Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #686, January 31, 2002
BUSH RENEWS PUSH TO PROVIDE SUBSIDIES TO
NON-CITIZENS
Amy Goldstein writes (Washington Post,
1/10/02, p. A17) that "The Bush administration proposed
yesterday that poor immigrants who have lived legally in the United
States for at least five years be allowed to collect food stamps,
restoring part of the safety net that was removed in a 1996 overhaul
of the welfare system."
"WELFARE REFORM" WOULD BE UNDONE
"The proposal would cost $2.1 billion over
the next decade and would eventually enable perhaps 363,000
additional people a month to qualify for the federal nutrition
program that subsidizes the purchase of groceries, according to
administration estimates. …"
WHY IS IT OK FOR BUSH TO TRADE FEDERAL $$$ FOR
VOTES, BUT WRONG FOR ENRON TO BUY INFLUENCE?
"The White House’s plan represents a stark
reversal from the posture of leading Republicans in the mid-1990s,
who fought vigorously – and successfully – to make most
immigrants ineligible for a variety of welfare benefits. The plan
is an effort to appeal to minority voters, a constituency that
the GOP considers crucial in several key congressional races this
year and to the president’s reelection efforts in 2004. …
"Asked how the administration proposes to
pay for such additional benefits at a time of reemerging federal
budget deficits, the official replied: ‘I can’t say at this
particular time.’
"Another administration aide said yesterday
that the White House was not ready to discuss whether the president
intends this year to try to make it easier for legal immigrants to
qualify for additional forms of federal help, such as cash
assistance under welfare or Medicaid, the government health
insurance program for the poor. There are currently 18.4 million
people getting food stamps. …"
BUSH’S BOONDOGGLES BIGGER THAN DASCHLE’S
"The administration’s plan would cost nearly
twice as much as a Democratic proposal that is part of the farm bill
being debated in the Senate. It would also restore benefits to more
people. An aide to Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin
(D-Iowa) said yesterday that the senator ‘would be very excited’
about the president’s version ‘if funding were available.’
"
363,000 NON-CITIZENS TO BENEFIT
Robert Pear adds (New York Times, 1/10/02, p.
1) that according to the White House "at least 363,000 people
– legal immigrants who have not become citizens – would qualify
for food stamps under the plan, to be included in the budget
President Bush sends Congress in early February. …"
WAS CLINTON MORE CONSERVATIVE?
"The welfare bill passed by Congress and
signed by President Bill Clinton in 1996 made noncitizens ineligible
for food stamps and many other types of assistance financed with
federal money. Supporters of the ban, mostly Republicans, argued
that federal benefits drew immigrants to the United States and then
discouraged them from working.
"Senator Phil Gramm, Republican of Texas,
expressed the intent of Congress in 1996 when he said, ‘Immigrants
should come to the U.S. with their sleeves rolled up, ready to work,
not with their hands out, ready to go on welfare.’ …"
FEDERALLY FUNDED APPARATCHIKS PRAISE BUSH
"Antihunger groups and Hispanic groups praised
Mr. Bush’s proposal. ‘This is an enormous step forward, for
which the president should be congratulated,’ said Cecilia Muñoz,
vice president of the National Council of La Raza, a Latino civil
rights group. ‘Mr. Bush did not speak out on this in the
presidential campaign, and he had not done so since he assumed
office.’
"As governor of Texas and as president, Mr.
Bush has taken pride in his good relations with Hispanic Americans. Karl
Rove, the president’s senior political adviser, said last year
that capturing a bigger share of the Hispanic vote was ‘our
mission and our goal’ and would require assiduous work by ‘all
of us in every way.’ …
"Representative Tom Tancredo, Republican of
Colorado, said he would fight the president’s food stamp proposal
because it would ‘entice people to come to the United States to be
on welfare.’
"Mr. Tancredo, chairman of the Immigration
Reform Caucus, with 55 members in the House, said: ‘The president
has chosen to steal a page out of the Democrats’ playbook. The
Democrats have been enormously successful in buying votes through
welfare. That’s all this is, a sop to a Democrat-leaning voter
bloc, an attempt to expand our political base by including the
Hispanic vote.’ …
"James D. Weill, president of the Food Research
and Action Center [a Federally funded cadre of Legal Services
Corporation left-wingers] said, ‘It’s really positive that the
administration wants to extend food stamp benefits to this group of
legal immigrants.’ He said his group had been supporting a broader
restoration of food stamps, as proposed by Senators Richard G. Lugar,
Republican of Indiana, and Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa. But Mr.
Weill said, ‘Everybody is moving in the same direction, and we are
delighted to see that.’ "
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #689, March 15, 2002
GOP LEADERSHIP IS UNITED BEHIND BUSH’S PUSH FOR AMNESTY AND AID FOR ILLEGAL
ALIENS
"House Republican leaders will attempt to slip
through an unrecorded vote this evening to give amnesty to hundreds
of thousands of illegal immigrants, allowing them to remain legally
in the United States. The amnesty measure will come before the
representatives by way of a special arrangement between the White
House and the House leadership. It will appear among a batch of
uncontroversial bills that typically win pro forma approval without
amendment or debate.
"House Majority leader Dick Armey, Texas
Republican, said House approval ‘will send a message to the world
that our country will continue to be a beacon to all who love
freedom and the opportunity to live, work and raise a family.’ …"
REPUBLICANS WANT THEIR "FAIR SHARE" OF
VOTES FROM HISPANIC IMMIGRANTS
"Opponents say the Bush administration is
using stealth tactics to get its way. They say the Republican Party
is trying to schmooze Hispanic voters and appease Mexican leaders.
…
"The legislation in question is called the
Section 245i Extension Bill. It refers to a portion of the
Immigration and Naturalization Act that eases the requirements for
seeking immigration status and defines who may obtain it. …"
THOSE WHO FOLLOW THE RULES FOR LEGAL ENTRY WILL
SUFFER
"The exemption will last for six months. It
will be a boon to illegal workers because applying from abroad for
legal U.S. residency – which can lead to citizenship – can take
many months, and the result is not certain. Then, too,
applicants sometimes wind up on a long waiting list.
"[Colorado Republican Rep. Tom] Tancredo says
passing the 245i extension is ‘a slap in the face to all in the
world who are waiting to come into the country legally. It tells
those who waited and came to us legally that, "You all are a
bunch of suckers. You should just have sneaked in. We will not
trace you down. Stay under the radar screen, and we will give you
amnesty." That’s the message this sends.’ "
NOTHING LEARNED FROM 9-11
"Responding to news of the impending vote, Dan
Stein, head of the Federation for American Immigration Reform
(FAIR), wrote INS Commissioner James Ziglar, asking him to estimate
the cost and burden on the service of changing the status of the
illegal aliens who will apply for the exemption. FAIR lobbies for
tighter immigration restrictions.
" ‘On the six-month anniversary of the
tragedy of September 11, it is shocking to find that the nation’s
leaders haven’t yet understood the lessons of that day,’ Mr.
Stein said in a statement. ‘Granting amnesty to those who have
broken our laws and about whom we know virtually nothing is playing
games with national security. … To assume the INS is even
remotely prepared or equipped to absorb the huge administrative
burden of extending 245i is irresponsible. … Few if any federal
agencies have a worse track record than the INS when it comes to mis-management,
corruption, inefficiency, and ineptitude.’ " Source: August
Gribbin, Washington Times, 3/12/02, pp. 1, A15
GOP HOUSE LEADERSHIP DELIVERS CRUCIAL VOTES FOR
GWB’S AMNESTY PUTSCH
Juliet Eilperin reports (Washington Post,
3/13/02, p. A4) that "Overcoming resistance from within their
ranks, House GOP leaders shepherded through legislation yesterday
that would allow some illegal immigrants to remain in the United
States while applying for permanent residency.
"Yesterday’s 275 to 137 vote marked a
victory for President Bush, who had campaigned on the issue and
pressed lawmakers to pass the bill before his meeting next week with
Mexican President Vicente Fox. But debate on the measure –
which was coupled with new visa-screening requirements to spot
suspected terrorists – showed how last year’s terrorist attacks
have hardened some Republicans’ opposition to more lenient
immigration rules. …
"In a sense, the House vote was much closer
than the margin suggests. The bill barely received the two-thirds
majority it needed because it was included in the day’s ‘suspension
calendar,’ generally reserved for noncontroversial matters.
…"
AMNESTY MAKES IT HARDER TO IDENTIFY AND DEPORT
TERRORISTS
"Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) said it would
undermine ‘this country’s ability to find and deport the
terrorists among us.’ "
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #691, April 15, 2002
BUSH CONTINUES CLINTON SCHEME TO PROMOTE
MULTILINGUALISM
"Why … does our government so often
discourage, rather than encourage, immigrants from assimilating into
our culture?
"On August 11, 2000, President Clinton
signed Executive Order 13166, which requires federal agencies and
any other entities that receive federal funds to make their programs
and activities ‘accessible’ to non-English speaking persons. The
order provides that entities that do not comply are guilty of
discriminating on the basis of national origin in violation of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964."
WHY DIDN’T DEFEAT OF CLINTON-GORE LEAD TO A NEW
POLICY?
"Are you outraged yet? You probably assume that
President Bush will just revoke this ill-conceived fiat and be done
with it. But no. The order remains in full force and effect – so
much so, that a pro-English advocacy group (and others who come
within the order’s pernicious reach) is suing the Bush
Administration to block its enforcement.
"What’s the big deal? Well, on Aug. 16,
2000, the Justice Department issued guidelines to implement the
Executive Order, which require all federal agencies and fund
recipients to provide immediate translation and interpretation
services to any person who is not proficient in English. Then, on
Aug. 30, 2000, the Department of Health and Human Services issued
its own implementing guidelines."
DOCTORS MUST HIRE TRANSLATORS
"The HHS guidelines require medical
providers subject to the order to provide, at no charge, Limited
English Proficient patients, upon request, with translation services
into any language. Otherwise, they’ll be subject to a national
origin discrimination complaint. Don’t worry, if I were reading
this, I wouldn’t believe me either. But, sadly, it’s true.
"Some medical doctors are mad as hell and aren’t
going to take it anymore. They’ve joined with Pro-English, a
non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of English as our
common language, to seek an injunction against enforcement of the
Order and the HHS implementing guidelines.
"One of the plaintiffs, Dr. Anthony Bull, is a
California anesthesiologist. He alleges that the government policies
require him to provide translators inside operating rooms, and pre-
and post-op areas – at his own expense. Another, Dr. Clifford
Colwell, is head of the Musculoskeletal Center at the Scripps Clinic
in La Jolla, Calif. His clinic already provides translators for some
languages, but the oppressive federal rules would require
translation in all languages." Source: David Limbaugh (author
of Absolute Power: The Legacy of Corruption in the Clinton-Reno
Justice Department), Human Events, 3/25/02, p. 15
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #692, April 30, 2002
REWARDING BAD BEHAVIOR IS BAD POLICY
Cal Thomas writes (Washington Times, 3/27/02,
p. A15) that "President Bush told a United Nations conference
on global development in Monterrey, Mexico … that Americans have
an obligation to ‘share our wealth’ with poor nations. He
proposed a 50 percent increase in foreign aid. He thinks more aid
should be in the form of grants, not loans. He would also forgive
much of the current Third World debt. The president said new aid
would only go to nations that reform their governments, economies
and human-rights practices."
12 MILLION AMNESTIES CARRIES A HIGH PRICE
"Mr. Bush also announced his support for a
Senate bill that would grant amnesty to 200,000 more illegal Mexican
immigrants as part of an ‘incremental’ approach that could lead
to amnesty for as many as 12 million people. That’s the number
of people from all countries the Immigration and Naturalization
Service believes have broken our immigration laws."
BUSH FORGIVES, BUT YOU PAY
"Let me see if I have this straight.
Individuals can violate our immigration laws and get amnesty.
Nations can refuse to repay the debts they owe (many, in fact, do
pay) and be forgiven. And not only forgiven but they can get more
money. And not only more money but grants, not loans, so they never
have to worry about repaying us or any institution supported by the
American taxpayer. As Russian comedian Yakov Smirnoff says, ‘What
a country.’ …"
FOREIGN AID DOES MORE HARM THAN GOOD
"Even the liberal Brookings Institution now
concedes that foreign aid does not work. Brookings scholars Michael
O’Hanlon and Carol Graham studied the effectiveness of U.S.
foreign aid and concluded in 1997 that, ‘Countries getting more
aid do worse macroeconomically, on average, than those getting less.’
