A Moral Question for the GOP

Linda ChavezImmigration

Many conservatives reject President Obama’s recent policy to defer action against illegal immigrants who came to the United States as children. But as a conservative who supports the president’s decision, I think it’s important to seriously engage the arguments both for and against the policy. First, let me explain what the Obama program does and does not do. It explicitly does not grant legal status to any group, even those who came illegally as infants or children. Those who are eligible for deferred action are given no path to permanent residency or to citizenship. They are not eligible for government …

Rubio’s Lifeline

Linda ChavezImmigration

Marco Rubio has thrown the GOP a lifeline; let’s see whether his fellow party members are willing to grab it. The freshman U.S. senator from Florida has been a hard-line foe to illegal immigrants, both in his home state and since his election to Congress, but now he is considering drafting a new “DREAM Act,” which would offer legal status to illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. Related posts: Five Mistakes Some Conservatives Are Making on Immigration Policy The Immigration Impasse TESTIMONY OF ROGER CLEGG, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL COUNSEL, CENTER FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITY BEFORE THE …

Americans by Any Name

Linda ChavezImmigration

A new report from the Pew Hispanic Center says a lot about the assimilation of the nation’s largest minority group — both good and bad. Hispanics — those 50 million people who trace their ancestry to a Spanish-speaking country — have become both more numerous and more diverse in the past 40 years. In 1970, Hispanics were primarily U.S.-born Mexican-Americans and Puerto Ricans — who are U.S. citizens, whether born in Puerto Rico or on the mainland. But the adult population of Hispanics today is almost equally divided between those who were born in the U.S., 48 percent, and those …

Linda Chavez

New Deportation Rules a Cynical Move

Linda ChavezImmigration

The Obama administration this week announced new rules governing the deportation of illegal aliens. The administration’s new policy, which has been in the development stage since the summer, aims to speed the deportation of convicted criminals and halt those of many illegal immigrants without criminal records. The timing is purely political; attempting to again make illegal immigration a major factor in the upcoming presidential campaign will ultimately help Democrats, not Republicans. Related posts: The Immigration Impasse Five Mistakes Some Conservatives Are Making on Immigration Policy Arizona Bids Adios to Illegal Immigrant Basher Americans by Any Name

Arizona Bids Adios to Illegal Immigrant Basher

Linda ChavezImmigration

For the last several years, State Senator Russell Pearce has been the face of the anti-illegal immigrant movement in Arizona. But his district voted this week to recall him, ending a 10-year state legislative career that has been marked by ugly episodes. It’s about time. Related posts: Five Mistakes Some Conservatives Are Making on Immigration Policy The Immigration Impasse TESTIMONY OF ROGER CLEGG, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL COUNSEL, CENTER FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITY BEFORE THE U.S. COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS REGARDING THE PROPOSED EMPLOYMENT NON-DISCRIMINATION ACT The Case For Birthright Citizenship

Rethinking the birthright battle

CEO StaffImmigration

The relevant sentence reads: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” The question is whether someone born in the United States to parents who are here illegally is a U.S. citizen. And the text says that the answer is yes, unless that baby is not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States. Now, what possible argument can there be that this baby, when he is born – and, of course, as he grows up – is not subject …

Drop in Illegal Immigration Opens Door for Real Reform

Linda ChavezImmigration

With unemployment rising and a U.S. debt-crisis looming, Americans haven’t had much good news lately. But there is one bright spot on the policy front: Illegal immigration from Mexico has virtually stopped. Related posts: Five Mistakes Some Conservatives Are Making on Immigration Policy The Immigration Impasse TESTIMONY OF ROGER CLEGG, PRESIDENT AND GENERAL COUNSEL, CENTER FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITY BEFORE THE U.S. COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS REGARDING THE PROPOSED EMPLOYMENT NON-DISCRIMINATION ACT Arizona Bids Adios to Illegal Immigrant Basher

The Case For Birthright Citizenship

Linda ChavezImmigration

Republican leaders in Congress are now flirting with changing portions of the 14th Amendment—which grants citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof”—to deny citizenship to children born here to illegal immigrants. Related posts: Five Mistakes Some Conservatives Are Making on Immigration Policy Eastman is wrong: the Constitution does guarantee birthright citizenship The Immigration Impasse Rethinking the birthright battle

The Melting Border: Mexico and Mexican Communities in the United States

CEO StaffImmigration

The Melting Border: Mexico and Mexican Communities in the United States Related posts: The Melting Border: Mexico and Mexican Communities in the United States Drop in Illegal Immigration Opens Door for Real Reform Discrimination in celebration of diversity The Dubious Celebration of Corporate Diversity