Free Republic

Dobbs Says He Now Backs Amnesty Wednesday, November 25, 2009 By: Dan Weil In a little-noticed interview last week, Lou Dobbs announced that he now supports amnesty for the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants living in the United States Since he left his job as a CNN commentator two weeks ago, Dobbs’ has been bandied about as a Senate candidate in New Jersey. And now he is indicating that he might run for president. But Dobbs became famous for his strong views on illegal immigration and foreign trade. Now that he’s a would-be politician, those views appear to be softening....

As immigrants’ rights groups are pressing President Barack Obama to step up efforts at comprehensive reform this year, one prominent member of Obama’s cabinet is acknowledging that the economic downturn has made legalization of illegal immigrants tougher to sell to the American public. “When unemployment is up, anything that looks like you’re taking jobs away from …people who are lawfully here—citizens of the United States—is going to meet a lot of resistance,” Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said during an exchange with reporters Tuesday morning. The homeland security chief and former Arizona governor said the economic slump may also have...

The senator's partial term was marked by frustration and failure, experts say. BY WILLIAM MARCH TAMPA - Mel Martinez may go down in Florida history as the reluctant senator. During his short Senate career, from 2005 until this week, Martinez took stands on principle and stuck loyally by his friends, particularly President George W. Bush, even when it hurt him politically. But circumstances and his own mistakes conspired to mark his partial term with much frustration and little accomplishment, experts in Congress say. In an interview last week, Martinez acknowledged that frustration. "It is true," he said. "The Senate works...

Wes Hickman, a spokesman for Mr. Graham, said in a statement that "Senator Graham is ready and willing to play a key role in immigration reform. He intends to work with many of his colleagues on both sides of the aisle."

Schumer: “Borders Now Secure” $1 Trillion in Extra Health Care Costs by Paul L. Williams, Ph.D. thelastcrusade.org Charles Schumer (D-NY), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, says that the borders are now “secure enough to move forward on immigration reform.”Mr. Schumer’s statement comes on the heels of the murder of U.S. Border Patrol agent Robert Rosas, who was gunned down by members of a Mexican smuggling ring in July.Five suspects have been taken into custody by Mexican law enforcement officials.Immigration reform for Mr. Schumer, according to the Minuteman PAC, is the granting of full amnesty to all illegal aliens who...

(snip) McCain said the presence of the Guard will not only help prevent the violence in Mexico from spilling across the border, but will also take some pressure off of the Border Patrol and U.S. Customs. "When the bad guys see Americans in uniform, it has an effect on them, no doubt about it," McCain said. "But also there is work that Guard personnel could do to relieve the burden from Border Patrol and Customs." That being said, McCain added that cooperation with Mexico on border issues will continue to be important. As part of his trip to Yuma, McCain...

Obama stayed away from hot-button words in remarks Thursday on immigration reform, but hinted that his immigration push will include some kind of “amnesty” or “legal path” for illegal immigrants already in the U.S. Obama also said Thursday he is making U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano a key point person on the immigration reform push

WASHINGTON — President Obama told congressional lawmakers Thursday that he would push for an overhaul of the nation's immigration system by early next year. But during the White House meeting, a new political obstacle came into view: how to regulate the influx of foreign workers. The issue was raised by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a principal architect of past attempts to rewrite immigration laws. McCain challenged Obama and other Democrats to stand up to labor unions that are pushing a plan business groups fear could be overly restrictive in admitting future immigrant workers. "I would expect the president of the...

Just hours before President Obama hosts lawmakers for a discussion on immigration at the White House, Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel conceded that Obama and his allies on Capitol Hill do not have the votes to pass a comprehensive reform bill. "If the votes were there, you wouldn't need to have the meeting. You could go to a roll call," Emanuel told reporters during an hour-long breakfast. About 20 senators and House members are due to arrive at the White House at 2 p.m. for the discussion in the State Dining Room. Aides to the president said the meeting was...

