue on to college or serve in the military.

The DREAM Act is not a “mini-amnesty”

At its core, amnesty is forgiveness for wrongdoing. That does not apply to DREAM Act students who were all brought here years ago as children. The DREAM Act rewards them for staying in school or serving our country.

The DREAM Act would benefit taxpayers

The DREAM Act would provide hope to immigrant students and lead many more of them to remain in school. As an example of the fiscal benefits of this, a RAND study showed that a 30-year-old Mexican immigrant woman who graduates from college will pay $5,300 more in taxes and cost $3,900 less in government expenses each year than if she had dropped out of high school. This amounts to an annual fiscal benefit of over $9,000 per person every year, money that can be used to pay for the education of other children. State and local taxpayers have already invested in the education of these children in elementary and secondary school and deserve to get a return on their investment

You can find more information about the DREAM Act SENATE MAY VOTE ON DREAM ACT SOON!
***IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED***

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration, News, Politics

An Immigration Bill fails again!

It seems that Bush will not have a legacy on immigration at all. Today, the Senate rejected the Comprehensive immigration bill or the so-called “Grand Compromise” after it failed to adjourn the debate.

I’m glad that this occurred.  Clearly, the Senate, especially those who voted against it know that this bill is impossible to make it happened. The bill has too many loopholes. There’s no way for the Senate to bring it up again for a long time.

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration

History of Illegal Immigration by Glenn Beck

Check this out video by Gleen Beck. I find it interesting.

Let me know what you think

This proves the country has been struggling to deal with illegal immigration for a long time. I agree with other bloggers that it is time to deal with this issue. However, it doesn’t take one week to solve. Congress should have more time to look over this topic seriously. The Grand Compromise bill that it is now in discussion doesn’t solve the problem, period. It has too many loopholes and has left many unanswered questions (click here to find out why).

It is time for the Congress to do something about it.

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration, Politics

Senate, Please don’t pass the immigration bill…not just yet

As early as tomorrow, the Senate will be discussing the immigration bill or the “Grand Compromise” that was turned down few weeks ago. For those who just started to follow this news, I would like to explain reasons why you don’t want this bill to go through.

Before I get into the details, I want you to know that as an immigrant myself, I do support immigrant rights. I believe that everyone including legal (including the dependents who are the spouse or children of a visa holder) and illegal immigrants should be able to work in the United States. However, this so-called “Grand Compromise” Bill gives false hope to everyone including immigrants and the United States citizens. Therefore, I don’t support the bill.

Why should you not support the bill?

First, the bill is more than 300 pages long. According to the White House, no other provisions in the bill will be implemented unless the border is secure.

Under The Bipartisan Immigration Reform Bill, Temporary Worker And Z Visas Will Not Be Issued Until Border Security Benchmarks Are Met.  These triggers include:

• Increasing border fencing.
• Increasing vehicle barriers at the Southern border.
• Increasing the size of the Border Patrol.
• Installing ground-based radar and camera towers along the Southern border.
• Ensuring resources are available to maintain the effective end of “Catch and Release” for every non-Mexican apprehended at the borders.

Source: Whitehouse.gov

This provision of the bill alone has made me go crazy. If the Congress is going to legalize illegal immigrants, then it has to be in a separate bill, not including border security. If the Congress is going to pass a bill that would beef up the border security, then it should not mention legalization of illegal immigration at all. Also, how would you, as in those who support this bill and the Congress define secured-border? When is the border going to be secure? How is it going to take?

Clearly, this bill gives false hopes to illegal immigrants. They’re not going to get legal status because no one knows when the border is going to be “secured” and ‘illegal immigrant” free.

Secondly, what about those legal immigrants who are in the U.S legally? Some legal immigrants are the follower of their spouse or parents can not obtain work because their visa doesn’t allow them to work. How about those people? If the Congress is going to allow illegal immigrants to work, it must allow dependent immigrants to work as well.

Thirdly, the USCIS is not ready to deal with 12 million or so petitions for Z visa, period. If it can’t issue U.S citizens passport on time, then what make you think it’s going to be able to handle the Z visa petitions?

