Spokesman for President Bush Posts on Free Republic About Immigration Bill

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 e-mail to Free Republic included a brief introduction and the text of his posted comment:

I just wanted to let you know that I just posted a response to the post "Penalty Mitigation in the Immigration Reform Bill."

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.

Hey Nick,

Tell your boss we busted our asses to make sure Gore didn't steal the election. We busted our asses to see that he was re-elected. We have defended him on what was good for the country and blasted him for when he royally screwed up! We have stood up for him when he wouldn't and now he stabs his base in the back like this!!!!

The liberals all call him a liar for the WMD debacle, and we stood up for him. But now I'm starting to realize that the libs are right. He is a liar! He said he would not sign Finance reform, and did. Said he would protect our country against Islamo Facists and then tried to sell Dubia Ports deal. Said he would appoint only hard core conservatives to the bench and give us Harriet Myers! Said he would never engage in nation building, and thats exactly what he is doing in Iraq.

We've had it! You cannot sell us sh!t as shinola and by the mere fact that you come crawling here to try to still sell the same lie just shows what a pathetic person the President has become.

Now its a matter of trust. Re-instill that trust by ENFORCING THE EXISTING LAWS ON THE BOOKS! FINISH BUILDING THE FENCE! DRYING UP ALL BENEFITS AND SERVICES TO NON-AMERICANS! BAN MONEY TRANSFERS TO ALL NON- CITIZENS!

You won't have to get rid of them, they will leave on their own! Stop encouraging bums to stay and they will leave! They are hurting us taxpayers!

Mr. Thompson,

The problem is that no matter how badly President Bush wants his legacy to include comprehensive immigration reform (a combination of border security and bring illegal workers out of the shadows w/legal status) there is no way that he can overcome the following FACTS about this administration's failure to enforce immigration laws. The President has lost our trust at is pertains to the immigration issue. It will not be regained during his presidency. And it doesn't help him at all to belittle and attempt to marginalize those who are speaking out on this issue.

Fix the following by actually enforcing the laws. Secure the borders. And then a future president may be able to come back to the people and convince us to support some sort of guest worker program and potential legal status for those immigrants who here illegally.

(Stats from the DHS 2004 Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, Analysis is mine.)
Employer Investigation Efforts of U.S. Immigration Authorities:

Fiscal Year Worksite Arrests Notices of Intent to Fine

1993 7,630 1,302

1994 7,554 1,063

1995 10,014 1,056

1996 14,164 1,019

1997 17,554 865

1998 13,914 1,023

1999 2,849 417

2000 953 178

2001 735 100

2002 485 53

2003 445 162

2004 159 3

The average annual worksite arrests under Clinton was 9,329 arrests. The average annual worksite arrests under President Bush is 456. This is a 95 percent reduction in average annual worksite arrests under President Bush.
The average annual notices of intent to fine employers of illegal aliens under Clinton was 865. The average under President Bush is 79.5. This is a 90 percent reduction in average annual notices of intent to fine employers of illegal aliens.
And then there is 2004 where, under President Bush, only 3 notices of intent to fine employers of illegal aliens were done. 3!! But that was President Bush's worst year. Let's compare best years then.
Under Clinton his best year for Worksite Arrests was 1997 with 17,554 reported. President Bush's best year was 2001 with 735 worksite arrests reported. This is a 99.7 percent reduction in worksite arrests under President Bush when comparing best years.
Clinton Presidency, Total Aliens Expelled:
1993 1,285,952
1994 1,074,781
1995 1,364,688
1996 1,643,108
1997 1,555,116
1998 1,743,273
1999 1,755,754
2000 1,861,933
Total over 8 years: 12,284,605
Average Annual Total Aliens Expelled: 1,535,575
Bush Presidency, Total Aliens Expelled:
2001 1,432,061
2002 1,084,661
2003 1,076,483
2004 1,238,319
Total over 4 years: 4,831,524
Average Annual Total Aliens Expelled: 1,207,881
The average annual total of aliens expelled under President Bush is 327,694 LESS than the average under President Clinton. That is a 21.3 percent reduction in aliens expelled compared between Clinton and President Bush.
Deportable Aliens located in non-border sectors (interior enforcement):
Clinton presidency, last four years:
1997 44,246
1998 39,096
1999 42,010
2000 32,759
Total: 158,111
Bush presidency, first four years:
2001 30,496
2002 25,501
2003 26,492
2004 21,113
Total: 103,602
Total deportable aliens located in interior sectors during the first four years of the Bush presidency represents a 34.4 percent drop compared to the previous four years - the last four years of the Clinton presidency.
Deportable Aliens Located:
Clinton Presidency first four years:
1993 1,327,261
1994 1,094,719
1995 1,394,554
1996 1,649,986
Total: 5,466,520
Clinton Presidency last four years:
1997 1,536,520
1998 1,679,439
1999 1,714,035
2000 1,814,729
Total: 6,744,723
Bush Presidency first four years:
2001 1,387,486
2002 1,062,279
2003 1,046,422
2004 1,241,089
Total: 4,737,276
Total deportable aliens located dropped by 29.7 percent in the first four years of the Bush Presidency compared to the previous four years - the last four years of the Clinton Presidency.
Sources: DHS Yearbook of Statistics 2004 and other DHS and INS sources.

Here’s another one:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1847089/posts

Conservatives Left Behind” [The Right’s love-hate relationship with George W. Bush.....]
National Review ^ | Kathryn Jean Lopez
Posted on 06/08/2007 9:53:16 AM PDT by Sub-Driver

Is the White House just not paying attention?

I know someone in the White House has Internet access — because Nicholas Thompson and Kerrie Rushton from the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives have been e-mailing back and forth in response to Corner posts about the Bush-Kennedy immigration deal for weeks now. Do they not talk to Tony Snow? Does no one talk to the president? Does the president just not care what his conservative allies on so many issues think?

I know I’m not the only one who sometimes suspects the latter.

Congress does not change laws that are working. If in fact Bush got this agenda passed it would be on the books and working as immigration reform. You suppose that America would back a Democrat congress changing laws on a whim. You are the one posting fallacy.

The Dems will have no political capital to change it if Bush gets it done.

On the other hand if people like you do not allow him to “GET IT DONE” then you are going to be stuck with whatever Hillary wants to do to fix the problem and like I said before do you like her plan better?

Oh wait now tell me you’d have to hear it first... as if the left will allow their lawmakers to put up a wall on the Mexican border or(snicker, snicker) actually hold people accountable for being here illegally...

Good luck... This is why I said before the NOV06 elections the Republicans are going to lose these wedge issues and lose they have.

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Fiscal Year	Worksite Arrests	Notices of Intent to Fine
1993	7,630	1,302
1994	7,554	1,063
1995	10,014	1,056
1996	14,164	1,019
1997	17,554	865
1998	13,914	1,023
1999	2,849	417
2000	953	178
2001	735	100
2002	485	53
2003	445	162
2004	159	3