Free Republic

The Colorado Senate this morning passed a Pueblo lawmaker’s bill that would create a discount rate of college tuition for illegal immigrants who attended high school in the state. ... Opponents contend the bill would create an incentive for illegal immigration to Colorado. They also argue that it presents students with false hope because they would not be able to work legally in the country until they attain citizenship. The bill’s passage in the Democratically controlled Senate was not a surprise. Its first true test will come next, when it is heard by a Republican House committee. A similar bill...

Electric car drivers hit the road Friday to inaugurate the first major section of a West Coast "Electric Highway" dotted with stations where they can charge up in 20 minutes. The stretch of 160 miles of Interstate 5 served by eight stations marks the next big step in developing an infrastructure that until now has been limited primarily to chargers in homes and workplaces. The stations go from the California border north to the Oregon city of Cottage Grove and are located at gas stations, restaurants and motels just off the nation's second-busiest interstate. One is at an inn that...

The big news this week on Capitol Hill was that Democrats are confident of taking back the House. Congressman Steve Israel, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said: “We’ve gone from a gale force wind against us to a sustained breeze at our backs.” Hmm. That was the Financial Times report. The Hill report was less windy as it quoted Congressman Israel as saying: “We’re not there yet, we’ve got some work to do. But … we have gone from a gale-force wind against us last year to a sustained breeze at our back. I’ve never said we...

FReepers please post your President Rick Santorum Dream Team thoughts here. VP - Allen West or Marco Rubio Sec. Of Def Duncan Hunter Sr. not Jr. Or Jerry Boykin WH Press Sec Sarah Palin you betcha! Sec. Of State John Bolton ! Wow can you see the left explode! Fed Chair Herman Cain Sr. Advisor Newt if he helps Rick take out Romney WH Bathroom Cleaning Crew Chief Mitt Romney Attorney General Joe Arpaio Dept of Homeland Security - Gone - Now part of Justice Dept of Agriculture - Gone - Now a part of Interior. Dept of Health and...

Occupy Protesters Consider Political FutureBy Don Gonyea Thu., December 1, 2011 3:45am (EST) **SNIP** One who has been watching the Occupy movement closely is Van Jones, an activist who once worked in the Obama White House, and who now heads an organization called Rebuild the Dream. Jones has spoken at Occupy encampments and met with those working on the next steps. He thinks that the movement can work on multiple fronts. Protests and demonstrations are important, Jones says, but so too are elections. "There's no reason to do an either or here. This can be one of the biggest movements...

Perry, who signed a Texas version of the DREAM Act (which allows young people in the country illegally to pay in-state tuition at public colleges and universities) drew several rounds of boos when he defended this policy.

Democrats will do anything to pander for Hispanic votes in 2012. They’re even in favor of amnesty and cash handouts to illegal aliens, if that’s what it takes. The latest scheme from California liberals is a move to force over-burdened taxpayers to foot the bill to put illegals through college. On Thursday, the California Senate Appropriations Committee passed AB 131, which would allow undocumented pupils to sign up for public financial aid at state schools. At the same time, the Golden State’s dire fiscal straits have forced cutbacks in public-education spending for actual citizens. This particular bill is one of...

The college dreams of thousands of students who are illegal immigrants moved closer to fulfillment Wednesday after the state Senate approved a bill that for the first time would give them access to public financial aid. Carlos Perea, a 19-year-old undocumented student from Mexico who attends Santa Ana Community College, said the bill's passage would help him achieve his goal of transferring to a four-year university. He wants to major in political science and work for a nonprofit organization when he graduates. It is not known how many undocumented students would be eligible for the aid. A Senate committee analysis...

Back in the day, if students wanted easy credits, they signed up for underwater basket-weaving. Now they just need a political cause. The University of California, Berkeley is offering students college credit to work for an expressly political organization fighting for affirmative action and immigrant rights. This semester, the African Studies department at Berkeley is offering a two-credit class called “Fighting to Learn, Learning to Fight: Building the Movement for Public Education and Equality.” The class is sponsored by BAMN — The Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, and Immigrants Rights And Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary —...

Immigration: Unable to get "comprehensive immigration reform" past Congress, the White House announces it will halt deportations on a case-by-case basis for some illegal aliens. Don't enforce the law and they will come. Following a pattern of making law by regulation and executive order, the Obama administration Thursday announced it will impose a version of the Dream (development, relief and education for alien minors) Act on America through administrative fiat. This is blatant political pandering in an election cycle at the expense of American citizens. On Thursday, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told Congress she has authority to halt deportation...