Lastly, the Congress needs more time to discuss this issue. The reason that Bush wants this pass is because he wants to save his butt from “The U.S President Hall of Shame.” If the Congress truely cares about the immigration issue, it neeeds more time to talk about it, period.

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration, Politics, Thoughts

Bush, immigration is not your thing, period.

Can somebody give Bush a wake-up call?

The senate has decided to bring back the so-called Grand Compromise back to the table again! This came after President Bush visited the Capitol Hill and talked to his party members to support this proposed immigration bill. The senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid and the Republican, Sen. Mitch McConnell envisioned that they could get the final votes before July 4th.

Let’s be realistic.

There is no way that it is going to get it pass before July 4th. As much as I would love to support the Grand Compromise, this bill will not be actually implemented because no one really knows when the border is going to be secured. Many of the provisions of this bill are “retarded.” For example, the guest worker program which is the same as the H-1B visa but the only catch part is that the guest-worker visa is going to be a non-immigrant visa. This means, guest-worker visa holders can’t apply for citizenship. Plus, there are other working visas which are similar to the guest-worker program. One interesting fact to point out, the USCIS (the United States Citizens and Immigration Services) is short on staff to deal with the amount of the applications from the changing immigration status to issuing the U.S passport. Also, this immigration bill does not mention about the dependent immigrants. These people are the follower, usually they are the immediate family members of a particular type of visa holder. For example, H4 visa holder is a dependent of the H-1B visa. The dependent immigrants can’t work and obtain social security number. Pretty much, they live like illegal immigrants because they can’t do anything. They can’t work or even open their own business.

Bush is pushing this bill in hopes to make Americans forget about and distract from what he’s doing with the war in Iraq. The Grand Compromise has many loopholes. It doesn’t take two to three weeks to deal with this. It is very complex issue. If this bill passed without the consideration of dependent immigrant whom I think they should allow to work and to obtain social security card, the America will truly be the hypocrite nation.

By the way, Bush is not the best President in dealing with the immigration issue, period. How can he neglect legal immigrants who spend thousands of dollars maintaining their legal status and wait on line for green card? Interesting huh…

(I have blogged on this issue many time, if you would like to read it please go to topic and select immigration)

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration, News, Politics, Thoughts

You Know You Live In a Hypocrite Nation When:

You know you live in a hypocrite nation when:  

• The rich get away with everything including the laws (*cough* “Paris Hilton” Lucky, the judge listens to us)

• Rich get richer and poor get poorer.

• The poor are second-class citizens.

• Double standard is normal

• Overcrowded prisons are normal. No cares to deal with it.

• Prisoners and convicted criminals can’t vote and receive Federal Financial Aids for college education.

• Whites are innocent. The rest are criminals.

• Minorities (Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians) get harsher sentence than Whites.

• Black people can say the n-word and others can’t.

• The F- word, only gays can say it (Okay, I did not come up with that one, a friend told me)

• You get 10 year sentence for receiving a consensual oral sex from a minor & you’re a minor too while a woman who killed her husband, the pastor gets 60 days in jail.

• The government cares more about the big businesses than its people. (Why did we put them in the office in the first place, again?).

• Jails are for the poor and convicted criminals. (The poor can’t pay off their bails).

•  Illegal immigrants are more important than legal immigrants. (Read my posts on immigration, look on topics)

• Elected officials care more about illegal immigration in hopes to gain Hispanics votes.

• You tell immigrants to learn how to speak English properly and clearly when your president mispronounces “nuclear”

• A diverse nation fills with more than half of conservatives

• Freedom doesn’t exist because gays can’t get married and the Patriot Acts is on your butts, watch you every move like a stalker.

•    You and the people have doubts that either a black man or a white woman can be   the next President of US.

•  Your president supports for eavesdrop program.

•  A garbage man/ school janitor/ constructor gets pay more than a NYC cop

• Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Policy

• Inequality still exists.

•  Your government tells the world that your country is the richest and the most generous nation when your government borrows money from China. Pretty much, your country has debt with China.