A national campaign fueled by a conservative Web site took in more than $100,000 in the past week for Gov. Sarah Palin's legal defense fund. The Alaska Fund Trust, was set up to help Palin with legal fees she has run up defending herself against ethics complaints. A formal "webathon" fundraiser wrapped up Sunday night but Conservatives4Palin says it will continue publicizing the effort with a goal of raising $500,000. Palin in March said her legal debts had climbed past $500,000. Palin supporters describe the complaints as frivolous attacks. The governor's office says 14 complaints have been dismissed so far...

Thursday, June 18, 2009 Why I Love the Guv By Seth Adam Smith Owing to the fact that we are in the midst of a webathon to benefit Governor Palin, I thought it would be fitting to take some time to reflect upon the woman---and the cause---that we are supporting. While it is important to battle the inaccurate reporting (and flat out lies) leveled against the Governor, it is equally important to promote and publish positive articles and stories about her. What I've included in this article are just a few of the reasons why I "love the Guv": •All-American-Woman...

Ok, I fixed the one spelling error, NOW she is ready to roll!! GO SARAH PALIN 2012

So, Republicans, you're looking for people who can serve as faces of a party on the upswing. What qualities would we want to see in such people? Maybe these: * They've served in public office and have actually governed effectively. * Rather than just talking about fiscal responsibility, they've made it happen under their watch. * When possible, they've made sure the private sector would take the lead in crucial initiatives. * They've taken on corrupt, entrenched interests to make government more responsive to the people it serves, even when those interests were fellow Republicans. * They pull no punches...

They have enough problems already, but a poll released Monday is sure to give anti-immigration extremists and Republican leaders plenty more to fret about.

Although President Obama has spent much of his time in office moving away from the policies of his predecessor, on immigration enforcement, he has embraced several Bush administration initiatives, and the changes he has promised to make are couched in nuance. In recent days, for example, the administration has announced it will expand a $1.1 billion program begun under President George W. Bush to check the immigration status of virtually all people booked into local jails over the next four years. Obama will continue a "zero-tolerance" program that charges and jails any illegal immigrant caught crossing parts of the U.S.-Mexico...

PHOENIX (AP) - Sen. John McCain says the United States needs to do more to crack down on gun smuggling into Mexico, but that such assistance in Mexico's war against drug cartels doesn't require restrictions on the gun rights of law-abiding Americans. McCain told several thousand people at the National Rifle Association's convention in Phoenix on Friday that limiting guns sales in the United States won't prevent the cartels from buying weapons from other countries. . . . . . McCain says the U.S. government has overstated the prevalence of guns being smuggled from the United States into Mexico for...

Many Arizona conservatives would like nothing more than to see Sen. John McCain knocked off in a Republican primary. But few of them think Chris Simcox, the controversial founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps who recently announced he would challenge McCain, is a serious threat to do it. Despite Simcox’s high-profile leadership on illegal immigration on the state’s southern border — a potent issue in the state’s Republican primary — party insiders say the 48-year-old former grade school teacher carries a heavy load of personal baggage and faces ample skepticism from rank-and-file Republican voters. “I’m very unhappy with Sen....

FRIENDS, THE SENATE NEEDS YOUR IMMEDIATE RESPONSE! Your Senators need phone calls today before the rancid thinking of yesterday's immigration hearing infects their views on what makes political sense this year. Did you think Senators might be too smart this year -- or too moral or at least too embarrassed -- to push for more foreign workers while millions of Americans are losing their jobs? Such modest faith in U.S. Senators was dashed yesterday by the Senate Judiciary Committee in a first hearing of its immigration panel. Senators made it clear that they are hopeful that the American people will...

Link only, per FR copyright and excerpt posting rules

The next question is on immigration reform and whether the president will reach out to Sen. John McCain, an advocate of immigration reform. President Obama says he would “love to partner” with McCain and others on what is going to be “a critical issue.”