The reason, according to a study of 96 countries by Peter Boone of
the London School of Economics, is because virtually none of the
money is invested. All such aid does, says Mr. Boone, is increase
consumption and expand the size of government without any
benefits to the poor. …"
A $78 BILLION BILL FOR 1986 AMNESTY
"According to INS figures, the 1986 amnesty
transformed 2.7 [million] illegal aliens into legal residents,
permanently adding millions of poor to our society. After 10
years in the United States, the average amnestied illegal alien had
only a seventh-grade education and an annual salary of less than
$9,000, $500 of which was sent to his or her homeland, the INS
notes. According to the Center for Immigration Studies
(available at
www.fairus.org),
after 10 years, the direct and indirect costs of services and
benefits for such ex-illegal aliens, minus their tax contributions,
is over $78 billion."
THE MELTING POT IS FULL OF POISON
"Increasingly, thanks to our public schools,
children of illegal immigrants do not become Americanized by
learning and embracing the history, language and ways of this
country. Instead, too many are taught that America is a bad place
and that capitalism is a bad system, though their parents came here
presumably because our system is far better than the one they left."
GOP’S TANCREDO BLASTS GWB’S OPEN-BORDER POLICY
AS
THREAT TO U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY
"President Bush is the leading obstacle to
controlling illegal immigration in this country and his ‘open door’
border policy is a threat to national security, the Republican
chairman of the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus said
yesterday.
"Rep. Tom Tancredo told editors and reporters
in a luncheon meeting at The Washington Times that Mr. Bush
is out of step with the majority of Americans who want immigration
reform and that his ‘altruistic views’ on the subject were an
open invitation to new terrorist attacks."
THE BLOOD WILL BE ON HIS HANDS
" ‘What we have not done is to protect our
borders, ignoring our own national security,’ the Colorado
congressman said. ‘The president is not on our side. He
believes in open borders.
" ‘Unless we do something significant to
control our borders, we’re going to have another event with
someone waltzing across the borders. Then the blood of the people
killed will be on this administration and this Congress,’ he said.
…"
PROSPECT OF HISPANIC VOTES DOES NOT JUSTIFY
DANGEROUS IMMIGRATION POLICY
"The two-term congressman said the Bush
administration had developed aggressive strategies to court Hispanic
voters. He said the administration pushed a recent amnesty bill now
pending in Congress in an effort to win over those voters and to
prop up the government of Mexican President Vicente Fox.
" ‘Closed borders, open borders. I used to
think it was Karl Rove [the White House political strategist]
and his outreach to Hispanics,’ Mr. Tancredo said. ‘But no,
it’s Mr. Bush. He’s driving the issue himself. He believes in
open borders. ‘He made promises to Fox and wants to keep Fox
in power,’ he said."
ATZLAN ADVANCED
"The House, under active pressure from Mr. Bush
to reach out to Hispanics, narrowly approved a bill March 12 that
would grant amnesty to hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants.
The bill would allow some illegal aliens who have overstayed their
entry visas or entered the country illegally to apply for legal
status. …
"Mr. Tancredo said that during a recent meeting
with top Mexican officials, he was told that Mexico does not view
the Southwest United States and northern Mexico as two countries,
but as ‘one region.’ " Source: Jerry Seper, The
Washington Times, 4/19/02, p. 1
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #693, May 15, 2002
GOP HOUSE AND DEM SENATE PORK UP $100 BILLION IN
AGRICULTURE SUBSIDY– BUSH WILL NOT USE VETO
"Senate and House members agreed today on a
farm bill costing more than $100 billion over six years that will raise
subsidy payments to the country’s biggest grain and cotton farmers,
a nearly complete reversal of Congress’s attempt six years ago to
wean farmers of all subsidies."
$17 BILLION FOR ENVIRONMENTALISTS
"At the same time, the measure finances some of
the most significant conservation and environmental programs in
recent years, with $17 billion dedicated over the next decade
to preserve farmland, save wetlands and improve water
quality and soil conservation on working farms."
MORE FOOD STAMPS FOR NON-CITIZENS
"It is also one of the major pieces of social
welfare legislation before Congress this year, increasing food
stamps for working families and children and restoring the right of
legal immigrants to receive them.
"Months of election-year jockeying produced a
bill that seeks to satisfy every region and segment of the country.
Lawmakers from farm states in the Midwest and South won the largest
subsidies for cotton, rice, wheat, corn and soybeans. Legislators
from the Northeast won a new $1.3 billion national program to
replace the defunct dairy compact. The conservation programs
will help densely populated states hoping to control urban sprawl.
And for cities and rural areas, the increase in the food stamps and
nutrition program will begin to redress the losses from the 1996
welfare overhaul…."
AGRIBUSINESS IS THE BIG BENEFICIARY
"The last major piece of legislation, the 1996
Freedom to Farm Law, tried to eliminate subsidies and let the market
dictate prices and production levels. But farmers and agribusiness,
which represents 13 percent of the country’s gross domestic
product, convinced Congress to pass annual emergency payments
raising subsidies to a record $20 billion last year."
SMALL FARMERS SOLD OUT – TO BE BOUGHT OUT
"The compromise announced today represents a
rejection, as well, of a movement to limit the size of payments to
farmers. During the year-long debate, lawmakers complained of
multimillion-dollar payments to some of the country’s biggest
farmers, who were buying out the small family farms the program was
originally intended to save.
"Spurred by a Web site that revealed how
hundreds of farmers and absentee landlords received millions of
dollars in subsidy payments since the last farm bill, the Senate
version included a limit of $275,000 per farmer. But negotiators
over the past month dropped that limit. The final compromise
includes a limit of $360,000 but with enough exceptions to make it a
symbolic compromise. …"
TAXPAYERS SKEWERED
"From the consumer’s point of view, the
increase will have little effect on supermarket prices. …
" ‘The impact is on the taxpayer,’ said
Keith Collins, chief economist for the Agriculture Department. …"
GWB CONGRATULATES CONGRESS FOR ITS
UNCONSTITUTIONAL COMPLICITY
"The Bush administration congratulated the
lawmakers today for reaching a compromise and promised to work with
Congress to carry out the bill in time for the 2002 crop. … But the
administration had been silent on most issues throughout the debate,
except for a strong appeal to reinstate food stamps for legal
immigrants. …"
PEANUT FARMERS (JIMMY?) GET BIG BUCKS
"The bill also includes a new $3 billion
subsidy for peanut farmers as well as a $1 billion buyout program of
the old peanut price support system." Source: Elizabeth Becker,
The New York Times, 4/27/02, pp. 1, A11
PERSECUTOR OF ELIAN GONZALEZ PROMOTED BY BUSH AND
ASHCROFT
According to a news advisory released April 11 in
Miami, "Judicial Watch, the public interest law firm that
investigates and prosecutes government corruption and abuse, took
the sworn testimony of Robert Wallis today, wherein the former Miami
INS director revealed that he was selected for promotion to Regional
INS Director and transferred to Texas in April 2001, under the Bush
Administration and Attorney General John Ashcroft."
ROBERT WALLIS SHOULD BE FIRED, NOT REWARDED
"Wallis admitted, under examination by Judicial
Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman, that the ‘proudest
moment of his life’ was captured in an Associated Press
photograph of INS Supervisory Special Agent Gwenn Reed holding a
shotgun to the head of a prone and ‘spread-eagle’ protestor –
Mario Miranda – during the illegal INS raid to return young Elian
Gonzalez to Communist Cuba. Mr. Miranda is a retired Miami
police officer and was responsible for safety and security around
the Gonzalez home. Wallis’ testimony came during a Merit Systems
Protection Board hearing for INS whistleblower and Judicial Watch
client Rick Ramirez. Mr. Ramirez ‘blew the whistle’ on
anti-Cuban and anti-Hispanic bigotry in the Miami INS office, as
well as INS supervisors’ orders to destroy all documents and
computer records concerning the Elian Gonzalez saga. Earlier
testimony from INS attorney Diana Alvarez confirmed that the orders
to destroy documents and records came from INS Commissioner Doris
Meissner. …
" ‘It is shocking that rather than take
steps to clean out the Miami office of anti-Cuban and Hispanic
prejudice, that instead Ashcroft and his Bush administration
rewarded, with a promotion, the district director responsible for
the prejudice. This shows insensitivity to the rights of
Hispanics,’ stated Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel
Larry Klayman."
U.S. ISLAM IS WELL-CONNECTED TO THE WHITE HOUSE
Glenn Simpson writes (Wall Street Journal,
4/18/02, p. A4) that "Two weeks after his agents raided the
offices of several Islamic charities and businesses suspected of
financing terrorism, Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill met with
two politically connected Muslim activists, one a long-time Bush
family associate, who each had a tie to the targeted groups.
"The April 4 luncheon with Mr. O’Neill was
convened to allow Muslim-Americans to voice complaints about the
March 20 raid on the International Institute for Islamic Thought and
19 related entities that operate out of offices at 555 Grove St. in
Herndon, Va., a Washington suburb.
"Among the Muslim leaders attending was
Talat Othman, a longtime associate and supporter of President Bush’s
family who gave a benediction at the Republican National Convention
in Philadelphia in August 2000. Mr. Othman went to the Treasury
representing the Arab-American Business and Professional
Association. But he also serves on the board of Amana Mutual Funds
Trust, an investment firm founded by M. Yacqub Mirza, the Northern
Virginia businessman who set up most of the entities targeted by the
Treasury and whose tax records were sought in the raid."
ISLAMIC INSTITUTE CO-FOUNDED BY SAFFURI AND
NORQUIST
"Also at the meeting was Khaled Saffuri, head
of the Islamic Institute [a Republican-leaning political group that
received a $20,000 contribution from the Safa Trust. Saffuri met
with Treasury Secretary O’Neill to complain about the raid.], a
group he co-founded with GOP activist Grover Norquist to organize
conservative Muslims. The institute has accepted $20,000 in
contributions from another Grove Street entity suspected of
terrorist connections, the Safa Trust, as earlier reported by Newsweek.
Asked for comment, Mr. Norquist, a board member of the institute,
confirmed the donation. Mr. Saffuri couldn’t be reached. …"
WAR ON TERROR ABROAD – SUPPORT FOR ISLAM AT HOME
"The case also highlights conflicts between the
Bush administration’s domestic political goals and its war on
terror. GOP officials began courting the U.S. Muslim community
intensely in the late 1990s, seeking to add that ethnic bloc to the
party’s political base. But when the war on terror was
launched in September, the Bush administration retreated from some
positions Republicans had taken to gain the Muslim support,
including opposition to the use of secret evidence in immigration
cases, and began mass immigration-violator roundups within Muslim
communities. …"
MEETING WITH PAUL O’NEILL PRESERVED POLITICAL
ALLIANCE
"The Islamic Institute declared itself pleased
with the encounter. ‘The meeting was constructive, and the leaders
expressed their concerns to Secretary O’Neill regarding the
insensitive actions of Treasury agents during the raids against the
Muslim American organizations, and concerns of the community that
civil-rights violations occurred,’ the Islamic Institute said on
its Web site. ‘Secretary O’Neill promised that these concerns
would be investigated.’ "
SPECIAL EXCEPTIONS FOR SPECIAL FRIENDS
"Bruce Zagaris, an asset-forfeiture lawyer who
represents clients in similar cases, said a meeting between
Treasury officials and anyone who might be associated with an entity
under investigation is very unusual. ‘It’s virtually
impossible [to arrange such a meeting], especially with the Treasury
secretary,’ Mr. Zagaris said. ‘It’s very difficult to even get
phone calls returned.’ …"
EVIDENCE PROMPTED ACTION
"Two nonprofits affiliated with Mr. Mirza
and named in the search warrant, the SAAR Foundation Inc. and the
Heritage Education Trust Inc., held large blocks of shares in Amana’s
mutual funds in 1997, according to SEC records. The SEC
documents and other records detailing connections between Mr. Othman
and the Islamic Institute and the raided groups were compiled by the
National Security News Service, a Washington based nonprofit
research group."
BUSH CONNECTIONS ARE LONG-STANDING
"Mr. Othman has ties to the Bush family
going back to the 1980s, when he served with George W. Bush on the
board of a Texas petroleum firm, Harken Oil & Gas Inc. Mr.
