Posted on 12/05/2016 2:43:05 PM PST by Steelfish
Dec. 5, 2016 California Legislation Challenges Trump's Proposals For A Border Wall And Registration Of Muslim Immigrants
by Patrick McGreevy
In a challenge to President-elect Donald Trump’s proposal to build a wall at the Mexico border, a California lawmaker said Monday he is introducing a bill that would require the project to first be approved by the state’s voters.
State Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) said the legislation is one of three proposals he is introducing as a package called Fight For California. Another bill would prohibit state agencies from providing federal entities with information for purposes of compiling a so-called Muslim registry, another Trump proposal.
“We’re not going to allow a wall that harms our environment and our economy,” Lara said in a statement. “We’re not going to allow personal data on individual Californians' religious beliefs to be used to compile an unconstitutional database.”
Lara has been a leading lawmaker on immigration issues in recent years. His parents are immigrants from Mexico who were in the U.S. illegally before they gained citizenship.
He said one bill would mandate a vote of the people to approve any border wall project, which he said would harm California’s environment, including wildlife and river watersheds, as well as the state’s economy, including trade and tourism.
The second bill would prohibit state agencies from providing information to the federal government on an person’s religious affiliation if it is to be used for the purposes of compiling a database based solely on religious affiliation.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Please, please, please SET CALIFORNIA FREE and then build a wall around it.
The same buffoon who wants to regulate cow farts. This guy is actually an agent of a foreign government, guess which one.
Federal eminent domain for national defense superceeds any state regulation or requirement. Unless California is willing to start shooting they have nothing.
Why not just issue every illegal head of household a rifle and 200 rounds of ammunition while you’re at it?
Sorry, California but national defense trumps parochial whines.
I am not a big fan of enlarging the Federal profile but this one is completely Federal. You can be more stringent if you want but you cannot be more lenient.
But along those lines, you all were pretty happy when the courts said states such as AZ were not allowed to enforce the border b/c it was a 100% federal responsibility.
Either way, you are screwed. And America is saved.
Probably should build a wall around California to keep them in California if they like illegals that much.
The Supreme Court ruled against Arizona stating that immigration is a Federal issue, not a state one.
So it’s already been decided.
Sorry California. :)
Delusions of grandeur.
FINE AS LONG AS HE CAN PROVE HE CAN KEEP THE ILLEGALS AND MUZZIES WITHIN THE BORDERS OF HIS OWN STATE AND DO SO WITHOUT ANY FUNDS OF US TAXPAYERS.
Fat chance.
Unless California is willing to start shooting they have nothing.
I disagree, sort of:
They have their OPEN CONFESSION AND ADMISSION of Conspiracy to Violate Federal Laws. AG Sessions should be able to put them away for LIFE!!!
Federal Immigration and Nationality Act
Section 8 USC 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv)(b)(iii)
“Any person who . . . encourages or induces an alien to . . . reside . . . knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such . . . residence is . . . in violation of law, shall be punished as provided . . . for each alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs . . . fined under title 18 . . . imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.”
Section 274 felonies under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, INA 274A(a)(1)(A):
A person (including a group of persons, business, organization, or local government) commits a federal felony when she or he:
* assists an alien s/he should reasonably know is illegally in the U.S. or who lacks employment authorization, by transporting, sheltering, or assisting him or her to obtain employment, or
* encourages that alien to remain in the U.S. by referring him or her to an employer or by acting as employer or agent for an employer in any way, or
* knowingly assists illegal aliens due to personal convictions.
Penalties upon conviction include criminal fines, imprisonment, and forfeiture of vehicles and real property used to commit the crime. Anyone employing or contracting with an illegal alien without verifying his or her work authorization status is guilty of a misdemeanor. Aliens and employers violating immigration laws are subject to arrest, detention, and seizure of their vehicles or property. In addition, individuals or entities who engage in racketeering enterprises that commit (or conspire to commit) immigration-related felonies are subject to private civil suits for treble damages and injunctive relief.
