New law barring non-citizens as airport screeners found unconstitutional

AP ^ | 11/15/02 | Gary Gentile

[Rome2000]

Nation: New law barring non-citizens as airport screeners found unconstitutional

Copyright © 2002 AP Online
By GARY GENTILE, AP Business Writer   AP Photo/Lucian Read Mark Rosenbaum, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, talks with reporters after a federal judge temporarily blocked a rule saying the government's new airport security screeners must be U.S. citizens, outside the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles on Friday, Nov. 15, 2002. LOS ANGELES (November 15, 2002 7:54 p.m. EST) - A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked a rule saying the government's new airport security screeners must be U.S. citizens. The portion of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act barring non-citizens from the positions is unconstitutional, U.S. District Judge Robert Takasugi ruled. Takasugi's preliminary injunction will remain in place until trial in a civil rights lawsuit brought by nine plaintiffs at Los Angeles and San Francisco International Airports. No trial date has been set. The ruling will affect as many as 8,000 airport screeners, most of whom already have lost their jobs, said Ben Wizner, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, which brought the case. Plaintiffs lawyers said the ruling will apply to airports nationwide and will allow the non-citizen workers to reapply for jobs that became federal positions following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. U.S. Justice Department lawyer Elizabeth Shapiro declined to comment on the ruling. She said it was not clear that the injunction would apply nationwide. Mark Rosenbaum, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California, compared the government's attempt to fire non-citizens from screening jobs to the World War II internment of Japanese-Americans. "You're classifying a group of non-citizens as inherently dangerous," he said. A Nov. 19 deadline had been set for airports to remove all non-citizens from screening jobs. Rosenbaum noted that the ban did not apply to other airport workers. "From the pilots to the cargo handlers to people who work in the gift shop, there's no citizenship requirement," he said. Congress passed a law last November to federalize all airport screeners. ACLU lawyers also said they hoped the judge's decision would convince Congress to pass an amendment before the Senate that would allow U.S. nationals to hold airport security screening jobs. One of the plaintiffs is from American Samoa, who had been barred from applying as a baggage screener.

[Exton1]

MARK D. ROSENBAUM, Bar #59940
MICHAEL SMALL, Of Counsel
ACLU Foundation of Southern California
1616 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90026
Telephone: (213) 977-9500
Facsimile: (213) 250-3919

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks for posting this.

To: Mark Rosenbaum, the group of people who are the most dangerous to America and Americans are the members of ACLU, and their graduates who become judges.

I'm sure that that this liberal POS federal Ninth Circus, phoney judge is a card carrying ACLU member. As a card carrying ACLU member he should recuse himself from any case where the POS like you are presenting some phoney case.

Thanks for bringing him out in the open. He can become POS candidate for impeachment by our new congress in 2003, right behind the POS who tried to remove the word God from our pledge of allegiance.

If we ever find out that the ACLU has been funded by the Opecker Princes and the Islamofascist thugs in the last 3 decades. The world is not big enough for all you to hide and try to escape judgement as traitors.

[A CA Guy]

Exactly, I wonder how the bank accounts of the ACLU happens to be doing during this war time when it is unpopular to be a traitor?

[TexKat]

Next they'll be allowed to be mechanics on the F-117 fighter/bomber.

What do you mean next, they probably already are.

I think Bill O'Reilly needs to see this one.

[goldstategop]

It will be overturned by the SCOTUS. Judge Takesugi was appointed by Jimmy Cartuh.

[calawah98]

Heres' another one for you, by the Associated Press, Skagit Valley Herald. Did not list reporters name.

Judge bars deportation of five Somalis held in Seattle

A fedreal judge has temporarily blocked the Immigration and Naturalization Service from returning five immigrants to Somalia. Their lawyers argued that the INS can't deport them to a country that effectively has no government.

The five men, who have been convicted of crimes or immigration violations, were scheduled to be moved Thursday from Seattle to El Paso, Texas, before being deported.

But at the request of the civil liberties group Hate Free Zone Campaign of Washington, lawyers from the Seattle based firm of Perkins Coie filed an emergency petition in U.S. District Court on Wednesday. Judge Marsha Pechman granted a temporary restraining order barring deportation. She scheduled a hearing for Nov 22.

My 2 cents worth, illegals are slowly taking over the country. They are granted more rights than a legal citizen.
I sent this story to O Reilly, along with this comment.

I am sick of illegals, I am sick of a government that refuses to do any thing about it, I am sick of lawyers, where money means more to them than the safety of Legal American Citizens

[philetus]

Gee Stefan.You actually get it.

I told my wife yesterday that the fed. judge would rule against America.I knew it.

People don't have to be an American citizen to work for the Federal government of the United States Of America?

Undoubtly not.

[kellynla]

If they are non-citizens why are they not deported? Because the Feds have not been told to deport them. Until the Bush Administration decides to execute the war this whole exercise is futile and we are pawns. Secure the borders, deport all illegals, cease all immigration and realize that this is a war between radical Islam and the rest of the world.

[Abar]

The aclu is an outrageous communist organization bent on destroying the US one trial at a time.

They are beyond despicable.

[Boot Hill]

Action-America suggests:   "...get a Constitutional amendment passed, that will place severe limits on the Constitutional protections extended to non-citizens."

Well, that's one way, but others come to mind...

A tax collector is tarred and feathered during the rebellion.

--Boot Hill

[KQQL]

Folks .....remember no citizenship is required for flight attendants, airline mechanics, pilots or members our military!

So Legally , the Judge has a point...
If Non-Citzens can serve in our Armed forces, then this law will be thrown out......
They are protected under the equal protection of the Consititution.......................

As long as these workers are legally here,,,then you can't deny them a job.

[KQQL]

Bcause the Constitution protects every "PERSON" in the US ...
Go look it up....

[KQQL]

So why do we have non-citzens in our armed services?
They are allowed to serve...

[KQQL]

Folks .....remember no citizenship is required for flight attendants, airline mechanics, pilots or members of our military!

So Legally , the Judge has a point...
If Non-Citzens can serve in our Armed forces, then this law will be thrown out......
They are protected under the equal protection of the Consititution.......................

As long as these workers are legally here,,,then you can't deny them a job.

[Bernard]

Similar to what happened when Rome went from a Republic to an Empire, only the barbarians were hired to be the military that time.

[Hacksaw]

Mark Rosenbaum, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California, compared the government's attempt to fire non-citizens from screening jobs to the World War II internment of Japanese-Americans.

Nothing like stretching hyperbole to ridiculous limits.

[putupon]

Folks .....remember no citizenship is required for flight attendants, airline mechanics, pilots or members of our military!

What about security clearences? There are different levels of security clearence issued for military, intelligence, and law enforcement jobs. US citizens are denied positions for that reason. Could job qualification requirements not be toughned for airport screeners and other positions to exclude non-citizens for that reason?

[grania]

How can restrictions on non-citizens be unConstitutional? It boggles the mind.

Silly me. I always thought that non-citizens were here because the labor supply was necessary, and citizens who are qualified will be hired first.

The rational solution is simple. Send home non-citizens as soon as their permission to be here expires. Close the borders until the security mess is cleared up. Fine and jail those who knowingly hire or abet illegals.

If that doesn't happen, soon, there will be a continual, irreversible lose of jobs, freedoms, and security for US citizens.

[KQQL]

Then the congress will have to pass another law..
and will have to re-Classify these Positions as High National Security Jobs........till then these Legal Aliens can get these jobs.........

That's the way it works......................

[CDHart]

Note the last name -- maybe he and his family were put in camps during WWII?

Carolyn