Othman has visited the White House during the administrations of
both President Bush and his father George H.W. Bush. Mr. Othman also
is a longtime campaign donor who gives to both parties but tends to
favor Republicans, giving more than $10,000 during the past decade
to GOP groups and supporting the presidential bids of both Bushes."
MONEY TALKS
"Mr. Othman also is on the board of Mr.
Saffuri’s Islamic Institute, the GOP-leaning group that received
$20,000 from the SAFA Trust, one of the raid’s targets. The
president of the Safa Trust, Jamal Barzinji, is a former business
associate of Switzerland-based investor Youssef Nada, whose assets
were frozen last fall after the Treasury designated him a person
suspected of giving aid to terrorists. A naturalized American, Mr.
Barzinji serves as an officer of at least three other Virginia
groups listed in the search warrant. [Nancy] Luque [a lawyer for Mr.
Mirza, his enterprises and his partners], who also represents Mr.
Barzinji, denied that he supports terrorists."
LOBBYIST LINKS
"Mr. Barzinji and his Herndon business
partners also are active political givers, donating about $40,000 to
federal candidates since 1990. He also is listed in federal
records as a client of the lobbying firm Janus-Merritt Strategies
LLC, which formerly employed Mr. Norquist, the GOP activist who
co-founded the Islamic Institute. The firm received $40,000 in
2000 lobbying for human rights and foreign-policy issues, records
show. Mr. Norquist didn’t work on the account, according to
Ms. Luque and Janus-Merrit."
MUSLIM INFLUENCE WITH GOP GREATER THAN EVER
"In a speech last fall to the Organization of
Islamic Conference in Doha, Qatar, Mr. Barzinji boasted of the U.S.
Muslim community’s rising political influence. ‘At this time,
the president and his administration are continually seeking the
counsel and input of American Muslim leaders,’ Mr. Barzinji said.
‘At no other time has the Muslim community in America been more
effective in relation to the processes of American government.’
"
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #694, May 31, 2002
BUSH’S "SUPERNAFTA" THREATENS U.S.
LIBERTY AND INDEPENDENCE
"Coming down the Fast Track which is about to
be approved by Congress is a treaty that would effectively merge the
United States with all of Latin America. The treaty, drafted by Bill
Clinton and embraced by President George W. Bush, is a multinational
monstrosity called the Free Trade Area of the Americas. Actually, a
more accurate label should be ‘Super NAFTA’."
"FAST TRACK" PAVES THE WAY FOR 30
LOW-WAGE COUNTRIES TO MERGE INTO WESTERN HEMISPHERE "COMMON
MARKET"
"It will multiply exponentially all the
problems created or exacerbated by the North American Free Trade
Agreement. Indeed, by adding over 30 more countries to the
U.S.-Canada-Mexico single-market trade pool the FTAA will, over
time, blend the United States into a narco-republic in the
image of so much of Latin America. …"
NAFTA HAS BEEN HARMFUL TO USA
"Here are just some of the escalating tragedies
visited upon our country since January 1994 when NAFTA took effect:
- Millions of American jobs and thousands of industrial plants
transferred from the United States to Mexico and Canada.
- Tens of thousands of our hard-working family farmers
driven from their land by food imports and the excruciating
pressures they have placed on domestic farm prices.
- In the year 2000 alone 372,000 people in the U.S. suffered food
poisoning, 20,000 of them were hospitalized, and at least
5,000 died. A Congressional hearing established that 80 per cent
of all food-poisoning cases and deaths were traced to imported
food. (ACCT’s newsletter broke this story.)
- Illegal drugs
, 80 per cent of them coming from or through
Mexico, have destroyed the lives of countless American school
children.
- The crime that accompanies the drug trade has U.S.
prisons bursting their walls from over-crowding and our
neighborhoods, towns and large parts of many cities transformed
into No-Go zones for our citizens.
- Illegal aliens
, many of them Mexican farmers forced to
abandon their small farms because of NAFTA, have invaded the
United States by the millions. (One estimate claims 11 million!)
- The corruption that pervades so much of Latin America
has come creeping north and today infests some of our own
courts, police [departments], and even our once-proud Customs
system.
- The collapse of the Mexican peso two years after NAFTA was
approved by Congress caused a $50 Billion illegal raid on the
U.S. Treasury to bail out Mexico and set the precedent
for an even larger rescue of Asian economies.
- Largely because of the huge demands of illegal and legal
immigrants for welfare and free health care, every state in the
union now faces bankruptcy and is taking thousands of
communities down with them.
- The Clinton boom years, which boasted that NAFTA was its
greatest ‘accomplishment,’ is today revealed as the creation
of a hollowed-out economy riddled with corporate corruption that
has left millions of Americans ‘downsized’ out of our
most productive jobs in manufacturing and other
sectors."
OTHER COUNTRIES BENEFIT AT EXPENSE OF U.S. WORKERS
"The propagandists for the Free Trade Area of
the Americas will tell you how wonderful it is that trade with
Mexico and Canada has soared so high under NAFTA. And, of course,
how much more it will grow with FTAA.
"Yet they never mention that before NAFTA
the U.S. was running up trade surpluses with Mexico and keeping
fairly even in our Canadian two-way trade. Just as soon as NAFTA
descended upon us we began to suffer huge deficits with both
those countries and they have grown larger every year since."
U.S. TRADE DEFICIT SOARED UNDER NAFTA – $53
BILLION CANADA/$30 BILLION MEXICO
"In 2001 our two NAFTA ‘partners’ shipped
an amazing total of nearly $350 Billion in goods into our country
– $217 Billion from Canada and almost $132 Billion from Mexico.
The combined U.S. trade deficit with both was a staggering
[$83,189,800,000] – $53,265,900,000 with Canada and
$29,923,900,000 with Mexico.
"Thus our NAFTA trade deficit was more than
No.1 Communist China took out of our financial hide –
$83,045,700,000. But there was a big, big difference in the total
value of the goods Canada and Mexico sent us – $350 Billion –
and the $102,280,500,000 shipped from China.
"Indeed the trade input from CanMex was
starting to approach three-times the goods influx from Japan and was
a third more than the whopping $220,031,100,000 we absorbed from all
15 countries of the European Union!"
JOBS DOWN – TAX REVENUE DOWN – WELFARE UP
"Lost in all these mind-bending statistics is
the terrible toll the overall $426 Billion goods-only trade deficit
for 2001 – and the trillions more over the last three decades –
have taken out of incomes of American workers, their families and
communities, the smashed budgets of all 50 states, the federal
budget which tops $2.1 Trillion in FY2003.
"No one ever tells you, but the trade deficit
is the No.1 contributor to the red ink side of the federal budget.
When a factory closes, the company that owned it no longer pays
taxes on it. The workers go on the dole or extended ‘trade
adjustment assistance.’
"Needless to say, the downsized workers can
no longer pay taxes, so government revenues are reduced even more.
Trade deficits produce a vicious cycle and they are tightening the
noose around the financial well being of millions of Americans –
and their government. …"
U.S. STANDARD OF LIVING HAS DECLINED
"Small wonder that at the end of the run-away
stock market boom of the 1990s the real after-tax income of the
middle 60 per cent of our population was lower than in 1977! In
addition, many of these people had seen a significant decline in
their net worth due to increased debt." Source: William J.
Gill, President, Americans for Trade Defense (ACCT, 216 Georgetown
Court, 3220 N Street N.W., Washington, DC 20007)
LePEN WAS POLITICALLY INCORRECT
French presidential candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen has
said " ‘Massive immigration has only just begun. It is
the biggest problem facing France, Europe and probably the world. We
risk being submerged.’
"Such frankness strikes a chord with voters
concerned about crime. France is in the midst of a crime wave,
perpetrated mostly by unemployed, unassimilated young immigrants.
Half of all inmates in French prisons are Muslims. …
" ‘My beliefs are simple … I believe in the
nation and the family,’ he told Britain’s Spectator
magazine this week. ‘Society must have certain fundamental
values or else there can be no personal development. I see all
this in constant decline.’ His party, the National Front, blames
politics as usual for the ‘decadence’ afflicting France.
"The National Front would:
▪
End taxes on income
and inheritance. ▪ Bring
back the death penalty. ▪ Build
cells for 200,000 prisoners. ▪
Deport foreigners
convicted of a crime. ▪ Revise
France’s role in the European Union. ▪
Boost trade
protection.
"The National Front opposes hate-speech laws
that keep people from talking candidly about immigration and other
issues. It also wouldn’t let homosexuals adopt children."
Source: Brian Mitchell, Investor’s Business Daily, 5/2/02,
p. A18
LePEN FAVORED FRENCH REPUBLICANISM OVER EUROPEAN
TYRANNY
Nathalie Schuck reported (Associated Press, USA
Today, 4/25/02, p. 7A) that French presidential candidate
Jean-Marie "Le Pen, 73, has long been a member of the 626-seat
European Parliament but has always defended national interests and
attacked most of the founding principles of the 15-nation EU.
"During his presidential campaign, he has
said he would renounce treaties that bind France to the [U]nion and
restore the French franc at the expense of the continent’s joint
currency, the [E]uro, which was introduced in January. He said
the EU had robbed France of its independence to act.
"If elected president, Le Pen said, he would
hold a referendum on getting France out of the EU."
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #696, June 30, 2002
BUSH PUSHES TED KENNEDY’S VERSION OF AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL ALIEN HIGH SCHOOL GRADS
Phyllis Schlafly writes (Washington Times,
6/22/02, p. A14) concerning immigration that "Now we hear there
is another way aliens are able to remain in our country. They sneak
over our borders illegally, or illegally overstay their visas, and
then become legal by exploiting a now-expired loophole known as
245(i), the section in a 1994 federal law that allows an illegal
alien to apply for a green card, stay permanently in the United
States, and subsequently apply for citizenship."
CRIME PAYS UNDER GOP
"This amnesty loophole allowed aliens
who broke our laws to pay a $1,000 fine and go to the head of the
line in front of prospective immigrants who complied with our laws.
U.S. law states that aliens must apply in their own countries to get
permission to immigrate to the United States."
ONE MILLION ILLEGALS NOW LEGAL UNDER 245(i)
"A million of these ‘loophole aliens’ have
become legal residents since the law was passed. In 2000, these ‘loophole
aliens’ were 28.3 percent of new legal residents, in 1999 they
were 25.4 percent, and in 1998 they were 29.4 percent. …
"Loophole 245(i) expired in April 2001, but
the open-borders lobby led by Sen. Ted Kennedy, Massachusetts
Democrat, has been hard at work to get it renewed. With the active
support of the Bush administration plus scheduling chicanery by the
House leadership, renewal passed the House by one vote on March 12.
…
"On May 14, President George W. Bush said, ‘I
wanted a temporary extension of 245(i) … I intend to work with
Congress to see if we can’t get that done here pretty quick.’
…"
TERRORISTS ELIGIBLE
"Section 245(i) applies to those who sneaked
across our border, intentionally overstayed a temporary visa,
violated the terms of their visa, or entered the United States as an
aircraft worker or ship crewman. It even applies to aliens who
are deportable under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(4)(B), which includes any
alien who ‘engages in any terrorist activity.’ "
ORRIN HATCH’S TAXPAYER-SUBSIDIZED AMNESTY FOR
ILLEGAL ALIENS
"This morning the full Senate Judiciary
Committee approved by voice vote a bill to grant amnesty to illegal
aliens who graduate from high school or college. Senator Orrin
Hatch (R-UT) introduced the ‘Dream Act,’ that would allow all 50
states to subsidize tuition for illegal aliens at state
universities. FAIR Executive Director Dan Stein called the Dream
Act, ‘A nightmare for students who play by the rules and taxpayers
everywhere.’
"Under Hatch’s legislation, illegal aliens
under the age of 21, who have resided in the United States for
at least five years, would be allowed to attend public
universities in their state of residence at the subsidized in-state
tuition rate. In addition, under a substitute offered by Sen.
Richard Durbin (D-IL), legal residency is all but assured for
illegal aliens if they graduate from high school or have even a
remote chance of getting a GED."
$11,000 PER YEAR PER ILLEGAL
"In states like California, Hatch’s action
would amount to an $11,000-a-year subsidy per amnestied student.