Republicans accused the Obama administration of instituting "backdoor amnesty" after officials announced they would launch a case-by-case review of illegal immigrants slated for deportation in an effort to thin the list and focus resources on kicking out criminals. The move would likely grant a reprieve to many would-be DREAM Act beneficiaries and thousands of others. The DREAM Act is a proposal in Congress to give illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children a chance at legal status if they complete two years of college or military service. Though the bill has not passed, Thursday's announcement could serve to...

As a Greyhound bus prepared to leave a small town near Atlanta, 19-year-old Azucena headed to the window seat on the last row , on her way to Miami to start school and a new life. (SNIP) Immigration searches on public transportation sites are not well publicized. Border patrol agents generally protect the border or coastline. But, Steve Cribby, spokesperson for U. S. Customs and Border Protection, says agents have the authority to conduct immigration checks in public places. And checks on Greyhound buses and Amtrak are meant to disrupt human smuggling activities into the country’s interior, he said. The...

I was the first in my family to graduate from college, much less to go to Medical school. I believe I was blessed by attending Texas elementary and high school, Tyler junior college, UT at Tyler, and then Med school and residency in San Antonio, Texas. I'm grateful, knowing that a “non-traditional student” (an older woman with a family) couldn't have done that in any place but the USA and Texas. No one took my place or squeezed my kids out of a good education, even though we live in a small city where more than 50% of the surnames...

At the age of 21, Sergio has an undying love of politics. He has already interned for two state lawmakers and hopes to pursue a career in politics. He plans to commit himself to changing his community, but there is one catch: Sergio is in the country illegally; he can’t even vote. "It is something that I am really passionate about, but because of my position, it gets really frustrating," Sergio said. A student at San Diego State University, Sergio graduated from San Diego High School with a 4.3 GPA and entered SDSU with a full, privately funded scholarship.

(Reuters) - California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law on Monday a bill allowing illegal immigrants to receive privately funded scholarships to attend the state's public colleges and universities. The bill, dubbed the California Dream Act, passed the state Legislature earlier this month and aims at helping illegal immigrants who have earned a high school diploma after attending at least three years of high school in the state. "At the end of the day, if we're going to continue as a powerful, equal-opportunity society, we're going to have to invest in our people," Brown, a Democrat, said at the signing...

Above: U.S. sailors of the USS Monterey stand next to their vessel in the Black Sea port of Constanta, Romania, Tuesday, June 7, 2011. Advocates for the "DREAM Act" have relentlessly attempted to sell it to a skeptical public through a variety of rhetorical assertions. One of the 2 main components of the DREAM ACT calls for eligible "Dreamers" to serve in the U.S. military to gain a path to citizenship.  Advocates have repeatedly insisted that the DREAM Act is critical to U.S. military "readiness" - that the military needs these "Dreamers" or else we would not have sufficient troops...

Eighteen-year-old Myra Cerecero said she wakes up every morning praying her parents made it home safely."I'm living in a constant state of fear they'll be picked up," said the daughter of illegal immigrants. The American-born Loganville teen was among an estimated 5,000 protesters -- roughly half the crowd organizers had hoped to attract -- who jammed the streets of downtown Atlanta Saturday morning to voice their opposition to House Bill 87, Georgia's crackdown on illegal immigrants. The recently signed bill penalizes those who use false identification to secure jobs as well as government officials who fail to enforce the state's...

Maryland citizens – outraged by the disgraceful passage of the ‘Dream Act’ in-state tuition bill for illegal aliens – rose up and delivered a blow against Gov. Martin O’Malley’s sanctuary state agenda. Needing 56,000 signatures to block the act from taking effect on July 1st, opponents got well over 100,000 signatures! State elections officials say they have certified most of the nearly 56,000 needed to suspend the law and send it to a statewide referendum in November 2012. The law had been scheduled to take effect Friday, but it has been suspended while officials await a final tally on the...

