Free Republic

Many think our government is for sale. However, by taking a look at the facts below provided by the Open Secrets, it is easy to understand where they are coming from. Looking back at Friday the 12th, the House voted on Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), the controversial bill that gives power to the executive branch to negotiate treaties. TPA limit’s Congress’ ability to better a trade deal by subjecting members of Congress to 90 days of reviewing the trade agreement, prohibiting any amendments on the implementing legislation, and giving them an up or down vote. TPA passed with a mere...

Several Democratic senators are calling on the Obama administration to allow Syrians who are already in the United States to stay, at least temporarily, out of concern it would be "too dangerous" for them to return home. The senators want President Obama to invoke what's known as "temporary protected status" for thousands of Syrians in the U.S. The designation typically is given to foreign nationals whose home countries are beset by war or natural disaster and who could face harm should they return. The senators argued that Syrians in the U.S. are in just that kind of predicament, as Syrian...

The Obama administration has been quietly moving to resume deportations of Haitians for the first time since the earthquake last January. But in New York’s Haitian diaspora, the reaction has been far from muted, including frustration and fear among immigrants and anger from their advocates, who say that an influx of deportees will only add to the country’s woes... “I don’t think Haiti can handle more challenges than what it has right now,” said Mathieu Eugene, a Haitian-American member of the New York City Council.... Federal officials suspended deportations to Haiti immediately after the Jan. 12 earthquake. In addition, a...

Tea Party Support and the Social Security Institute Tell GOP Senate: “Stop Putting Your Christmas Vacation Ahead of Our Country” Posted : Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:14:19 GMT Tea Party Support ( http://teapartysupport.com ) and the Social Security Institute ( http://socialsecurityinstitute.com ) joined forces yesterday to blast out a million-and-a-half email messages asking people to demand that Republican Senators stop assisting Harry Reid to ram ObamaCare and the Reid health bill through the Senate by year’s end. The email campaign has generated more than 25,000 letters and emails to Capitol Hill so far. Tea Party Support President Matthew Perdue...

I am a student of history. Professionally. I have written 15 books in six languages, and have studied it all my life. I think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is just a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes, these exist but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus. Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it. Yes,...

The Obama administration is resisting pressure from congressional Democrats and immigration advocates to allow tens of thousands of undocumented Haitians to remain legally in the United States until their impoverished country recovers from a devastating food crisis and a series of natural disasters. The House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on immigration, citizenship, refugees, border security and international law is considering a draft bill granting "temporary protected status" (TPS) to Haitians, but its prospects for passage are slim. A much faster way to provide relief would be for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to exercise her power under the law...

No Alien Left Behind There’s nothing as permanent as temporary immigration status. By Mark Krikorian Our editors here at National Review Online pointed out last week that “It’s Worse Than You Think” with regard to the Senate’s preposterous amnesty bill. They were addressing specifically the fact that the Senate bill would immediately give probationary amnesty to virtually all illegal aliens, and that the much-touted enforcement “triggers” are therefore a sham, since legalization will already have taken place. What’s more, if the benchmarks (more miles of fencing, additional border-patrol agents, etc.) are not met, the probationary status would likely continue indefinitely,...

More than 300,000 Central Americans from countries affected by natural disasters will be allowed to stay in the United States for another 18 months, the Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday. The decision amounts to a temporary reprieve for some 78,000 Hondurans, 4,000 Nicaraguans and 230,000 Salvadorans who may otherwise be classified as illegal immigrants, said Maria Elena Garcia-Upson, a spokeswoman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. She said she did not know how many of the affected immigrants are living in Houston. The news that the federal government again extended the "Temporary Protected Status" spread quickly through Houston's immigrant...

MIAMI - The Bush administration has decided to extend special temporary U.S. residency for Central Americans for another 12 months, a spokeswoman for Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen said Wednesday. The decision means hundreds of thousands of Central Americans will not have to return home when their Temporary Protected Status ends next month. Alex Cruz, a press aide to Ros-Lehtinen, said the administration plans to announce the decision officially on Friday, but Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., sent out a news release Wednesday after she was informed of the decision by the White House. "We are just letting our community people know because there are...

After starting out as an illegal border crosser more than a decade ago, Elwin is content with his life as a legal immigrant in San Antonio — he makes enough to live comfortably while sustaining his extended family back in Honduras. In fact, he had hoped his work ethic and law-abiding attitude would eventually land him a coveted "green card," giving him permanent residency. But a bureaucratic debate in Washington could kill the program that has kept him legal, and Salinas soon may be forced to rejoin the underground world of undocumented migrants. "I work hard, stay out of trouble,...