‘The Dream Act is bad fiscal policy, bad immigration policy and
aside from that, it has never had a single hearing before the
subcommittee or committee’ said Stein. …
" ‘With the cost of a college education
skyrocketing, slots at state-subsidized universities are becoming
the only hope of a higher education for many American families,’
observed Stein. ‘Now we have a prominent member of Congress trying
to jam through legislation that will give illegal aliens the same
chance at these seats as citizens who play by the rules.’ The
legislation is clearly unfair to out-of-state citizens and
out-of-state legal aliens who will be forced to pay full tuition
while those who broke our laws are granted a substantial benefit."
Source: Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) press
release, 6/20/02
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #702, September 30, 2002
MEXICO WANTS AMERICA BACK
Roger McGrath writes (Chronicles, August
2002, p. 13) that "For several years, Charles Truxillo, a
professor at the University of New Mexico, has been proclaiming that
the American Southwest will – and should – be reconquered by
Mexico through massive immigration. Most politicians and media have
either ignored Truxillo or tried to characterize him as an isolated
extremist, claiming that most Mexican immigrants have no political
agenda and cross the border only to find work."
ILLEGAL ALIENS vs. "ILLEGAL" OCCUPIERS
"A Zogby International poll, however, conducted
in Mexico at the end of May, suggests that Truxillo’s views
reflect those of the majority of Mexicans. A startling 58 percent
of Mexicans claimed ‘that the territory of the U.S. Southwest
rightfully belongs to Mexico’ and an equally startling 57 percent
thought that they ‘should have the right to enter the United
States without U.S. permission.’ Welcome to the mainstream,
Professor Truxillo."
SOUTHWEST BELONGS TO USA DeJURE AND DeFACTO
"The Southwest has been formally a part of the
United States since 1848, when the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was
signed, and informally since 1846, when the region was occupied by
American troops. That’s more than 150 years. How long was it
Mexican? All of 26 years. Before that, it was Spanish, and
before that, it was turf contested by dozens of tribes of American
Indians. Moreover, Spain (and, later, Mexico) occupied less than one
percent of the vast region.
"California, the part of the Southwest that
Mexicans have entered illegally in greater numbers than any other,
was never more than nominally Mexican. Spain did not colonize
California until 1769 and only did so then because she feared
Russian encroachment if the area were left unoccupied. By the
mid-1770’s, colonization had meant nothing more than a couple of
presidios and five missions. By the end of the Spanish period, the
number of presidios had increased to four and the number of
missions, to 21."
45 MEXICAN CONSULATES IN U.S. WORK TO
"LEGALIZE" ILLEGAL ALIENS INSIDE U.S.
"If you are among those still skeptical that
America is losing its sovereignty, please read this….
"The 45 consulates of the government of
Mexico located in what was once our country are dishing out official
cards called matriculas consulares to thousands of Mexicans
who have entered the U.S. illegally in order to give them ‘legal
identification’ status."
500,000 DOCUMENTS FOR THE UNDOCUMENTED
"Some 500,000 of these cards have been issued,
not just at the consulates, but at large meetings in
churches, union halls, and other venues. And that’s just since the
first of this year, though the program didn’t shift into high gear
until after the 9/11 terrorist attacks when IDs for illegals from
other sources became more difficult to get, at least briefly."
200 U.S. POLICE DEPTS. ACCEPT MEXICAN
CERTIFICATION
"Mary Beth Sheridan revealed the matriculas
consulares scam in a well-documented article in The
Washington Post on July 26. ‘In recent months,’ she wrote, ‘the
cards have been recognized as official identification by nearly 200
U.S. police departments in such cities as Los Angeles, Chicago and
Houston, according to the Mexican Embassy [in Washington]. Dozens
of banks and city governments accept them….’
"Although issued by the Mexican government,
Miss Sheridan points out the cards have ‘quietly emerged as a key
U.S. document for a huge group of illegal immigrants.’ "
MEXICO HELPS LAWBREAKERS FLOUT U.S. LAW
" ‘Supporters say the cards help hardworking
immigrants who must present an official ID for basic necessities,’
Miss Sheridan writes. She adds that ‘Critics, however, say the
Mexican government is trying to issue credentials for its citizens
here, undermining the U.S. identification system and aiding
lawbreakers.’ "
WELLS FARGO, CITIBANK, AND BANK OF AMERICA ARE
ACCOMPLICES
"The big banks are among the biggest backers of
increasing distribution of matriculas consulares. Wells
Fargo, urged on by the police department in Austin, Texas, opened
35,000 new accounts for illegals in a few months when they flashed
their consulate cards, which cost them $29 each. Citibank and Bank
of America recently began to accept them too. Source: William J.
Gill, American Coalition for Competitive Trade (ACCT), August 2002
GOP FEARS SUPPORT FOR OFFICIAL ENGLISH WOULD LOSE
HISPANIC VOTES
"Voters are embracing the
anti-bilingual-education initiative on the November ballot in
Colorado and Massachusetts. The question is, why won’t
Republicans?
"Fearful of alienating Hispanic voters,
Colorado Republicans are ducking the issue or coming out against
it." Source: Valerie Richardson, Washington Times,
9/30/02, p. 1
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #703, October 15, 2002
VOTING RIGHTS ACT REQUIRES 335 U.S. JURISDICTIONS IN 30 STATES TO PRINT
FOREIGN LANGUAGE BALLOTS
"Montgomery County must offer ballots in
Spanish in this year’s elections under a federal law intended to
safeguard the voting rights of the growing number of U.S. citizens
who speak limited English, Department of Justice officials announced
yesterday.
"More than 335 jurisdictions in 30 states
will have to follow the language-access provisions of the Voting
Rights Act, which requires voting board to print ballots, signs,
registration forms and informational brochures in an additional
language if they have large shares of voting-age citizens who do not
speak English well. …"
AMERICA’S TOWER OF BABEL SHOULD BE OVERTHROWN
" ‘People who are perfectly capable of
reading the names on the ballot [in English] may need help in
reading the explanation of a question on the ballot about a bond
issue,’ said Charles Kamasaki, senior vice president of the
National Council of La Raza. ‘Those things are not necessarily
easy to figure out in English.’
"Mark Kirkorian, executive director of the
Center for Immigration Studies, which favors limits on immigration,
criticized the ballot requirement as part of a trend of offering
more government services for those whose English is limited, which
‘just highlights the reason we need one language in the first
place.’
" ‘We are going to end up with an
increasingly large amount of languages that small jurisdictions are
going to start dealing with,’ he said. ‘There is only so much of
that that is economical or feasible.’ …
"Immigrant advocates said the translation
requirement is an important first step – and not just for Latinos.
Glenn Magpantay, of the Asian American Legal Defense and Education
Fund, noted that more than 15 jurisdictions will be required to
expand Asian Americans’ access.
" ‘Nationally, it’s a big win,’ he said.
‘For some communities in the country, the right to vote got a lot
closer." Source: Nurith Aizenman and D’Vera Cohn, Washington
Post, 7/27/02, p. B5
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #705, November 15, 2002
IRS AIDS ILLEGAL ALIENS
"While Americans anxiously avoid the attention
of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), that agency is providing
cover to 9 million illegal aliens in the United States. By providing
illegal aliens with a government-issued identity number, used in
lieu of a Social Security number, the IRS is subverting the
immigration law, undermining national security, and thwarting
efforts by other federal agencies to cooperate in homeland security
efforts.
"These are among the conclusions of ‘Giving
Cover to Illegal Aliens: IRS Tax ID Numbers Subvert Immigration Law,’
a new report by Ms. Marti Dinerstein, president of Immigration
Matters, a public-policy analysis firm in New York, and a fellow at
the Center for Immigration Studies."
ACCESS TO DRIVERS LICENSES AND BANK ACCOUNTS
"Dinerstein found that the IRS decided in
1996 to treat illegal immigrants as ‘resident aliens’ based
on their ‘substantial presence’ in the U.S., thus rendering them
eligible for the Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). The
ITIN is intended as a substitute to the Social Security number for
tax purposes only, but it has turned into an official identity
number used by illegal aliens to open bank accounts and, in some
instance, obtain drivers licenses."
TERRORISTS BENEFIT FROM AVAILABILITY OF ID’s
"The 9/11 hijackers benefitted from a
flourishing market in fraudulent documents catering to America’s
record-high illegal-alien population by easily acquiring real or
fake driver’s licenses and Social Security numbers. Now an agency
of the federal government is broadening access by illegal aliens to
documents that aid in laundering their residency status. In 1999, the
Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax Administration
noted this contradiction, saying that the IRS policy of issuing
ITINs to illegal aliens ‘seems counter-productive to the
Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) mission to identify and
prevent unlawful entry.’
"The IRS policy, Dinerstein contends, also
runs counter to the Social Security Administration’s recent
efforts to stem unlawful use of Social Security numbers (SSN).
That agency has taken steps to limit the purposes for which an SSN
can be issued and to better validate the underlying ‘breeder’
documents presented to obtain an SSN. This past summer the agency
mailed out more than 750,000 letters to employers of approximately 7
million workers whose names did not match the SSN provided.
" ‘The IRS is giving cover to illegal
aliens by pretending that the ITIN is solely for tax purposes, when
in actuality it is commonly used to establish official identity,’
Dinerstein said. ‘This policy also violates the USA Patriot Act by
withholding information from the INS and the Social Security
Administration about the fraudulent activity of illegal aliens,’
she added." Source: The Center for Immigration Studies (www.cis.org/articles/2002back1202.html),
11/18/02
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #706, November 30, 2002
GOP GOVERNORS BACK BUSH ON AMNESTY FOR ILLEGALS
Ralph Hallow writes from Dana Point, California (Washington
Times, 11/25/02, p. A4) that "Republican governors over the
weekend defended President Bush’s immigration policies, arguing
that he isn’t proposing amnesty, as critics claim, for Mexicans
and others who entered the United States illegally.
"Colorado Gov. Bill Owens, the newly elected
chairman of the Republican Governors Association [RGA], disputed the
critics’ interpretation of Mr. Bush’s policy. …
"The Washington Times reported last week
that Tony Garza, new U.S. ambassador to Mexico, said the Bush
administration will renew its push for what critics say amounts to
amnesty for illegal aliens who have established a stable employment
history in the country. …
"The Bush policy was aimed in part at
helping Republicans gain Hispanic votes. And RGA members meeting
here were reminded by Bush administration representatives and others
that Hispanics constitute the fastest-growing segment of the U.S.
electorate. The Republican Party must gain a growing share of the
Hispanic vote in order to survive.
"But September 11 dealt the Bush immigration
policy a setback, as concerns mounted over the threat that
foreign terrorists were seeping through America’s porous
borders."
BUSH OPENS U.S. BORDERS TO MEXICAN TRUCKING
"The Bush administration yesterday opened
the way for Mexican companies to begin hauling cargo and passengers
throughout the United States."
SHOULD NAFTA OVERRIDE DUTY TO DEFEND AMERICA?
"The move fulfills U.S. obligations under the
North American Free Trade Agreement and will allow Mexican-based
truck and bus service into the lower 48 states as soon as one month
from now.
"Congress in 1982 said the United States no
longer would accept applications from Mexican-based operators to
work outside of a narrow commercial zone along the border. Under
NAFTA, signed in 1992, the United States was supposed to drop the
moratorium in phases between 1995 and 2000 but held back, citing
safety concerns."
EVEN CLINTON DID NOT COMPLY WITH NAFTA OPEN
BORDERS POLICY
" ‘By modifying the moratorium, President
Bush has made good on his commitment to open the border to
international trucking and cross-border regular-route bus service,’
Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta said in a statement. …
"Mr. Bush’s decision allows the
Transportation Department’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration to start processing the 130 applications received
from Mexican companies that want to operate in the United States.
…
"The trucking issue was a sore spot in
U.S.-Mexico trade relations. The Clinton administration, which
signed NAFTA into law, held off on implementing the regulations
because of safety concerns as well as pressure from Congress and
unions. …
"In 2001, about 4.3 million crossings were made
from Mexico to the United States, with about 53,000 of those made by
Mexican trucks, the department said." Source: Jeffrey Sparshot,
The Washington Times, 11/28/02, p. C11
GWB YIELDS TO VICENTE FOX
"Mr. Bush acted just a day after Secretary of
State Colin L. Powell met with President Vicente Fox in Mexico,
where the two men discussed immigration and other issues that have
been sore points between their countries."