Recruitment and Employment of Illegal Aliens
It is unlawful to hire an alien, to recruit an alien, or to refer an alien for a fee, knowing the alien is unauthorized to work in the United States. It is equally unlawful to continue to employ an alien knowing that the alien is unauthorized to work. Employers may give preference in recruitment and hiring to a U.S. citizen over an alien with work authorization only where the U.S. citizen is equally or better qualified. It is unlawful to hire an individual for employment in the United States without complying with employment eligibility verification requirements. Requirements include examination of identity documents and completion of Form I-9 for every employee hired. Employers must retain all I-9s, and, with three days’ advance notice, the forms must be made available for inspection. Employment includes any service or labor performed for any type of remuneration within the United States, with the exception of sporadic domestic service by an individual in a private home. Day laborers or other casual workers engaged in any compensated activity (with the above exception) are employees for purposes of immigration law. An employer includes an agent or anyone acting directly or indirectly in the interest of the employer. For purposes of verfication of authorization to work, employer also means an independent contractor, or a contractor other than the person using the alien labor. The use of temporary or short-term contracts cannot be used to circumvent the employment authorization verification requirements. If employment is to be for less than the usual three days allowed for completing the I-9 Form requirement, the form must be completed immediately at the time of hire.
An employer has constructive knowledge that an employee is an illegal unauthorized worker if a reasonable person would infer it from the facts. Constructive knowledge constituting a violation of federal law has been found where (1) the I-9 employment eligibility form has not been properly completed, including supporting documentation, (2) the employer has learned from other individuals, media reports, or any source of information available to the employer that the alien is unauthorized to work, or (3) the employer acts with reckless disregard for the legal consequences of permitting a third party to provide or introduce an illegal alien into the employer’s work force. Knowledge cannot be inferred solely on the basis of an individual’s accent or foreign appearance.
Actual specific knowledge is not required. For example, a newspaper article stating that ballrooms depend on an illegal alien work force of dance hostesses was held by the courts to be a reasonable ground for suspicion that unlawful conduct had occurred.
IT IS ILLEGAL FOR NONPROFIT OR RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS to knowingly assist an employer to violate employment sanctions, REGARDLESS OF CLAIMS THAT THEIR CONVICTIONS REQUIRE THEM TO ASSIST ALIENS. Harboring or aiding illegal aliens is not protected by the First Amendment. It is a felony to establish a commercial enterprise for the purpose of evading any provision of federal immigration law. Violators may be fined or imprisoned for up to five years.
Encouraging and Harboring Illegal Aliens
It is a violation of law for any person to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection in any place, including any building or means of transportation, any alien who is in the United States in violation of law. HARBORING MEANS ANY CONDUCT THAT TENDS TO SUBSTANTIALLY FACILITATE AN ALIEN TO REMAIN IN THE U.S. ILLEGALLY. The sheltering need not be clandestine, and harboring covers aliens arrested outdoors, as well as in a building. This provision includes harboring an alien who entered the U.S. legally but has since lost his legal status.
An employer can be convicted of the felony of harboring illegal aliens who are his employees if he takes actions in reckless disregard of their illegal status, such as ordering them to obtain false documents, altering records, obstructing INS inspections, or taking other actions that facilitate the alien’s illegal employment. Any person who within any 12-month period hires ten or more individuals with actual knowledge that they are illegal aliens or unauthorized workers is guilty of felony harboring. It is also a felony to encourage or induce an alien to come to or reside in the U.S. knowing or recklessly disregarding the fact that the alien’s entry or residence is in violation of the law. This crime applies to any person, rather than just employers of illegal aliens. Courts have ruled that “encouraging” includes counseling illegal aliens to continue working in the U.S. or assisting them to complete applications with false statements or obvious errors. The fact that the alien is a refugee fleeing persecution is not a defense to this felony, since U.S. law and the UN Protocol on Refugees both require that a refugee must report to immigration authorities without delay upon entry to the U.S.
The penalty for felony harboring is a fine and imprisonment for up to five years. The penalty for felony alien smuggling is a fine and up to ten years’ imprisonment. Where the crime causes serious bodily injury or places the life of any person in jeopardy, the penalty is a fine and up to twenty years’ imprisonment. If the criminal smuggling or harboring results in the death of any person, the penalty can include life imprisonment. Convictions for aiding, abetting, or conspiracy to commit alien smuggling or harboring, carry the same penalties. Courts can impose consecutive prison sentences for each alien smuggled or harbored. A court may order a convicted smuggler to pay restitution if the alien smuggled qualifies as a victim under the Victim and Witness Protection Act. Conspiracy to commit crimes of sheltering, harboring, or employing illegal aliens is a separate federal offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 or five years’ imprisonment.