When a hurricane unleashed massive mudslides in Guatemala nearly four months ago, Carlos Lopez Morales's wife and five children survived by fleeing to higher ground, but their house and land were destroyed, along with a year's supply of corn and beans. Lopez, 38, who works in a chicken processing plant in Delaware, recently watched grimly as a video of his devastated homeland flickered on an old television set. He has been far from powerless to help, though. The money he sends home regularly has allowed his wife to buy more food, and he hopes eventually to save enough to rebuild...

Mexico seeks allies against border wall Wire services El Universal December 29, 2005 Top officials from Mexico and Central America are planning to meet on Jan. 9 to formulate a plan in response to an anti-immigrant bill approved by the U.S. House of Representatives. The U.S. congressional initiative, which still must be approved by the Senate, proposes walling off the U.S.-Mexico border in its entirety to curb illegal immigration. Mexico has since been looking for Latin American allies for support against the measure. "We are coordinating a meeting for Jan. 9, which was originally planned before the end of the...

3 safety goals for shuttle missed The finding that NASA falls short of key recommendations likely will not postpone next month's scheduled launch of Discovery.WASHINGTON -- A divided advisory group concluded Monday that NASA had failed to fully meet three key recommendations for safely returning the space shuttle to flight, including eliminating all critical launch debris and developing a way to repair the ship's heat shielding in orbit. Although embarrassing to NASA, the findings by the Stafford-Covey Task Group are not expected to postpone Discovery's planned launch in July. Members of the panel who spoke Monday after their final public...

Border. The Border Patrol reported 1,159,802 apprehensions on the Mexico-US border in FY04, up from 931,557 in FY03 and 955,310 in FY02. Each person apprehended was fingerprinted, enabling the Border Patrol to ascertain that 741,115 individuals were apprehended in FY04; 638,480 in FY03; and 693,798 in FY02. In FY04, 36 percent of those apprehended had been previously apprehended, 32 percent in FY03 and 27 percent in FY02. About 52 percent of FY04 apprehensions were in Arizona. The number of unauthorized foreigners as estimated by the Urban Institute rose from 3.5 million in 1990 to 9.8 million in 2003. Two-thirds of...

According to this article in the Miami Herald, the Bush Administration has decided to renew the temporary work and residence permits of 248,282 "undocumented" (illegal) immigrants from El Salvador under the so-called Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program. The decision will be announced later today. A Bush Administration official informed the Herald that the reason for renewing the permits was because El Salvador was still rebuilding after earthquakes that struck the country in January 2001, four years ago. Ostensibly, the TPS program is supposed to allow people from countries experiencing a natural disaster or civil war to come to the U.S....

New fuel tank design linked to shuttle disaster   13:20 16 April 03   NewScientist.com news service   The Columbia shuttle disaster may been triggered by a combination of a new external fuel tank design and ageing of the spacecraft, a Columbia Accident Investigation Board press conference was told on Tuesday. Although some remaining alternatives remain to be ruled out, the CAIB's focus is now on two crucial factors. First, it appears that a new fuel tank design led to foam falling off during liftoff. A one-kilogram block was seen striking Columbia's left wing during launch. Secondly, the damage this impact caused may...

Radar tests point to lost panel on shuttle   13:56 02 April 03   NewScientist.com news service   Tests have revealed that an object spotted falling from the space shuttle Columbia on the second day of its doomed mission was a panel of protective heat-resistant tiles. The absence of this panel would have provided a point of entry in the shuttle's left wing for the superhot gases that investigators believe got inside the craft during re-entry. The plasma melted the shuttle's aluminium frame and caused the craft to disintegrate, with the loss of all seven astronauts aboard. Radar pictures revealed the object falling...

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Immigration and Naturalization Service [INS No. 2197-02; AG Order No. 2577-2002] RIN 1115-AE26 Extension of the Designation of Honduras Under the Temporary Protected Status Program AGENCY: Immigration and Naturalization Service, Justice. ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The designation of Honduras under the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Program will expire on July 5, 2002. This notice extends the Attorney General's designation of Honduras for 12 months until July 5, 2003, and sets forth procedures necessary for nationals of Honduras (or aliens having no nationality who last habitually resided in Honduras) with TPS to re-register for the additional 12-month period....