FEWER JOBS FOR AMERICAN TRUCKERS
"Mr. Bush’s move had been opposed by the
Teamsters union, which cited safety concerns but certainly worried
that the presence of relatively low-paid Mexican drivers would mean
fewer jobs for American truckers. Many consumer and environmental
groups had also opposed the Mexican trucks, asserting that they
polluted more than American trucks and that their drivers had less
training and less strenuous safety requirements to meet than
American drivers. …"
TRUCK INSPECTIONS ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN
"A total of 4.3 million trucks entered the
United States from Mexico last year for travel within the
20-mile-wide commercial zone. The Department of Transportation,
which even with its expanded number of inspectors will check only a
fraction of incoming trucks, ordered 34 percent of checked trucks
taken out of service last year. That was down from 44 percent in
1997 but was nonetheless far above the 24 percent of American trucks
taken out of service for violations in 2000." Source: Steven
Greenhouse, New York Times, 11/28/02, pp. 1, A27
UNDER BUSH PLAN, REGIONAL CITIZENSHIP WOULD REPLACE NATIONAL IDENTITY AND
LOYALTY
One of the most dangerous schemes put forward by the
Bush administration is the President’s plan for a Free Trade Area
of the Americas (FTAA). Lest there be any doubt about its purpose to
copy the regional government scheme developed within the European
Union, one need only examine a report in The New York Times
of Sunday, November 24 (p. 4) which points out that "In an
important step toward regional integration, the six member
nations of the South American common market have approved a plan
that will allow their 250 million people to live and work in any
other member country and be granted the same rights as the citizens
of those nations.
" ‘This is an historic advance,’ Paulo de
Tarso Ramos Ribeiro, the Brazilian minister of justice, said in an
interview here. ‘The free movement of people has always been
linked to our agenda of economic development, but first we had to
overcome a certain natural hesitation at so great an opening-up.’
"
UNDER MERCOSUR, ALL ILLEGAL ALIENS WILL BE
"LEGALIZED" AND MADE ELIGIBLE FOR WELFARE AND SOCIAL SECURITY
BENEFITS – – TO BE SUBSIDIZED BY TAXPAYERS FROM THE
WEALTHIEST COUNTRIES
"Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay were
the founders and are full members of the common market, known as
Mercosur, which with a combined gross product of more than $1
trillion is the world’s third-largest trade group. Bolivia and
Chile joined later and are associate members.
"The immediate beneficiaries of the accord,
signed by the interior or justice ministers of the six countries
earlier this month, are the estimated 2.5 million people from member
countries who are living as illegal immigrants in neighboring
nations. Once the agreement goes into effect, they will be able to
apply immediately for amnesty that will permit them to remain where
they are without fear of deportation. …
"The accord also foresees, however, that ‘the
nationals of one member state who wish to reside in the territory of
another member state shall be able to obtain legal residence’
there almost unconditionally. To qualify for an initial two-year
residency, an applicant must merely show proof of birth in another
Mercosur country and not have a criminal record."
ILLEGAL ALIENS WILL BE IN COMPETITION WITH LOCAL
CITIZENS FOR EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, JOBS, AND SOCIAL
SERVICES
"Once permanent residency has been approved,
the agreement says immigrants will enjoy ‘the same conditions as
nationals of the receiving country.’ In practical terms, that
means citizens of one Mercosur country will be able to work, study,
open bank accounts, use social services, invest and buy real estate
in any of the other countries just as if they were citizens. …
" ‘I have always maintained that Mercosur is
a fundamentally political undertaking and thus cannot be understood
simply as a customs union,’ Ricardo Lagos, the president of Chile,
said in an interview earlier this year. ‘The starting point for
our entire foreign policy is Mercosur, and so we have to strengthen
Mercosur in whatever ways we can.’
"Mr. Ribeiro said the sweeping nature of the
accord would require the six countries to eventually coordinate
their social security and health systems so that as people moved
around, they would not lose welfare benefits. A common passport,
much like that of the European Community, would also be ‘a natural
consequence,’ he added, though not immediately.
" ‘This is not the end of a process, but the
start,’ he said. ‘There are going to be operational
difficulties, of course, but we don’t believe there is any turning
back.’ "
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #707, December 15, 2002
GOP INTENTIONALLY SIDESTEPS IMMIGRATION ISSUE
Phyllis Schlafly points out (Human Events,
8/19/02, p. 9) that "The Republican National Committee’s
mail-order fundraisers often contain a comprehensive multiple-choice
survey so that prospective donors can give their opinions on topics
of national importance. One issue, however, is conspicuously missing
from the list: border security/immigration.
"The omission isn’t an oversight; it’s a
deliberate policy. The National Republican Congressional Committee
has been advising its candidates not to mention this issue in
their speeches or campaign literature. …
"The shyness of the Republican Party and the
Bush Administration about immigration explains their deafening
silence on Rep. George Gekas’s (R.-Pa.) bill (HR 5013) called
Securing America’s Future through Enforcement Reform (SAFER). It’s
completely in accord with public opinion polls showing that the big
majority of the American people want government to reduce the number
of legal immigrants, to stop the irresponsible issuance of visas, to
deport illegal aliens, and to use U.S. troops to guard our borders
(instead of the borders of Eastern Europe). …
"Title II, called Screening Aliens Seeking
Admission, would tighten up the visa program in order to reduce the
risk of aliens using fraudulent passports, require in-person
interviews before issuing all visas, and bar any alien who is a
member of a terrorist group or supports terrorism. Most people don’t
understand why this isn’t already the law.
"Title III, called Tracking Aliens Present in
the United States, would establish a comprehensive entry-exit
control system with registration and fingerprinting (which INS has
promised for years but never implemented). At least 40% of illegal
aliens (including several 9/11 terrorists) are visa overstayers.
"Title IV, called Removing Alien Terrorists,
Criminals, and Human Rights Violators, would authorize INS to deport
any alien who was inadmissible in the first place or who we have
grounds to believe may be a terrorist. This title would reverse
several court decisions that accord unreasonable ‘rights’ to
terrorists claiming asylum, and would prevent the courts from
releasing criminal aliens into the community.
"Title V, called Enhancing Enforcement of the
Immigration and [Naturalization] Act in the Interior, would protect
Social Security cards against counterfeiting and fraudulent use.
This title would increase the number of INS investigators, as
repeatedly requested by INS, and double the number of INS detention
beds.
"Title VI would eliminate excessive review and
dilatory and abusive tactics by aliens in deportation proceedings.
It would also exclude aliens who knowingly make a false asylum
application.
"Title VII would clean up the problem of voting
by illegal aliens. It would require verification of citizenship for
voters and applicants."
TED KENNEDY’S "DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT
PROGRAM" MUST BE REPEALED
"Title VIII, called Reforming Legal
Immigration, would repeal the infamous Diversity Immigrant Program
which admits 50,000 immigrants a year, mostly from the Third World
including countries that sponsor terrorism, and which helped the
Fourth of July LAX murderer win U.S. residency. It would reform the
abuses in the refugee program and in the extended-family visa
program, and reduce the number of legal immigrants by 20%."
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #708, December 31, 2002
WILL BUSH MAKE MEXICAN CITIZENS ELIGIBLE FOR U.S.
SOCIAL SECURITY?
"Pushed by the Mexican government, the Bush
administration is working on a Social Security accord that would put
tens of thousands of Mexicans onto the Social Security roster and
send hundreds of millions of dollars in benefits south of the
border.
"White House and Mexican government officials
say discussions on an agreement to align the Social Security systems
of the two countries are informal and preliminary. But excerpts from
an internal Social Security Administration memo obtained this month
say the agreement ‘is expected to move forward at an accelerated
pace,’ with the support of both governments, and could be in force
by next October. …"
ANOTHER BILLION DOLLAR BOONDOGGLE TO PANDER FOR
HISPANIC VOTES
"Extrapolating from U.S. and Mexican government
statistics, the accord could cost $720 million a year within five
years of implementation. One independent estimate put the total at
$1 billion a year – a large sum, but a trifle compared with the
$372 billion in Social Security benefits currently being paid to
46.4 million recipients.
"Mexican President Vicente Fox has been
pushing President Bush to sign a Social Security agreement with
Mexico as something of a consolation prize to make up for Bush’s
failure to pursue promised immigration reforms, according to Latino
lobbyists close to the Fox administration. Mexican officials began
pressing the White House hard at meetings that preceded the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Los Cabos, Mexico, in
October. …"
U.S. SOCIAL SECURITY WOULD BE WEAKENED
"Concern is rising on Capitol Hill – and even
among some White House economic aides – that any agreement on
Social Security could add a new burden to the benefits system, just
as the baby-boom generation is preparing to retire. House Ways and
Means Committee staff members are meeting today with Social Security
officials to hash out projected costs for such an agreement."
162,000 MEXICAN BENEFICIARIES?
" ‘We are concerned about the sheer magnitude
of the agreement,’ said a House Republican aide who is an expert
on Social Security. About 94,000 beneficiaries living abroad have
been brought into the system by the 20 existing international
agreements. A Mexican agreement alone could bring in 162,000 in the
first five years." Source: Jonathan Weisman, Washington
Post, 12/19/02, p. A1
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #669, May 15, 2001
VICENTE FOX HAS A FEW SUGGESTIONS FOR CALIFORNIA
AND THE USA
Milt Shefter writes (Investor’s Business Daily,
4/2/01, p. A22) that "Mexican President Vicente Fox, addressing
California’s Legislature March 21, felt free to suggest another
way for California to subsidize Mexico’s economy."
MEXICAN PRESIDENT WANTS BEAR STATE TAXPAYERS TO
MORE GENEROUSLY SUBSIDIZE ILLEGAL ALIEN EDUCATION
"Fox called for California to grant lower
in-state tuition rates to ‘nondocumented’ Mexicans living in
California."
SIX MILLION ILLEGALS IN CALIFORNIA ALONE
" ‘Nondocumented immigrant’ is a
politically correct euphemism for illegal alien – one who has
entered this country illegally or has not been granted any official
status. Of California’s 34 million-person population, about 12
million are ethnic Mexicans. It is estimated that over half are
either here illegally or got here that way.
"It is for this 6 million that Fox wants
even more entitlements. ‘They have not only made (California’s)
current prosperity possible,’ he claims, ‘but through their
traditions and customs, they have also given greater vitality to the
rich and diverse culture of California.’ "
FREE MEDICAL CARE, FREE EDUCATION, FREE HOUSING,
WELFARE, AND FOOD STAMPS
"Merely a cursory review of the economics of
illegal aliens would dispute Fox’s contention. Yes, these workers
may accept labor at lower rates and without the perks of others –
a boon to employers. But guess who gets stuck with the bill for the
inevitable costs of their arrival? The taxpayers of California.
"Illegal aliens have access to free medical
care to such an extent that taxpayers had to bail out the Los
Angeles County’s hospital losses. California and the U.S.
government grant these illegal aliens welfare, free education
(K-12), housing assistance and food stamps. ..."
BILINGUAL EDUCATION, SPANISH-SPEAKING TEACHERS, DUAL LANGUAGE FORMS BOOST OUR TAXES
"What illegal aliens do not spend here is sent
back to relatives in Mexico. Perhaps this is what Fox really means
by the economic prosperity that follows upon illegal immigration.
...
"In itself, this attitude is certainly
reasonable. But it ceases to be charming and reasonable when it is
accompanied by the shrill insistence that California taxpayers must
pay for bilingual education, Spanish-speaking teachers and staff and
dual-language printed government forms. Does Fox have any idea how
much that costs the U.S. taxpayer?
"Fox did not allude to Proposition 187, the
initiative passed by the voters of California to limit public
services for undocumented immigrants. He didn’t have to. He had
California Gov. Gray Davis by his side. Davis, recall, acted as
judge, not as a government official, in refusing to allow the
proposition to be enacted (or even go to the U.S. Supreme Court for
vetting.)"
WHY SPECIAL TREATMENT FOR MEXICAN ILLEGALS?
"Here are some questions for Mr. Fox: Why
should Mexico’s illegal aliens get better treatment than other
foreign students? Members from other nationalities have immigrated
legally to this country, learned the language, become taxpaying
citizens and enhanced our cultural diversity without the
entitlements Fox seeks. …"
FRIENDSHIP SHOULD BE A TWO-WAY STREET
"Meanwhile, California is trying to solve
Mexico’s air pollution and wastewater treatment problems across
the border with the state’s emission-measurement-and-control
equipment and technology (and at California’s cost).