Senator Dick Durbin has never been accused of being the brightest man in ANY room. However as a 3-term Senator one would at least expect him to know the basics of the U.S. Constitution that he swore an oath to defend. No such luck, as Durbin led off the first hearing of his pet 'DREAM Act' by asking all the illegals in his audience to stand up (you know, the ones 'hiding in the shadows') and then says he sees in them our future "doctors, our teachers...our senators, and maybe our president." Uh, Senator, try reading Article 2, Section 1,...

Durbin: Maybe Illegal Alien Will Become President Someday Wednesday, June 29, 2011 By Terence P. Jeffrey (CNSNews.com) - Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.) said in a congressional hearing Tuesday that a young person who is an illegal alien in the United States today may someday become president. “When I look around this room, I see America's future, our doctors, our teachers, our nurses, our engineers, our scientists, our soldiers, our congressmen, our senators, and maybe our president,” Durbin said immediately after having asked all young persons in the room to stand if they were currently undocumented aliens who would...

Washington – About 200 undocumented students from all over the country on Tuesday here demanded that President Barack Obama halt deportations and push for the approval of the DREAM Act to legalize their immigration status. Prior to those pressure tactics, Obama had reiterated his support for immigration reform and the DREAM Act at a White House press conference The president called for the legalization of students who have grown up in the United States "and think of themselves as Americans and who are illegal through no fault of their own and who are ready to give back to our country...

The Obama administration on Tuesday made its most forceful push yet this Congress to reform the country’s immigration laws. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Defense Under Secretary Clifford Stanley laid out a laundry list of national security-related financial and educational reasons why Congress needs to push forward with the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act. Napolitano said the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not have the resources necessary to remove the estimated 11 million people who are in the country illegally. The DREAM Act, she said, would grant conditional citizenship to...

Sen. Dick Durbin plans to make a full-court press Tuesday to revive the debate over a controversial proposal to give illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children a path to legal status, as the Obama administration moves on a separate track to grant what some describe as "amnesty" to the same group. Durbin, D-Ill., in announcing the first-ever Senate hearing on the so-called DREAM Act, said his proposal would "make our country stronger." Under the plan, which passed the House last year but died in the Senate, illegal immigrants who came here as children and complete two years...

Who needs Congressional authority when you can govern by executive fiat? “A new enforcement memo handed down by the director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement last week has some accusing the White House of running around Congress to implement the DREAM Act – and consequent amnesty for some illegal immigrants – by executive fiat. The new memo, penned by ICE Director John Morton, directs ICE agents, attorneys and directors to exercise “prosecutorial discretion” – meaning less likelihood of deportation – for illegal aliens who have been students in the U.S., who have been in the country since childhood or...

SACRAMENTO -- California lawmakers voted Wednesday to open the door to state-funded financial aid for immigrant college students who entered the United States illegally.

California lawmakers have opened the door to state-funded financial aid for immigrant college students who entered the United States illegally. . . . Assemblyman Gil Cedillo, a Los Angeles Democrat, has introduced similar legislation each year since 2005 only to see it vetoed by Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger

Sen. Althoff sets the record straight on “Illinois DREAM Act” bill. Recently, the Illinois Senate approved legislation (Senate Bill 2185) aimed at allowing student immigrants who have a valid taxpayer ID to invest in their college education – this legislation has been the subject of much misinformation on the Internet and in the media. The bill requires the Illinois Student Assistance Commission to create an Illinois DREAM Fund that will provide scholarships funded entirely from private contributions – no Illinois tax dollars will be directed toward these scholarships. In addition, to be eligible for the program, a student must be...

La Unidad Latina, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, Inc. puts La Raza above America The media is always on the hunt for ethnic chauvinism, racism, and cultural supremacism on a college campus, ready to pounce and run breathless exposes. Colleges and universities have speech codes, disciplinary bodies, and an entire apparatus of repression that have been built to make sure that no racist group can ever raise its ugly head in polite society again. Unless, of course, it’s for non-whites. Then it is celebrated and funded. Take the case of La Unidad Latina, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, Inc. (LUL). Now, if...

Link only, per FR posting rules

The Obama administration is making it possible for more foreign students studying in the U.S. on visas to stay and get practical training in their career fields. The administration is expanding the list of science, technology, engineering and math degrees that allow foreign students who earn them to stay in the U.S. up to 17 months after graduating. Those months can be spent working. The time also could mean the student may not have to leave before getting an H-1B visa, a visa reserved for high-skilled workers that can last for up to six years.