Enforcement
A person or entity having knowledge of a violation or potential violation of employer sanctions provisions may submit a signed written complaint to the INS office with jurisdiction over the business or residence of the potential violator, whether an employer, employee, or agent. The complaint must include the names and addresses of both the complainant and the violator, and detailed factual allegations, including date, time, and place of the potential violation, and the specific conduct alleged to be a violation of employer sanctions. By regulation, the INS will only investigate third-party complaints that have a reasonable probability of validity. Designated INS officers and employees, and all other officers whose duty it is to enforce criminal laws, may make an arrest for violation of smuggling or harboring illegal aliens.
State and local law enforcement officials have the general power to investigate and arrest violators of federal immigration statutes without prior INS knowledge or approval, as long as they are authorized to do so by state law. There is no extant federal limitation on this authority. The 1996 immigration control legislation passed by Congress was intended to encourage states and local agencies to participate in the process of enforcing federal immigration laws. Immigration officers and local law enforcement officers may detain an individual for a brief warrantless interrogation where circumstances create a reasonable suspicion that the individual is illegally present in the U.S. Specific facts constituting a reasonable suspicion include evasive, nervous, or erratic behavior; dress or speech indicating foreign citizenship; and presence in an area known to contain a concentration of illegal aliens. Hispanic appearance alone is not sufficient. Immigration officers and police must have a valid warrant or valid employer’s consent to enter workplaces or residences. Any vehicle used to transport or harbor illegal aliens, or used as a substantial part of an activity that encourages illegal aliens to come to or reside in the U.S. may be seized by an immigration officer and is subject to forfeiture. The forfeiture power covers any conveyances used within the U.S.
RICO — Citizen Recourse
Private persons and entities may initiate civil suits to obtain injunctions and treble damages against enterprises that conspire to or actually violate federal alien smuggling, harboring, or document fraud statutes, under the Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO). The pattern of racketeering activity is defined as commission of two or more of the listed crimes. A RICO enterprise can be any individual legal entity, or a group of individuals who are not a legal entity but are associated in fact, AND CAN INCLUDE NONPROFIT ASSOCIATIONS.
Tax Crimes
Employers who aid or abet the preparation of false tax returns by failing to pay income or Social Security taxes for illegal alien employees, or who knowingly make payments using false names or Social Security numbers, are subject to IRS criminal and civil sanctions. U.S. nationals who have suffered intentional discrimination because of citizenship or national origin by an employer with more than three employees may file a complaint within 180 days of the discriminatory act with the Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, U.S. Department of Justice. In additon to the federal statutes summarized, state laws and local ordinances controlling fair labor practices, workers compensation, zoning, safe housing and rental property, nuisance, licensing, street vending, and solicitations by contractors may also apply to activities that involve illegal aliens.
Precisely. The wall can go around the westernmost counties of California too.
I drive to Montreal a few times each year and when I do I make it a point to stop in a small town right on the Vermont/Quebec border.I always see vehicles of the US Border Patrol in the area and often can see RCMP vehicles just on the other side.The Border Patrol vehicle all have official government markings and US Government plates...not one of them has Vermont plates.
Somehow,I think requiring approval from California voters just ain't gonna happen.
Interesting debate. As a 10th Amendment advocate I support states rights, but SCOTUS tells us that border security is the job of the Federal government. On the other hand, I think the voters of California would vote to approve both measures - the wall AND the registry.
“Federal eminent domain for national defense superceeds any state regulation or requirement. Unless California is willing to start shooting they have nothing.”
Yes, and one of the few powers ACTUALLY within the authority of the federal government is immigration. Where a state and federal statute clash the Supremacy Clause would throw the win to the federal government. Also, I believe there are already statutes which would make what this clown is proposing illegal and for which he may well be able to be prosecuted.
I think California has already been liberated, just not in the way it envisioned.
Being a party to invasion of the USA is not an issue that’s come up legally in the past... however a Trump administration certainly COULD bring it up, once the time is ripe.
Just the THREAT of such a thing might move some lily liver cowards into line.
Donald saw that the USA had swallowed poison. Donald said, why can’t the USA barf up the poison? Ah, Doctor Donald! You’re too simplistic! /s
This asshat is the prime reason not to allow anchor babies because he is one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
needs to be equipped with one-way turnstiles - illegals IN nobody OUT
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