• Secret Prisons, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo Bay prison abuses are not considered human rights violation but rather “a war on terror.”

•   Democracy is abused in a wrong way.

Feel free to add on below.

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Election, Guantanamo Bay, Immigration, International Politics, News, Politics, Random, Rant, Thoughts

Bush & Dems: You’re so Wrong on Immigration Bill

I have been blogging on this issue for a while now. It seems that the Democrats and Bush don’t get it. Today, President Bush visited the Capitol Hill in hopes to persuade his party, Republicans to vote for the bill.

Maybe the Democrats and Bush need to realize something really important about this bill. The so-called “Grand Compromise” does not and will not deliver the visa because the bill said specifically that no other provisions of the bill, including the Z visa will be “implemented” unless the border is secure.

Bush, are you dumb or what? Even if the bill is passed, it doesn’t solve the illegal immigration. Instead it will encourage more illegal immigration, many legal immigrants will be encourage not to renew their visas. So far, people I talked to are planning to do that.

I don’t want to waste my time rewrite the reasons why I am against this bill. So click here to read my previous blog on this issue.

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration, News, Politics

Why The Grand Compromise failed as expected

It was not a surprise to learn that the Senate did not get the Grand Compromise done. The senate failed to pass a vote to adjourn the debate. Therefore, the senate majority leader, Harry Reid did the right thing by moving on to other agenda. Illegal Immigration can not be solved within two weeks. This issue should have more time and take a look at it seriously. The Grand Compromise has too many loopholes that I, as legal immigrant, find it unfair for those who are in this country legally.

Why it failed?

1)  No Z visa and other provisions of the Grand Compromise would be implemented unless the border is secure. When will that be? We have 2 borders that are more than a thousand miles long. There’s no way the U.S would finish building the fence in 10 years. What about the cost of maintaining it? Would not that be a lot? It will cost billions of dollars per year to maintain the border.

2)  Z visa grants all illegal immigrants work permit. This is not fair for all legal dependents who can’t obtain working papers because of their legal status. I was a legal dependent for years. It was like living life as an illegal immigrant because I couldn’t do anything.

3) Point-merit system to earn citizenship/green card? This is not Canada. The U.S is a big country. The USCIS can not handle the changes in a timely manner because they have many applications to process. It is 2007 and they are still processing the 2001 green card petitioners. How slow is that? The government must expand the USCIS, period.

4) Z visa holders are granted to go back to their country of origin and guaranteed to come back to the U.S. What about other legal immigrants who keep changing their visa status in order to live here legally? These legal immigrants can’t go home because they have to file for a U.S visa all over again if they decided to travel back to their country of origin. Think about those people, Congress. (Remember, legal immigrants can’t get a Z visa)

Clearly, the Grand Compromise is an amnesty for illegal immigrants and a slap-in-a-face for all legal immigrants who are working very hard and spending a lot of money to maintain their legal status. So Congress, go back and do your homework.

To all the Congressmen, feel free to contact me about this issue. I’m more than happy to help you out. Leave a comment below, I will get back to you.

Filed under: American Politics, Blogging, Immigration, News, Politics, Thoughts

The United Illegal Immigrant States of America…The New USA

Would you like to have a new name for the United States of America? This is the new name of this country would be if the Congress pass this bipartisan immigration bill next week.

As I mentioned in my last blog, the bill would ultimately give an immediate work authorization for illegal immigrants that come into the United States before Janurary 1 2007. Not only that, they have to pay 5,000 dollars fee and geta permanent guarantee to come back to the United States after the heads of households return of their native country.

As much as I want the illegal immigrants to be free, however, this is not the way. The bill sends a strong message to legal immigrants who come into the United States before January 1 2007 to be illegal immigrants. Let me tell you, some visas do not let legal immigrants work. H-4 visa, for example, is a dependent visa of H1-B, worker visa. A person who carries H-4 visa can not work and obtain social security numbers.  The illegal immigrants can work under this so-called Z visa. No Congress, you don’t to do that. If you grant the illegal immigrants to work in the United States work legally under this visa, you must do the same thing to all dependent legal immigrants.