In search of Hispanic votes and a long-shot immigration overhaul, President Barack Obama on Tuesday stood at the U.S.-Mexico border for the first time since winning the White House and declared it more secure than ever. He mocked Republican lawmakers for blocking immigration over border security alone, saying they won't be happy until they get a moat with alligators along the border. "They'll never be satisfied," he said. Stymied by both chambers of Congress, the president ditched lawmakers in favor of voters who might pressure them, making an appeal to the public on a hot and dusty day far outside...

Indianapolis— Five students arrested at an immigration protest at the Indiana Statehouse Monday will not face deportation. Federal authorities lifted detention orders against the illegal immigrants Tuesday evening. The detention was lifted shortly after the five declared a hunger strike Tuesday. The students say the hunger strike will last until Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (R) vetoes the immigration bill he has previously promised to sign. The students were part of a protest that went all the way to the front door of the governor's office. Senate Bill 590 would make illegal immigrants pay much higher tuitions. The cost would be...

Barack Obama says his administration has answered the concerns of Republican lawmakers who want the U.S.-Mexico border better secured before they are willing to take on comprehensive immigration reform. Standing at the border Tuesday, Obama mocked Republicans for never being satisfied and always changing the conditions about what’s needed to secure the border. Said the president: "Maybe they’ll say we need a moat. Or alligators in the moat."

Dozens of illegal immigrants celebrated in Annapolis Tuesday as Maryland officially made them eligible for tuition discounts at colleges and universities — an issue that ignited impassioned opposition during the legislative session and is already subject to a repeal effort. Gov. Martin O'Malley made good on a long-standing promise to sign the controversial measure that extended in-state tuition rates, making Maryland the 11th state to grant such rights to undocumented residents. His action came the same day that President Barack Obama said he will renew a push for federal legislation that clears a citizenship path for illegal immigrants. "This will...

President Obama plans to unveil a “blueprint” on Tuesday of what he wants Congress to include in a comprehensive immigration reform bill, according to senior administration officials. Obama is scheduled to visit El Paso, Texas, with Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano as part of the White House’s increased efforts to return immigration reform to the national spotlight. A senior administration official told reporters in a conference call Monday evening that Obama’s renewed push for an immigration bill was not merely a political move attempting to paint Congress as the inhibitor and the White House as the doer in the eyes...

President Obama is pledging border security and pleading for help from Republicans as he steps up his campaign to pass an immigration reform bill, but new polling suggests the rift within his own party is actually deeper than within the GOP on the issue. The data from the Pew Center for the People and the Press’ massive look at political parties, released last week, found that the gap between the ends of the Democratic coalition on favoring stricter enforcement and on legalization is twice as large as the gap between hard-line Republicans and their more libertarian-leaning cohorts. Mr. Obama will...

Jessica Colotl, in many ways, is exactly the kind of person we wish we had more of in this country. She's bright, ambitious, a good student and interested in civic affairs. "I am no different than any other American," she told the Atlanta newspaper this week. Maybe not, except for one little thing: Ms. Colotl has spent most of her life in this country illegally, and arrogantly thinks the laws that apply to everyone else - and especially those that apply to foreign nationals who want to become citizens of this country - shouldn't apply to her. Ms. Colotl, you'll...

EL PASO, Texas -- The White House confirmed Friday that President Barack Obama will deliver a speech on immigration reform when he visits El Paso on Tuesday. El Paso Mayor John Cook told KFOX-14 that the president will likely give the speech at Chamizal National Park, though he said the White House has not made the final decision about location. Immigration reform was a campaign promise Obama made as early as 2008. "Unfortunately, I know myself, people from the National League of Cities, Municipal League, the Texas Border Coalition have all been somewhat disappointed that the federal government has not...

California’s State Assembly on Thursday approved legislation to let undocumented students apply for college scholarships. But only Democrats voted for the bill. Assembly Republicans say it makes no sense to offer financial aid to students who have no legal right to live and work in California. Under the California Dream Act, only students who’ve attended a California high school for at least three years may apply for college scholarships — but only for those that private donors underwrite. Assemblyman Gil Cedillo of Los Angeles said these students deserve at least that much. “These young men and women were brought here...

U.S. immigration officials have decided that an undocumented college student apprehended by authorities after driving without a license can stay in the United States for another year, the student said. Reached by phone as she rushed to class Tuesday evening, Kennesaw State University student Jessica Colotl said the decision was "like a big present."

