Homeland Security

[LWM]

[Little Evil]

X2 100% agree with the Sheriff!!!

[NeilSmith]

Did you guys happen to catch this ? Scroll down and check out the pics. WHOA !!!
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums...-weapons-cache

[LWM]

Did you guys happen to catch this ? Scroll down and check out the pics. WHOA !!!
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums...-weapons-cache

A co-worker sent me that in an e-mail, that is a lot of guns!

[LWM]

Neb. city votes to restrict illegal immigration (June 22nd, 2010 @ 3:59am)

FREMONT, Neb. (AP) - This small Nebraska meatpacking town has joined Arizona at the center of a national debate about illegal immigration after voters approved a ban on hiring or renting property to illegal immigrants, but an expected court challenge could keep the measure from ever taking effect.

The American Civil Liberties Union already has promised to file a lawsuit to block enforcement of the proposal roughly 57 percent of Fremont voters supported Monday.

"In a community of 25,000, it's going to be hard to take on the whole country, and it will be costly to do so," said Fremont City Councilman Scott Getzschman, who opposed the measure but said city leaders would support the results.

Fremont's vote is the latest chapter in the tumult over illegal immigration across the country, including a recently passed Arizona law that will require police investigating another incident or crime to ask people about their immigration status if there's a "reasonable suspicion" they are in the country illegally.

The Fremont measure will require would-be renters to apply for a license from the city. Officials must refuse to issue a license to applicants found to be in the country illegally. The ordinance also requires businesses to use the federal E-Verify database to ensure employees are allowed to work.

The city, which is about 35 miles northwest of Omaha, has watched as its Hispanic population surged in the past two decades, largely due to the jobs available at the nearby Fremont Beef and Hormel meatpacking plants.

Supporters argued the measure is needed to make up for what they see as lax federal law enforcement. Opponents said it could fuel discrimination.

Linda Nafziger said she voted for the ordinance because she doesn't think the community should be supporting illegal immigrants. But she acknowledged the measure won't end illegal immigration.

"They'll just move somewhere else and be somebody else's problem," she said.

Trevor McClurg said the measure is fair because it's aimed at people who aren't legally in the U.S.

"I don't think it's right to be able to rent to them or hire them," McClurg said. "They shouldn't be here in the first place."

Some residents worry that jobs are going to illegal immigrants who they fear could drain community resources.

Kristin Ostrom, who helped organize opposition to the measure, said she was never convinced of that. Fremont's unemployment rate matches the Nebraska rate of 4.9 percent, and both remain well below the national rate of 9.7 percent.

"It's unfortunate that the majority of voters didn't understand that we really don't have an illegal immigration problem in Fremont," she said.

The Hispanic population in Fremont, including both legal and illegal residents, surged from about 165 in 1990 to 1,085 in 2000, according to census expert David Drozd at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He said an estimated 2,060 Hispanics lived there last year.

Communities that have passed similar laws have struggled to enforce them because of legal challenges. Hazleton, Pa., passed an ordinance in 2006 to fine landlords who rent to illegal immigrants and deny permits to businesses hiring them. The Dallas suburb of Farmers Branch also has tried for years to enforce a ban on landlords renting to illegal immigrants. Federal judges struck down both ordinances, but both are on appeal.

The ACLU of Nebraska promised to sue over the Fremont measure even before Monday's vote.

"Not only do local ordinances such as this violate federal law, they are also completely out of step with American values of fairness and equality," said Laurel Marsh, executive director of ACLU Nebraska.

Kansas City, Mo.-based attorney Kris Kobach, who helped write the Arizona law, worked on the ordinance in Fremont and has said he thinks it could withstand a court challenge. He is also running for secretary of state in Kansas.

[LWM]

Groups want to get 50K new Latino voters
by Associated Press (June 22nd, 2010 @ 6:04am)

PHOENIX - Immigrant-rights groups say they're launching what they call a massive effort to register and turn out Latino voters because of a new Arizona law targeting illegal immigrants.


The groups want to turn out 50,000 Latinos who otherwise would not vote in November's election. They say they're mobilizing 2,000 volunteers to reach that goal.

The groups include Mi Familia Vota, Democracia USA, Border Action Network and the Arizona Center for Empowerment.

They say they want to help guide Arizona away from divisive policies and politicians.

[LWM]

Border officers seize 108 illegal Disney pinatas
by Associated Press (June 22nd, 2010 @ 6:03am)

DOUGLAS, Ariz. - It was no fiesta on the Arizona-Mexico border for the driver of a shipment of pinatas that looked like Disney characters.


U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman Rob Daniels says officers at the Douglas port of entry stopped a tractor-trailer coming from Mexico for further inspection on Friday.

Officers found the tractor-trailer was loaded with papier-mache items, including 108 pinatas in the likeness of Disney characters on their way to Thornton, Colo.

Officers seized the shipment for violation of intellectual property rights.

Assistant port Director Eli Villareal says the pinatas may seem innocent, but shipments of illegal merchandise on a national scale can undermine the U.S. economy and ``is a vital element in national security.''

[LWM]

White House disputes Kyl's account by KTAR Newsroom, Associated Press (June 21st, 2010 @ 4:07pm)

WASHINGTON - The White House on Monday disputed a Republican senator's claim that President Barack Obama refuses to secure the Mexican border until Congress agrees to a wide-ranging overhaul of immigration laws.

Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona told a Tea Party gathering in north Phoenix on Friday (see video below) of his recent private meeting with Obama in the Oval Office. Kyl, the Senate's second-ranking GOP leader, said he pressed Obama to secure the border against illegal immigrants.

Kyl told the group: ``The problem is, he said, 'If we secure the border, then you all won't have any reason to support comprehensive immigration reform.'''

``They want to get something in return for doing their duty,'' Kyl told the group.

The White House denied the account over the weekend, and Obama spokesman Bill Burton restated that position Monday when questioned by reporters.

``The president didn't say that,'' Burton said of Kyl's account. ``Sen. Kyl knows the president didn't say that.''

Asked if Kyl was lying or indulging in ``political exaggeration,'' Burton replied: ``I'll let other folks make that determination.''

Obama has taken steps to improve border security, while also saying security must be part of a broader approach to immigration. He recently pledged to spend an additional $500 million on security and to send 1,200 National Guard troops to the border.

The White House website says Obama ``believes that our broken immigration system can only be fixed by putting politics aside and offering a complete solution that secures our border, enforces our laws, and reaffirms our heritage as a nation of immigrants.''

Obama told CNN's Larry King on June 3, ``We've already put more resources into border security than we ever have.''

He added: ``But without comprehensive immigration reform that is Congress' responsibility we are not going to solve this problem, and that's what we have to do.''

Kyl spokesman Ryan Patmintra said the senator stands by his remarks. He said the White House position ``that we must have comprehensive immigration reform to secure the border only confirms Sen. Kyl's account.''