Also, the bill has many loopholes. No Z visa holders can be put onto the path towards permanent residency until the 3,000 mile or so border is secure, the White House factsheet stated. How can you make sure the border is secure? Lou Dobbs of CNN told Anderson Cooper last night on 360 2 miles out of 700 miles of  border fence have been built. I wondered when it’s going to finish it, hopefully not by the time I have kids.

If this bill passed, it will encourage many more illegal immigrants to come into the United States and ultimately, there will be no legal immigrants left in this country. Why? It’s because illegal immigrants that come into the U.S after January 1 2007 will protest and demand the U.S to grant them the Z visa as well. Legal immigrants in the U.S that come in before 2007 will not plan to maintain their legal status as well because they can get the Z visa from the government and plus an immediate path towards citizenship.

If you don’t want this country to fill with more illegal immigrants, don’t pass this bill. Pass the Dream Act which gives equal opportunity for both illegal and legal immigrants a fair chance towards citizenship.

Filed under: American Politics, Immigration, News, Politics, Thoughts

The Congress is stupid on immigration

Just admit politicians, if you don’t know how to deal with illegal immigrants and you are doing it just to attract more Hispanic voters!  

It supposed to be a day of joy for the Democrats and Republicans that they have finally agreed on a bill that would legalize illegal immigrants. Today is a day that many illegal immigrants have been waiting for, a bill that would make them free. At the same time, today is the day for many legal immigrants to ask the Congress ”What’s a point of being legal immigrants then?”

As I was trying to study for my finals (sorry, Queens College has late final schedule compare to other colleges), I heard a report by Wolf Blitzer on the Situation Room about the comprehensive immigration reform bill which bipartisan senators struck an agreement with the White House today. This bill gives a quick legal status to illegal immigrants. They have to pay 1,000 dollars fee and receive a card to apply for work visa or a Z visa. Eight years later or so, they are eligible to apply for a green card, but only after the additional payment $4,000 fine. They have to demonstrate accelerated English requirements; return to their home country to file their green card application; and demonstrate merit under the merit-based system.  However, they can not begin apply for permanent residency until border security improved and the high-tech worker identification program functioned efficiently. The bill would end the Green Card lottery system, and chain migration. Family members of U.S citizens who have applied legally and have lawfully waited their turn in line will receive their green card within eight years. When the report was over, I wanted to slap the Congress.

Do you see anything wrong here? I do.

Asking illegal immigrants to pay in total of five thousand dollars fee in order for them to be legal , that’s very cheap.  Some legal immigrant families have to pay more than five thousand dollars to maintain their legal status. The bill also mentioned that illegal immigrants who came to the U.S before January 1st 2007 are able to get Z visa. Seriously, how are these people going to prove that they were here before January 1st? Anybody can cross the border today and say that he/she moved here prior to the year 2007.  Also, the path to citizenship or permanent residence for illegal immigrants would not begin until the border security is improve. My question to the Congress is, when will that be? U.S borders are not one hundred miles. It’s more than 3 thousand miles on each end. Simply, the bill will not get the illegal immigrants anywhere. 

What about legal immigrants who have no family in the U.S but work in this country legally for years? Will the illegal immigrants get the status before them? How long will these legal immigrants have to wait? 8 years? 10 years?

My point is this, the Congress is paying a lot of its attention to illegal immigrants. Legal immigrants are forgotten. Both parities in the Congress want to pass a bill that would attract more voters especially Hispanic. The Congress does not know what to do with this issue. This bill is stupid. It is not going to work. Illegal immigrants will take at least 20 years to become legal. They have to wait until the border is secure. The border will never secure, not at least for the next 10 years. Also, I feel that if the Congress were to provide easy path illegal immigrants to obtain green card or citizenship, it should also do the same to legal immigrants. If this bill passed, it will send a message to legal immigrants that there is no point of staying in the United States legally. I would prefer the Congress to pass the Dream Act because it would provide fair path for both legal and illegal to become U.S citizens.

Filed under: American Politics, Immigration, News, Politics, Thoughts