"Yet Fox waltzed around the request to help
California out with its energy crisis. He isn’t interested in
selling California more than the current commitment of 50 megawatts
of electric power. According to a Los Angeles Times report,
‘He dimmed hopes of significant increases any time soon.’ Such
energy sales, Fox said, ‘would not come at the expense of his own
nation’s needs.’ "
GWB WANTS TO RENEW CLINTON POLICY ON ILLEGAL
ALIENS
Joseph D’Agostino reports (Human Events,
5/14/01, p. 5) that "President Bush is asking Congress to
revive an expired law that would grant amnesty to foreigners who
came to [the] United States on temporary visas – such as tourist,
work or student visas – and then stayed here to become illegal
immigrants."
FOUR STRIKES AND YOU’RE IN
"The extension the President is asking for
would offer a fourth chance to aliens who first overstayed their
visas, then failed to take advantage of an initial amnesty, then
failed to take advantage of a four-month extension of that amnesty
that ended on April 30. "
IF THEY CAN’T OBEY THE LAW, CHANGE THE LAW
"The provision, the 245(i) program, was set to
expire last year when President Clinton successfully lobbied
Congress to extend it into this year. … "In a May 1 letter to
the congressional leadership, Bush said that there were 200,000
people eligible to take advantage of 245(i) who failed to do so by
the extended deadline. ‘It remains in our national interest to
legitimize those resident immigrants eligible for legal status,
and to welcome them as full participants in our society,’ he
wrote."
DOES BUSH ENVISAGE 500,000 MORE HISPANIC
REPUBLICANS?
" ‘According to agency estimates, there are
more than 500,000 undocumented immigrants in the country who are
eligible to become legal permanent residents, primarily because of
their family relationship with a citizen or legal permanent
resident,’ wrote Bush. ‘However, the law generally requires them
to go back to their home country to obtain a visa, and once they do
so, they are barred from returning to the United States for up to 10
years.
" ‘Many choose to risk remaining here
illegally rather than to be separated from their families for those
many years,’ said Bush. ‘I encourage the Congress to consider
whether there was adequate time for persons eligible under section
245(i) to apply for adjustment of status before the filing deadline
expired yesterday. Information indicates an estimated 200,000
were eligible to file but did not meet the deadline.’ Bush did not
specify how long the new extension should last. …"
SPECIAL TREATMENTOF SIX MILLION ILLEGALS
DISCRIMINATES AGAINST LAW-ABIDING IMMIGRANTS
"Dan Stein, executive director of the
Federation for American Immigration Reform said, ‘Besides
rewarding illegal behavior, Section 245(i) would allow illegal
aliens to circumvent the re-entry bar established by Congress in
1996 that ties an alien’s ability to legally reside in the U.S. to
their willingness to obey the law. With six million illegal
aliens currently in the U.S., Congress should not cut any deals
which could further undermine immigration law enforcement.’
"
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #676, August 31, 2001
"OH DEAR, WHAT CAN THE MATTER BE?"
On July 21, on CNN’s Capital Gang, Grover
Norquist was "Newsmaker of the Week". Here follows a
portion of the interview.
GROVER SAYS DUBYA IS A TEN – DISCOUNTS
"PROFESSIONAL WHINERS"
AL HUNT:
"Rate
the first six months of the George Bush presidency for
conservatives, on a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the most
conservative."
GROVER NORQUIST:
"Oh
dear. Close to 10. I mean, he’s just been extremely good on
both the issues, but in working with the center-right coalition. …
There’ll always be professional whiners in any movement.
But if you look at the bulk of the movement, we’re much more
mature than 10 or 20 years ago…."
HUNT:
"Some
say that the political right was so turned off by the Clinton years
that this president now has
a lot more leeway, say, than his father had."
NORQUIST:
"No,
that’s silly. If you look at how George W. Bush governs and
how he campaigned, the reason the center-right coalition has a
great deal of affection and respect and admiration for him and
they’re willing to work with him on a lot of issues is that they
view him as a conviction politician, in the same way that Thatcher
and Reagan were. He has the vision thing. …"
HUNT:
"You’ve
been very pleased with this administration, as you have made clear.
Is there any disappointment first six months?
NORQUIST:
"Oh
dear. Not that I can think of. … The most important fight in
the next three months for the next 50 years is getting the trade
promotion authority passed so that we can go a hemisphere-wide free
trade zone. I think moving on immigration reform is something that
some people may not have expected Bush to do. I certainly did. I
think he is from the majority of the Republican that is
pro-immigration and supportive of immigrant rights."
THE LOVE AFFAIR WILL CONTINUE
MARK SHIELDS:
"Al
Hunt, do you see any future rupture in the love affair between
Grover Norquist and George W. Bush?"
HUNT:
"Mark,
first let me say, progressives would love to have their own
version of Grover Norquist. He is really quite a good strategist
and quite a good coalition builder of his coalition. But I doubt
there’s going to be a rupture. I think Grover’s very comfortable
where he is now. He’s at the table. I think Bush clearly has more
leeway with conservatives. That’s a Clinton backlash. …"
SHIELDS:
"Margaret?"
MARGARET CARLSON:
"He’s
one happy fella. He just loves being at the table. And, you
know, hey, nice to see, he’s not a bad guy. He’s
practical, as Kate says, and he sticks with these financial issues,
the ones so dear to Bob’s heart, and he focuses. …"
ROBERT NOVAK:
"[H]e’s
really in the mainstream of conservative Republicanism right now.
… this isn’t the old right wing by any means."
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #677, September 15, 2001
RACIAL MARXISM SPAWNED ANTI-U.S. TERRORISM
Paul Craig Roberts writes (Investors Business
Daily, 9/14/01, p. 16) that "Frantz Fanon predicted that
an oppressed Third World would overthrow its first world oppressors.
His book, ‘The Wretched of the Earth,’ has six editions in
Arabic and helped inculcate hatred of whites in people of color. The
book also helped inculcate self-hate among whites. ... In his
introduction to Fanon's book, French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre
advocated shooting Europeans as a means of ‘killing two birds with
one stone.’ ...
"For three decades, students all over
America have been taught antipathy to their own country and sympathy
for Third World countries that they cannot locate on a map. …
Critical race theorists, critical legal theorists, feminists,
deconstructionists, multi-culturalists and other ‘ists’ have
reconstructed Marxism in race and gender terms.
"Professors teach that races and genders have
opposed and irreconcilable interests, just as Marx taught that
workers and capitalists could not be reconciled. …"
LEST WE FORGET: U.S. IS A HAVEN FOR TERRORISTS
"President Bush said in his Tuesday address
that the U.S. will treat countries that provide havens to terrorists
the same as terrorists. Apparently, Bush is unaware that the U.S.
is the haven of choice for terrorist groups. In January 2000,
counterterrorism expert Steven Emerson told the House Judiciary
Committee that the U.S. and Canada are havens for the Palestinian
Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the Lebanese Hizbullah, the Algerian Armed
Islamic Group, the Egyptian Al Gamat and Osama bin Laden's Al Qaida
group."
UNCONSTITUTIONAL QUOTAS AND UNWISE IMMIGRATION
BENEFIT TERRORISTS
"A foolish or criminal immigration policy and
unconstitutional racial quotas have enabled terrorist cells to
hide themselves in religious and civil rights organizations.
Terrorists may go to Afghanistan, the Middle East and North Africa
for training, but they live in, and raise money in, the U.S. and
Canada. …"
FBI/CIA EMASCULATED BY FRANK CHURCH AND JIMMY
CARTER
"Sen. Frank Church D-Idaho, emasculated the CIA
in the mid-1970’s when the American political left rushed to the
defense of Fidel Castro. The FBI got so much grief for spying on
Martin Luther King for his communist connections that the bureau has
shied away from infiltrating another minority group. Instead, the
FBI has followed a politically correct strategy of focusing on white
supremacist groups.
"Arabs and Muslims are ‘protected
minorities,’ Under U.S. civil rights laws, it is illegal to
racially profile and infiltrate protected minorities because of skin
color or creed. The U.S. is in an unenviable position. It cannot
tell one domestic Arab or Muslim from another. … Civil rights laws
and sheer numbers of Muslim immigrants work against our ability to
root out the fifth columns organized on our territory."
ONLY 46 OF 435 OPPOSE RECORD HIGH FOREIGN AID
"On July 24, the House passed, by a 381-to-46
vote [Roll Call no. 266], the Foreign Operations Appropriations bill
(HR 2506) that calls for spending $15.2 billion in fiscal year
2002. This represents an increase of $304 million over the fiscal
2001 appropriation. …
"The bill allocates $487 million for
HIV/AIDS (Bush had requested $369 million) and would give $120
million to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)."
TRICK, NO TREAT: AIDS, CONDOMS, AND UNICEF
"The appropriation provides $358 million in ‘reproductive
health assistance’ (i.e., family planning, contraceptives) in the
Child Survival and Health Programs fund, fulfilling President Bush’s
request. According to the House Appropriations Committee, the total
funding in the bill for reproductive health assistance is $425
million, unchanged from last year. …"
BIG BUCKS FOR EGYPT, ISRAEL, EX-USSR, AND WORLD
BANK
"The bill further provides $2.04 billion in
military aid for Israel and $720 million for economic assistance to
Israel. Egypt is to receive $1.3 billion in military aid and $655
million in economic assistance. Aid for states of the former Soviet
Union is set at $768 million and the International Fund for Ireland
is funded at $25 million, $5.4 million more than President Bush’s
request. The bill would give $224 million for Heavily Indebted
Poor Countries (HPIC). The Agency for International Development
would get $3.36 billion, the Peace Corps $275 million, the World
Bank group $896 million and the International Development
Association $803 million. …
"Various peacekeeping missions would receive
$135 million, which the President had requested. The bill also
provides $200 million for international disaster assistance."
Source: Human Events, 8/6/01, p. 23
46 CONGRESSMEN VOTE "NO"
The 35 Republicans voting against H.R. 2506 were: Barr
(Ga.), Collins (Ga.), Combest (Tex.), Cubin (Wyo.), Cunningham
(Calif.), Duncan (Tenn.), Everett (Ala.), Flake (Ariz.),
Goodlatte (Va.), Hansen (Utah), Hayes (N.C.), Hefley (Colo.), Herger
(Calif.), Hilleary (Tenn.), Hostettler (Ind.), Jenkins
(Tenn.), Jones (N.C.), Kerns (Ind.), Lucas (Okla.) McInnis
(Colo.), Otter (Idaho), Paul (Tex.), Petri (Wisc.), Pombo
(Calif.), Rohrabacher (Calif.), Royce (Calif.), Ryun
(Kans.), Schaffer (Colo.), Sensenbrenner (Wisc.), Stearns
(Fla.), Tancredo (Colo.), Taylor (N.C.), Toomey (Pa.),
Watkins (Okla.), and Weldon (Fla.).
Ten Democrats voted against the bill: Berry (Ark.) ,
Condit (Calif.), Hall (Tex.), Kaptur (Ohio), Phelps (Ill.), Rahall
(W.Va.), Roemer (Ind.), Stark (Calif.), Tanner (Tenn.), and Taylor
(Miss.). Virginia Independent Goode, also voted against the bill.
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #679, October 15, 2001
BUSH SHOULD RECONSIDER HIS "OPEN
BORDERS" IMMIGRATION POLICY
Sam Francis writes (The Wanderer, 10/4/01, p.
5) that for the mammoth underground network of foreign terrorists,
supporters, and collaborators which may already exist in this
country "the ease with which the terrorists entered, and the
bloodshed they have already perpetrated and may perpetrate in the
future, the American people have to thank the open-borders lobby –
politicians who push for more immigration and fewer restrictions on
entry, ideologues who insist that national borders and identities
are obsolete, and Big Business, which demands a never-ending flow of
cheap labor at the expense of American workers and the security of
its own country."
SCREENING PLAN SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED
"The FBI reports that at least 15 of the 19
hijackers entered the United States on business or tourist visas.
Their entry might have been halted had a computerized screening
system of border crossers been in operation. Under the system,
foreign criminals, terrorists, and violators of visa laws would have
been instantly detected. The system was mandated by Congress
after suspected Palestinian terrorists, who had been issued visas
without background checks, were arrested in New York in 1996 with
bomb-making equipment.
"But the system wasn’t in operation. Because
of action by one of the chief open-borders advocates, former Sen.
(now Energy Secretary) Spencer Abraham, the screening system was
never established. Abraham, an advocate of virtually unrestricted
immigration, claimed it would cause traffic congestion at the
Mexican border!