Keeping the Dream Alive: President Obama's Work with the African American CommunityPosted by Michael Blake on April 08, 2011 at 10:30 AM EDT On Wednesday, April 6th, the National Action Network kicked off its 20th anniversary convention, celebrating "20 years of struggle, 20 years of progress, 20 years of shaping history." During the day, four Cabinet members--Education Secretary Duncan, Attorney General Holder, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan--spoke to convention attendees about how the Obama Administration has been working with the African American community. That night, President Obama spoke at the Keepers of the Dream Awards Gala....

The chancellor of UC Berkeley is drawing criticism for sending a campuswide e-mail that linked a Tucson shooting rampage with Arizona's crackdown on illegal immigrants and the failure of the DREAM Act. In the e-mail, sent Monday, Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau condemned a "climate in which demonization of others goes unchallenged and hateful speech is tolerated." He continued, postulating on factors that may have motivated Jared Lee Loughner, the alleged gunman in Saturday's shootings, .. : "I believe that it is not a coincidence that this calamity has occurred in a state which has legislated discrimination against undocumented persons." ......

Although the U. S. Senate voted down the federal government’s latest attempt to expand government entitlements, academics remain just as adamantly for it. On December 18, 2010, as we reported, the U. S. Senate voted down the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act. Last week, the radical caucus of the Modern Language Association (MLA) voted for it, as our correspondent on the scene at their Los Angeles confab—Allie Duzett—discovered. “Whereas the U. S. Senate voted down the ‘Dream Act,’ which would have granted undocumented students in high schools legal status by attending college, thus depriving them of...

While the DREAM Act failed on a national stage, California State Democrats would like to skirt federal law and provide a pathway to citizenship for those who are illegally residing in the Golden State. State Assembly Bill 78, written by Tony Mendoza (D-Arcadia) seeks to put an advisory measure on the state ballot asking California voters if they think the United States is responsible to grant amnesty to longtime illegal aliens currently living unlawfully inside America. The Democrat’s proposed “pathway to citizenship bill” would give illegal aliens who have worked in the U.S. for five years, have no felony convictions,...

I was really happy when I read in the Washington Post that soon-to-be demoted to Minority Leader of the House Nancy Pelosi has turned to director Steven Spielberg to "rebrand" the House Democrats. The story offered me a way out of my quandary -- what to title this column today. The Tea Party and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls, The Sugardaddy Express, Pelosi Park. Anyway, just as I selected the present title, the NY Daily News said the Spielberg story was false. I suppose after fawning all over Castro and making a video montage for Kerry, Spielberg's decided to...

Obama called the stories of undocumented minors “heartbreaking” and said that changing the immigration system and enhancing border security is “the right thing to do.”

There is a bit of confusion on the Internet that needs to be cleared up about the Democrats’ plans for the DREAM Act. A number of readers have pointed to a weekend post at FreeRepublic.com warning that the DREAM Act is “hidden” in another bill, H.R. 5281. Senate staff explained to me today that DREAM was passed as an amendment to HR 5281 in the House and it was sent over as a “message,” which gave it privileged status so the Senate didn’t have to vote on a motion to proceed (simply a cloture vote). My Senate staff source added...

least 20 police officers responded to a melee in Moorhead, Minn., early Sunday that involved up to a dozen young African immigrants fighting not only with hands and feet, but also with a taser, knives, a replica handgun and a shovel. More than 100 people looked on, many yelling, in the parking lot of a bowling alley on the city's north side, police said.

LOS ANGELES -- Emboldened by months of phone calls to lawmakers, hunger strikes and sit-ins, a group of college students and graduates in Los Angeles say they plan to take their fight for immigrant rights to the states and the 2012 election after Senate Republicans blocked a key piece of legislation..they also say Latino voters are getting fed up with lawmakers at a time when they are accruing greater political clout. "This is a movement," said Nancy Meza, a 23-year-old illegal immigrant and college graduate who wore a UCLA sweatshirt as she watched the televised vote. "We don't have lobbyists...

1) It was "closer than it looked"—not because Harry Reid had 59 votes secretly locked up if he could only have gotten one more (though that's possible) but because if one or two senators had ostentiously switched in the weeks leading up to the vote then "at least three other votes would have gone with them and we would have lost." ..... "Translation:The Tea Parties did it."