Posted on 06/14/2007 11:16:52 AM PDT by kristinn
A spokeman for the Bush administration sent an e-mail to Jim Robinson and myself confirming the authenticity of a post on Free Republic this afternoon regarding the immigration bill currently before the Senate as having been posted on behalf of the White House.
The spokesman, Nicholas Thompson, works for the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives. The Politico reported yesterday that Thompson and Kerrie Rushton, associate directors in the Office of Strategic Initiatives who work under Karl Rove, would be engaging the blogosphere on the immigration bill.
Thompson's post is on the thread titled Penalty Mitigation in the Immigration Reform Bill, a vanity posted by philman_36. Thompson posted at comment #53.
Thompson's e-mail to Free Republic included a brief introduction and the text of his posted comment:
Hi,
I just wanted to let you know that I just posted a response to the post "Penalty Mitigation in the Immigration Reform Bill."
The White House appreciates the opportunity to respond on Free Republic.
Response:
I would like to point out that the Secretary is authorized to reduce or mitigate penalities against employers who in good faith are trying to comply with the law. Certainly, we understand that not all employers knowingly hire illegal immigrants; this will remain the case, especially before the bill’s new secure documentation requirements are fully phased in. We do not seek to wrongly penalize honest employers who unknowingly hire illegal immigrants, therefore we reserve the right to reduce or mitigate their penalties if the employer can show good faith compliance in following the law.
For those employers who do knowingly hire illegal immigrants, please know that we intend to penalize these employers strongly, and the Administration has already stepped up these penalties in the last couple of years. For example, a 2005 program, “Operation Rollback,” assessed $15,000,000 in civil fines to employers, an amount greater than the sum of administrative fines collected in the previous eight years and was the largest worksite enforcement penalty in US history. In the first quarter of FY07, criminal and civil forfeitures have totaled $26,700,000 for employers.
As a reminder of what’s in the bill, fines for hiring an illegal worker are $5,000 maximum per illegal worker for the first offense, $10,000 maximum per illegal worker for the second, $25,000 maximum per illegal worker for the third , and $75,000 maximum per illegal worker for the fourth. In addition, the bill increases the maximum criminal penalty for a pattern or practice of unlawful hiring twenty-five-fold, from $3,000 to $75,000, and would impose a prison term of up to six months. This represents a significant increase in fines for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
Nicholas Thompson
White House Office of Strategic Initiatives
Just wish a strong Third Conservative Party could muster the finances and votes it needs to overcome the GOP RINOS and the Liberal Democrats and establish itself. This would take a massive effort considering taking over not only the Presidency but the Congress as well. That can't be done in one election.
Calling your(once upon a time)base racist, will not garner him any support.
No shamnesty! Build the fence! Deport illegals!
Then we'll talk.
Where's the border security?
Where's anything by the spottiest enforcement?
Carolyn
It might be more effective to legislate minimum fines for employers, such as a $5,000 minimum fine for a first offense. It would appear to me that with a $5,000 maximum fine, a judge could reduce it to something like $1 for the first fine, even if the maximum was $5,000. Looks like a large loophole to me.
No but his son Sam does!!
I wonder if we post #151 on one of those large screens in Timesquare if they would get the message? Since melting their phone and fax lines is being ignored, and having to fire RNC solicitors because we won’t donate doesn’t get it across. even McCain getting owned in the polls since this latest betrayal doesn’t penetrate their thick skulls.
nthompsonwhitehouse, I don’t know you. I don’t know if you actually buy what the W.H. is selling, or if you’re just “doing your job”. But I stopped listening to this admin or its representatives when they branded me a racist for simply believing borders matter. Then they upped the ante by calling me Unpatriotic. After listening to this President kiss Teddy Kennedy’s butt, someone who is truly unpatriotic and worked to undermine this war from the start, and excusing it for years as him turning the other cheek? To have him then attack ME without any hesitation tells a lot about the man and his mindset. Too bad he didn’t show this side of himself to us before 2004.
For your boss, please inform him that “No means HELL NO!”
Please inform him that at least Reagan had the guts to admit is was an amnesty. Rather then Lie boldly to our faces with denials it is not.
Please tell your boss no one, Republican or Democrat, that supports this gets my time, my money or my support. Don’t believe me? My support for Bush abuptly ended last year during his first push for amnesty. Hasn’t returned since. If a person cannot be found to challenge the likes of Lindsey Graham, Chuck Hagel, Chambliss and others? My attitude is to let them lose.
Please tell your boss he is not a righteous humanitarian that is waging war against the prejudices of this nation that will have his name etched alongside Lincoln or MLK. he is infact creating a second class citizenry, which begs the question of how righteous he is really.
Please tel your boss we ae not like the patrons of D.C., we can’t be bribed into agreement.
Please tell your boss that we know NO LAW needs to be passed to enforce the border, because we have laws to do just that. That is why every mention of a bill stinks and sends off red flares to 80% of the population. Because we know the laws are already on the books. What isn’t on the books is amnesty for those after 1986. That’s why you want a bill, and don’t pretend otherwise.
The illegals come no thanks to the “socialistic” services the gov’t provides. No more medical benefits! No more HUD housing including free appliances!