" ‘I’m pleased that the budget negotiators
agreed with us that we cannot allow our border to be turned into one
big parking lot,’ Abraham, then the chairman of the Senate
Immigration Subcommittee, said at the time in 1998. Had the
screening system been in place, some or all of the terrorists might
have been nabbed, and information on them might have led to the
others. Some 5,000 Americans or more might still be alive today. You
can thank Abraham and his cronies that they’re not."
WHY NOT ENFORCE VISA RESTRICTIONS?
"Other terrorists seem to have entered on
visas that were legal enough but to have overstayed them after the
visas expired. Virtually nothing is done today to apprehend or
control aliens whose visas have expired; they constitute a vast
subterranean subculture within American society. …
"As for the borders themselves, both the
Mexican and Canadian borders were closed immediately after the
attacks – perhaps the greatest case of locking the barn door after
the horse escapes in history. Of course, both the Mexican government
and many open-borders ideologues have long claimed the borders can’t
be shut, that they’re just too long and too many people cross
over. The closing of both of them again exposes the falsehoods on
which the open borders claims are based."
IT’S NOT UNCONSTITUTIONAL TO MONITOR
NON-CITIZENS
According to Linda Chavez (Washington Times,
10/4/01, p. A18), "Most of the terrorists who attacked on Sept.
11 entered the United States with valid temporary or student visas,
just as millions of foreign visitors do each year. But once they
passed immigration control at their port of entry, the terrorists
could disappear, unmonitored, into American society. In 1996,
Congress passed legislation requiring that all U.S. entries and
exits be recorded, but the law was shelved last year. It’s time to
reactivate and enhance it.
"Anyone who has traveled outside the United
States knows that other countries are not nearly so blasé when it
comes to foreign travelers. When you check into a hotel in most
countries abroad, you’re asked to relinquish your passport
temporarily so that local or national authorities can be notified of
your presence. If you move hotels or travel to another city, you go
through the same process in each place. But once a foreign visitor
passes immigration control in the United States, he or she is free
to travel where he or she chooses without any monitoring. Our
only line of defense has been to require employers to check
employees’ eligibility to work once they are hired and to maintain
their own records, which are never submitted to any government
authority.
"Congress should immediately enact
legislation requiring all aliens in the United States to register
with the government once a year and to notify the Immigration and
Naturalization Service (INS) whenever they change their address.
We used to require aliens to register at a U.S. post office each
January but abandoned the requirement in the 1980s. Coupled with a
tracking system to monitor entries and exits from the United States,
such a system could provide law enforcement with an important tool
in the fight against terrorism – but only if it is properly
implemented and integrated. …
"No commercial driver’s license or pilot’s
license should be issued without proof of U.S. citizenship or a
security check to ensure that noncitizens are in the country legally
and not on any law enforcement watch lists. …
"No doubt some will chafe at the suggestion
that aliens should be treated differently from U.S. citizens. But living
the United States is a privilege, not a right, for noncitizens.
Law-abiding aliens have nothing to fear. Their safety – indeed,
that of everyone who lives or travels in the United States – will
be enhanced once these security measures are enacted."
PROOF OF VALID RESIDENCE SHOULD BE REQUIRED
Georgie Anne Geyer writes (Washington Times,
9/28/01, p. A22) that "It has now been revealed that one major
reason four of the hijackers were able to move around this country
with such apparent ease in the weeks before the Pentagon crash was
the fact that they had valid Virginia driver’s licenses. How very
curious.
"As it turns out, they were not American
citizens. They didn’t even live in Virginia. But our generally
sloppy bureaucrats and avid pro-immigration multiculturalists have
been busy-busy making this a country ‘open’ to everyone. They
had put through a law in Virginia that allows people to get driver’s
licenses without providing passports or leases to verify their
identity and residence.
"And Virginia is ‘strict.’ In such
states as California, you don’t have to speak English, and driving
tests are given in multiple languages, although the traffic signs
are not. Virginia state officials say they will change these
rules. It’s a little late, of course. They weren’t about to
change them in August, when an Arlington notary public was convicted
of immigration fraud for helping thousands of out-of-state illegal
immigrants obtain those same Virginia driver’s licenses that
facilitated the terrorists."
DON’T SHOOT DOWN DOMESTIC AIRCRAFT – LET U.S.
PILOTS CARRY WEAPONS
Paul Craig Roberts writes that "The Bush
administration has ruled that the U.S. Air Force can shoot down
hijacked airliners to prevent their use as weapons against
buildings, but airline pilots are not permitted to carry pistols.
"The FAA reasons that a terrorist might take
a gun away from a pilot. To avoid this risk, the FAA risks allowing
terrorists to take the airliner away from the pilot, as happened
four times on Sept. 11.
"To avoid losing more buildings and thousands
of lives, the Air Force will blow the hijacked plane out of the sky.
Anything to keep down the risk of arming pilots.
"I wonder if this makes any more sense to the
police than it does to me. The police can’t shoot a fleeing
felon, but it is OK to shoot a runaway airliner.
"After three weeks of flag-waving, let’s make
an honest assessment of our government’s ability to protect us
from terrorists. Many airline pilots were trained in the military
and have better firearm skills than air marshals Moreover, there are
frangible bullets that will stop a person without threatening the
structural integrity of the airliner.
"The gun-control lobby prefers hijacked
airliners to any role for self-protection. But why weren’t
pilots issued stun guns or pulse-wave Myotrons? The latter
gadget is the size of a small cell phone and makes the slightest
flight attendant more powerful than the largest ruffian. A 1-second
jolt incapacitates the attacker without doing him permanent
damage."
DO NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING ALIENS PROVIDE GENUINE
AIRPORT SECURITY?
"Instead, the FAA relied on ‘airport
security’ operated by noncitizens. Every time I pass through ‘security,’
I marvel at the incongruity of an FBI-vetted presidential appointee
being checked out by Middle Easterners who can’t speak English.
Where is the security when Arabs are servicing airliners and loading
the baggage? What risks are we taking when 80 percent or more of
Dulles International Airport’s security [personnel] are not
citizens of the United States? The proportion is just as high at
JFK, LaGuardia, Cleveland, Atlanta – name your airport." (Washington
Times, 10/5/01, p. A19)
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #680, October 31, 2001
PROHIBIT, PROTECT, AND PUNISH: TIME TO DEFEND OUR
BORDERS
Phyllis Schlafly prescribes practical action against
terrorism: "• We must immediately close our borders to all
illegal aliens and deport those who are in the United States,
including the millions who are illegally in this country on expired
visas. It is a default of duty that our government hasn’t made
this a regular practice, and there is no time to delay in starting
now. …
"• We must increase the Border Patrol to
any extent necessary to keep guards on duty 24 hours a day at
all crossing points and provide military backup as needed. The
Constitution, Article IV, Section 4, states: ‘The United States…shall
protect each of the States against invasion.’
"• We must completely overhaul visa
procedures to require full disclosure about the applicant’s
identity, employment, destination, health, travel plans and U.S.
guarantors.
"• We should require all legal aliens to
carry an ID card with fingerprints, report their residence and
travels, and enter the information on a database to track their
travels in this country and flag the date of their visa expiration.
"• No visas of any kind should be issued
to countries of suspected terrorists or countries that refuse to
repudiate terrorists, and the State Department, which is responsible
for the lax issuance of visas, must be monitored. Our government
should keep a database of all illegal aliens who are deported and
make them ineligible for reentry.
"• We should put a moratorium on the
granting of all student and worker visas until a system is in
place to track the aliens in this country and assure that they
report to the educational institution or corporation claimed as the
reason for entry.
"• We should forbid colleges and
universities that receive federal funding from giving free tuition,
student loans or in-state tuition rates to aliens. We have too
many American students who need this type of assistance.
"• All airport security personnel, as well
as pilots, should be required to be U.S. citizens.
"• The safety instructions given to flight
crews to be passive and cooperative with hijackers should be
rescinded immediately and replaced with instructions and
training in how to overpower and outmaneuver hijackers.
"• The mug shots of the 22 most wanted
terrorists, plus the 19 hijackers, all fit an identifiable profile. The
airlines should be given legal immunity for refusing to board anyone
they think may pose a danger.
"• States should repeal laws that allow
illegal aliens to get driver’s licenses and the states that
are currently toying with this bad idea should deep-six it. Driver’s
licenses should be issued only to citizens and legal residents who
can pass the driver’s test in English.
"• We should put a moratorium on all
immigration for at least a year. We certainly should not admit
any refugees from the current conflict as there is no way to know
the good guys from the potential bad guys.
"• We should review naturalizations of the
past five years to detect fraud or criminal records as a basis for
revocation of citizenship. Revoke the citizenship of any
naturalized citizen who violates the oath to renounce allegiance to
another country by asserting dual citizenship or holding public
office in a foreign country.
"• We should not use terrorism as an excuse
to promote measures that simply increase the power and budget of Big
Government or place more controls over the actions of law-abiding
Americans. The law must make a clear distinction between citizens
and aliens.
"Encourage your member of Congress to introduce
legislation to achieve any of these goals or to support the bills
already in the hopper. Current bills worthy of support include
Missouri Republican Sen. Kit Bond’s bill to require foreigners to
carry ID cards, New Hampshire Republican Sen. Bob Smith’s bill to
allow airline pilots to carry guns and Colorado Republican Rep. Tom
Tancredo’s bill to put a one-year moratorium on immigration."
(Washington Times, 10/20/01, p. A12)
"OPEN BORDERS" IMMIGRATION POLICY PLACES
AMERICA AT RISK
John J. Miller writes (National Review,
10/15/01, p. 41) that "On the day hijackers slammed their jumbo
jets into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the House of
Representatives was scheduled to vote on a measure the
pro-immigration lobby has wanted for years. It’s called ‘245(i),’
and it would have let illegal aliens adjust their status without
leaving the United States. In other words, people living in this
country in violation of its immigration laws would be able, when
eligible, to pick up green cards at their local INS office – as
opposed to having to travel abroad to seek them at consular offices.
This is another example of how official Washington winks at illegal
immigration, and it would have won easy approval but for the
emergency evacuation of the House Chamber."
BUSH PLAN FOR ILLEGAL ALIEN AMNESTY DIED ON 9-11
"A lot changed on September 11. The 245(i)
provision may still pass – it’s pretty popular among politicians
because there’s a specific constituency for it – but there
won’t be any more talk about a broad amnesty for illegal aliens.
(Opponents probably wouldn’t hesitate to point out that one of the
men responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing became a
legal resident because of the last amnesty, in 1986.)
"To the extent that the amnesty measure
survives at all, it will downshift into a guest-worker program for
agriculture, whose advocates feel compelled to speak in terms of
what they call ‘food security.’ …"
STATE DEPARTMENT PRACTICES FACILITATE RISKY
ENTRIES
"One of the most obvious ways to improve border
security is to increase the size of the Border Patrol. Congress has
doubled the number of agents since the mid 1990s, but has ignored
what may be considered America’s adjunct Border patrol: the
State Department’s consular corps in U.S. embassies. These are
the people responsible for issuing tourist, student, and immigrant
visas – and they represent a portal many foreigners must pass
through before they even set foot on American soil. Roughly half
of all illegal aliens got into the U.S. not by swimming across the
Rio Grande in the black of night, but by entering with valid visas
and then staying past their expiration dates. According to
authorities, at least 16 of the 19 hijackers came into the U.S. with
legal visas. …"
WE NEED TO TRACK FOREIGNERS FAST
"Nearly half a billion foreigners enter the
U.S. each year, and the most stringent demand many of them will face
is filling out a form asking where they’re headed; the forms are
then shipped off to storage, where they probably won’t ever be
seen again. What the country needs is a high-tech method of
tracking foreigners as they enter and leave. Right now, the federal
government doesn’t even know how many people are in the country
with expired visas, let alone who they are or where they live.
Five years ago, Congress passed a law to create such a monitoring
system, but last year it essentially reversed its decision. This
effort now should be revived, and the system it creates should have
robust, real-time capabilities. When foreigners come to the U.S.,
the government ought to open a file on them using biometric
technology, such as digital thumbprints. This will confound people
who try to enter with false identification (which at least some of
the hijackers seem to have done) and also overcome technical
problems such as the uncertain spelling of names (‘Is that Osama
with an "O" or Usama with a "U," Mr. bin Laden?’)."