Cut off the teet!
We taxpayers have had enough of our treasure getting stolen!
“I suspect more, but I’m suspicious by nature.”
It’s probably good that he outed himself. I always try to remind people of the fact that it’s good to be able to defend you’re position, because you truely never can tell who is on the other end. Right now we “conservatives” are under attack from Repbulicans and Democrats over an issue that’s a Patriotic issue, and today is Flag Day!
Happy Flag Day To All, and my Old Glory not be surrendered now or ever! The Flag will NOT Be disgraced and our Sovereignty will NOT be negotiated! Legacy be damned!
Dear Mr. Nicholas Thompson
White House Office of Strategic Initiatives
When the White House or the Senate cares to divulge who/what special interests were in the negotions and writing of this bill, we might start taking you seriously. We know LARaza and the Chamber of Commerce were represented and that no one in opposition to AMNESTY (STOP lying to us!) or the American Citizen public was represented.
Regards,
Just Another Invisible American
Dudes, I thought you might be interested in this thread. It’s time to read the White House the riot act on this amnesty mess that they’ve created. Here’s the direct line......
I’d like to point out that assessing fines and collecting fines are two different things.
Sort of like passing laws and enforcing laws.
I’m not impressed with how many or how large any fines were that they assessed. I’d like to see what the outcomes were.
To wit and however - it is because so many of us here on FR and in our own individual churches that we have PRAYED for the safety of this man and God's guidance that what he is doing in return is so utterly AWFUL - the temptation to go the other way becomes tremendous.
May God have mercy on ALL of us...including George W Bush.
Here’s my response to Thompson (#113 on the original thread):
With all due respect to you and to President Bush, I am 100% against the proposed bill, or any modification to it that does not first require that the border be secured before any of the other provisions can come into force. I say this as someone who has voted for President Bush twice before, and who still believes him to be a good leader.
I am in no way against immigration - legal immigration, that is. In the early 20th century 3 of my 4 grandparents and 6 of my 8 great grandparents (and numerous other relatives) came to this country. Most of them and their children would, but for being able to come here, have been murdered in Hitler’s gas chambers or just shot in the back of the head. My mother would have never made it to her 8th birthday, so I would not be alive but for the generosity of this country in admitting my relatives. Further, my wife is a Mexican citizen, and but for the generosity of this country in admitting her, I would not only not be married (at least to her), but my kids would never have been born. It is, therefore, utterly clear and without doubt that I favor immigration.
However, ALL of these people - repeat ALL - came here legally, gladly learned English, obeyed our laws, paid their taxes and raised their kids to be good Americans and to contribute to this nation. NONE of them marched in the streets with the flag of their birth nation, protesting this country, and none of them demanded any aid or preferences of any kind. NONE of them committed any crimes, or placed any kind of burden on our judicial system or health care system.
Simply put, this bill spits in the face of every person who ever came here legally, who did things the right way. It gives preference and AMNESTY to people who have violated our laws, it puts them ahead of others who have waited patiently to come here legally, and it assaults our taxpaying citizens with the certainty of massive increases in the cost of welfare, healthcare, Social Security and policing costs. It is a giant insult to all of us who pay taxes and who obey court orders, because these illegals don’t have to pay back taxes under the bill in question and it doesn’t make those who have ignored deportation orders ineligible for the Z visas.
I don’t believe that it is impossible to control our border.
I don’t believe that “regularizing” (i.e. granting AMNESTY) to 12-20 million lawbreakers is wise or just in ANY sense of those words.
I DO believe that this bill will only encourage massive additional disrespect and contempt for the rule of law, and discourage millions of additional people from participating in the political process - because it will be viewed as corrupt and completely unresponsive. It will be a signal to EVERYONE that obeying the law is strictly optional.
I am astounded beyond my capacity for belief that anyone who cares about the future of the Republican Party could even consider the “regularization” of 12-20 million under-educated and under-paid people who grew up (for the most part) in Socialist economic systems. For crying out loud, TED KENNEDY is a sponsor of this bill - President Bush should run the other way as fast as he can!
If this bill is passed and signed into law, it will be like a giant bell being rung to announce the death of the Republican Party. Our country will also cease to be what it is today or what it was when I grew up in the ‘60s and ‘70’s.
I implore President Bush to stop pushing this bill, and to enforce the sanctity of our borders (which is necessary to succeed in the War on Terror) and existing laws.
I donated time to help Bush in 2000. I voted for him in 2000. I voted straight Republican in 2002. I voted against Kerry in 2004. I did not vote in 2006. If this immigration bill passes, I plan to vote 3rd party in 2008 and to take as many others as possible with me. Unfortunately, I do not believe Bush cares one bit what I or any other person thinks. I believe he takes his marching orders from a well organized global syndicate which is destroying the US Dollar, selling off our assets and setting the stage for chaos from which they can build a North American Union. I pray that God in Heaven will administer justice to all these treasonous politicians.
They do not even speak for the majority of free republic, although they would like to believe they do.The deletion of your post is proof positive that you don't either.
isn’t that the dang truth! ; )
“He’s over at http://redstatemobile.com/node/97852 too...”
I just noticed that. Too little. Too late.
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