SECURITY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN MONEY
"This is in some ways a dicey proposition: More
hoops at the Canadian border will cause longer lines at the Windsor
Tunnel, which will hurt commerce. Yet it might also be possible to
accommodate frequent travelers with something like the speed-pass
lanes on toll roads. …
"Congress will definitely want to improve
federal supervision of the roughly half-million people who are in
the U.S. on student visas. It’s not clear whether the hijackers
had such visas, though it’s reasonable to assume that at least a
few of them obtained vocational-training permits called ‘M visas’
that would have allowed them to enroll at aviation academies. In
1996, Congress passed a law that would have allowed instant access
to information on student visa holders – but now, five years
later, the program still hasn’t been fully implemented because of
opposition from universities and foreign-student organizations.
Congress should demand that it move online rapidly – surely before
the current 2003 deadline – so that the government can keep better
tabs not only on who attends flight school but also who switches
majors from literature to nuclear engineering.
"There are plenty of other necessary steps. The
FBI must do a better job of sharing its counterterrorism information
with the INS. The bureaucratic culture of the INS itself must
change to appreciate its role in fighting terrorism. The Canadians,
too, must tighten their own admission procedures: There’s a reason
why so many terrorists, including five of the September 11
hijackers, enter Canada before attempting to come here."
MANY ALIENS NO LONGER ASSIMILATE
Sam Francis points out (The Wanderer,
10/11/01, p. 5) that "It is all very well for public leaders to
assure us that most Arab Americans and Muslims are loyal and
law-abiding. There’s [no] doubt that’s true. It’s also true
that most Arabs and Muslims outside America are not terrorists. But
the larger truth that Americans need to grasp is that by allowing a
vast subculture of non-Western immigrants to emerge within our own
society, we have permitted the creation of an alternative social
structure in which terrorists can move virtually undetected. …
"The claim of the open-borders lobby –
that non-Americans and non-Westerners can immigrate to this country
and overnight become part of our nation and our civilization simply
by assenting to a ‘creed,’ an ‘idea,’ or a ‘proposition’
– has now been shattered. …
"We can bomb Afghanistan and every Arab or
Muslim country in the world all we want; we can suspend the Bill of
Rights and turn the CIA into a reasonable facsimile of Murder
Incorporated; we can wage war abroad until we drop from exhaustion.
But until we control our own borders and know that a significant
ethnic minority within our own population is not, at best, alien to
and, at worst, a sworn enemy of our own people and civilization,
we should have no illusions that we are going to win any war against
terrorism."
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #682, November 30, 2001
KING GEORGE?
Dana Milbank writes (Washington Post,
11/20/01, p. 1) that "The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the
war in Afghanistan have dramatically accelerated a push by the Bush
administration to strengthen presidential powers, giving President
Bush a dominance over American government exceeding that of other
post-Watergate presidents and rivaling even Franklin D. Roosevelt’s
command.
"On a wide variety of fronts, the
administration has moved to seize power that it has shared with
other branches of government. In foreign policy, Bush announced vast
cuts in the U.S. nuclear arsenal but resisted putting the cuts in a
treaty – thereby averting a Senate ratification vote. In
domestic policy, the administration proposed reorganizing the
Immigration and Naturalization Service without the congressional
action lawmakers sought. And in legal policy, the administration
seized the judiciary’s power as Bush signed an order allowing
terrorists to be tried in military tribunals.
"Those actions, all taken last week, build on
earlier Bush efforts to augment White House power, including
initiative to limit intelligence briefings to members of Congress,
take new spending authority from the legislature, and expand the
executive branch’s power to monitor and detain those it suspects
of terrorism. …"
UNBOUND FROM THE CHAINS OF THE CONSTITUTION
" ‘The power President Bush is wielding today
is truly breathtaking,’ said Tim Lynch, director of the Project on
Criminal Justice at the libertarian Cato Institute. ‘A single
individual is going to decide whether the war is expanded to Iraq. A
single individual is going to decide how much privacy American
citizens are going to retain.’ …
"Even before Sept. 11, the Bush administration
has been looking for ways to reassert presidential prerogatives,
particularly in its relationship to Congress – which some in the
administration believe grew too powerful during the Clinton and
Reagan years and first Bush administration. …"
BUSH, RIDGE, AND ASHCROFT LIMIT ACCOUNTABILITY
"Bush has opposed Congress granting
statutory authority to Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, which
has allowed Ridge to refuse congressional requests for him to
testify. Bush’s Justice Department decided, without the usual
waiting period for public comment, that it could listen in on
lawyer-client conversations if Attorney General John D. Ashcroft
believes it necessary to prevent terrorism; he could do so even if
people have not been charged and even in the absence of a court
order.
"That move followed congressional approval of
the USA Patriot Act, which makes it easier for the government to
monitor, search, detain or deport suspects and gives the Justice
Department more power to detain immigrants without charges. Also
this month, the government stopped saying how many people it has
detained related to the Sept. 11 attacks.
"In the counterterrorism campaign overseas,
Bush ordered sensitive intelligence briefings to be limited to eight
of the 535 members of Congress, leading lawmakers to complain Bush
had violated the 1947 National Security Act. …
"Congress gave the administration $40
billion to spend in response to the attacks with few strings
attached. Even so, lawmakers have complained that the administration
has not provided, as required, information on how it is spending the
money."
GOP SPLIT ON OUTREACH TO ISLAM
Hanna Rosin and Thomas Edsall write (Washington
Post, 11/18/01, p. A25) that "A split is emerging between
two wings of the Republican Party – libertarians who consider
Muslims the party’s greatest immigrant asset and conservatives who
conceive of the war exactly the way Bush tries to avoid, as a cosmic
one between Islam and the West."
WEYRICH AND LIND CHARACTERIZE MUSLIMS AS
"FIFTH COLUMN"
"The emerging spokesmen for the latter group
are Paul Weyrich and William S. Lind of the Free Congress
Foundation. ‘There is no such thing as peaceful Islam,’ Lind
said. ‘Islamics cannot fit into an America in which the first
loyalty is to the American Constitution. They should be encouraged
to leave. They are a fifth column in this country.’ "
NORQUIST HAILS MUSLIM SUPPORT FOR BUSH AND GOP
"On the opposite side are people such as Grover
Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform. Norquist calls Muslims ‘natural
conservatives.’ After the election, Norquist wrote an article
in the American Spectator headlined: ‘George W. Bush was
elected president of the United States of America because of the
Muslim vote.’ … In 1998, Norquist co-founded the Islamic
Institute with lobbyist Khaled Saffurri. …
"Abdurahman Alamoudi, who was chosen by the
White House to attend a prayer service with the president, said at a
Washington rally last year that ‘we are all supporters of Hamas.’
Saffurri once worked for him when Alamoudi was president of the
American Muslim Council."
Excerpted from Howard Phillips Issues and
Strategy Bulletin #684, December 31, 2001
IT’S PAST TIME TO NEUTRALIZE NUCLEAR TERRORISM
Dr. Joseph Douglass, a Trustee of The Conservative
Caucus Foundation, and Sam Cohen, conceptor of the neutron warhead,
argue that: Biological terrorism is no longer theoretical. … The
problem of nuclear terrorism differs only in that none have yet been
exploded. … Do they exist? Yes. They range in weight from roughly
30 pounds to 150 pounds. Heavier, larger weapons exist, but do not
seem needed from a terrorist perspective."
30-150 LB. "SUITCASE BOMBS" COULD DO
MORE DAMAGE THAN HIROSHIMA WARHEADS
"Warheads in the above weight range could have
yields as low as 50 tons (high explosive equivalent) to tens of
kilotons, several times the size of the first nuclear weapons that
were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The most available warheads
and easiest to manage would be in the 100 ton to 1 or 2 kiloton
range. Insofar as size is concerned, an implosion nuclear warhead
could be as small as a soccer ball and weigh less than 50 pounds.
…"
BACKPACK OR CARRY-ON LUGGAGE COULD KILL MANY MORE
THAN DIED ON 9/11
"Because of their very low weight and small
size, terrorist delivery presents few problems. The warheads
described above could be carried in a backpack, canvas travel bag,
or small wheeled carry-on suitcase. Because these are all common,
none would be suspect. Who would think to question any individual
carrying or wheeling such a container in a subway, in the middle of
any city, or leaving a parked car or garage. Because of the
destructive nature of these warheads, they need not be placed in a
targeted building…."
IF THE BLAST DOESN’T GET YOU, THE RADIATION
COULD
"There are three different destructive effects:
the blast wave, the thermal radiation, and the prompt nuclear
radiation. The most significant effect from a psychological
point-of-view would be the prompt radiation or, if burst on the
surface, the extensive accompanying radioactive fallout.
"From a military perspective, even the smallest
of these warheads, say 50 to 100 tons, would be more than enough to
disable an aircraft carrier just because of the radiation, if only a
terrorist in a fast ‘cigarette’ boat such as those used by drug
smugglers could get reasonably close, say a few hundred yards.
"For the urban terrorist, one of these could
[certainly] topple the Sears Tower if [it] were resting next to the
building. It would be more than adequate to [take out] San Francisco’s
Golden Gate bridge or New York’s George Washington bridge, which
are the types of targets they were designed to destroy. …"
RUSSIA IS THE PROBABLE SOURCE
"There have been many claims or rumors that
terrorists have at least three and possibly as many as 100 plus. The
source of these warheads is uniformly regarded as Russia – an
unfortunate result of the confusion and economic strife following
the breakup of the Soviet Union. No responsible official would deny
the above possibility.
"Moreover, there are others who could
provide warheads to a terrorist group or camouflage their own
operatives to mimic a suspect terrorist group. Such countries
are South Africa, Israel, China, India, Pakistan and, of course,
France, Britain, and the United States. Also, there are countries
that might relish the opportunity to use a U.S. city as a test-bed
for a newly-developed warhead, countries like Iraq or North Korea.
…
"For a decade now, there has been a constant
barrage of concerns, fueled by informal comments by Russian
officials, that some Russian nuclear weapons are missing and that
representatives of terrorist organizations may have purchased these
weapons from Russian organized crime groups. This may be. It also
may be deliberate subterfuge. …
"Once the image of nuclear theft or underground
organized crime sale of a weapon to a terrorist group is solidified
in the Western mind, which is the situation we face today, the
Russians are free to provide a warhead through their military
intelligence units to a terrorist group to explode in a U.S. city
with minimal risk of disclosure."
PINPOINTING RESPONSIBILITY COULD BE DIFFICULT
"If four warheads detonated within an hour of
each other in four major U.S. cities tomorrow, who would be blamed?
In such a case, there would be no evidence left for the FBI to sift
through. No one would dare suggest the Russians or Chinese. The same
possibility exists for other countries or terrorist groups who have
a few nuclear warheads to spare and who might relish the opportunity
to see them go off in a U.S. city if they could avoid being caught.
…"
CUBA COULD BE THE CONDUIT
"It is only in the past week that the realities
– in the case if anthrax bioterrorism – have begun to ‘sink
in.’ These are: 1) we are tremendously vulnerable, 2) no serious
thought has been given to the problem of defending our country
(virtually 99.9 percent of what little attention there has been has
been focused on the defense of military forces), 3) although there
has been a full three weeks or more of anthrax attacks, there is no
evident knowledge of where the anthrax came from or who has been
responsible for its dissemination, and 4) we can not fight back even
if we wanted to because we do not know who to blame. Indeed,
there is no indication that any attention is even being directed
towards the countries that because of capability and past practices
should be most suspect – Russia, China, and Cuba – or any search
for related data.
"Exactly the same likely would be the case if
one (or more) suitcase nuclear weapons were to go off in the middle
of one or more U.S. cities. We would have no one to blame and there
is no indication of serious efforts to collect related data. At
precisely the time when intelligence towards Russia should have been
intensified, it was drastically cut back."
IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN URGENTLY NEEDED
"There also are several defensive actions that
should have been undertaken. The most obvious action is to crack
down hard on illegal immigrants and those with citizenship
acquired over the past decade who provided false information on
their citizenship papers. …"
SENSORS COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE
"[S]ensors could be used to help counter the
‘suitcase’ nuclear weapon problem. If they were part of the
equipment on police cars and mail delivery vehicles, who knows what
might be detected. The former Russian military intelligence officer,
Col. Stanislav Lunev, wrote that, in his opinion, the Russian
spetsnaz forces already had suitcase nuclear warheads in the United
States. There are other estimates that are even higher. If there
is a stockpile of nuclear warheads already in the United States,
there should be radiation signatures that are detectable."
