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Senate Hearing on Border Security Targets Transnational Crime
At a hearing of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, which was titled “Securing the Border: Assessing the Impact of Transnational Crime,” lawmakers from both sides of the aisle were largely in agreement as to what the biggest security problem is along the northern and southern borders of the United States: the […]
Read MoreThe Power and Potential of High Skilled Immigration
Note: This article features the oral testimony of Benjamin Johnson, Executive Director of the American Immigration Council before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Read his full written testimony here. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today on behalf of the American Immigration […]
Read MoreClass Action Lawsuit Challenging CBP Delays in Responding to FOIA Requests
In March 2015, the American Immigration Council, in collaboration with the Law Office of Stacy Tolchin, the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, filed a class action lawsuit against CBP over its nationwide pattern and practice of failing to timely respond to requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The plaintiffs included both immigration attorneys and individuals, all of whom had FOIA requests pending for over 20 business days.
Read MoreHow Small Business Immigrant Entrepreneurship Can Boost Economic Growth
Why is it important for places and organizations to connect the dots of immigrant entrepreneurship and local neighborhood economic growth? “Wherever you find immigrant growth you’ll find entrepreneurship. Some of the storefront businesses [in Iowa, for example…] would not be there without immigrant entrepreneurs,” Iowa State University researcher Sandra Burkesaid. In the Miami metropolitan area, […]
Read MoreOnly the Beginning: The Economic Potential of Executive Action on Immigration
The series of executive actions on immigration which President Obama announced on November 20, 2014, would have a beneficial—if modest—impact on the U.S. economy.
Read MoreHouse Judiciary Considers Same Costly, Enforcement-Only ‘Reform’
The House Judiciary Committee devoted two days this week to the markup of three enforcement-only immigration bills. The legislation would strip much-needed protections from an already vulnerable population–including children and asylum seekers–impact the agriculture industry, place burdensome requirements on small business owners, and cost the American taxpayer a lot of money. The Legal Workforce Act, […]
Read MoreGroups Recommend How the White House Could Boost Immigrant Entrepreneurs
Immigrant entrepreneurs and small business owners contribute to local economies, often forming the backbone of neighborhoods. As part of his November announcement on immigration executive action, President Obama signed a presidential memorandum that creates a White House Task Force on New Americans to explore ways to strengthen federal immigrant and refugee integration. The task force […]
Read MoreHouse Funds Homeland Security Through September
The House voted to approve a measure Tuesday to fund the Department of Homeland Security through September, the rest of the fiscal year. The bill, which originally passed the Senate on Friday, is a “clean” funding bill without any amendments attempting to defund President Obama’s executive actions. The House vote was 257-167, with only Republicans […]
Read MorePotential Presidential Candidates Fail to Offer Immigration Solutions at CPAC
Most Americans want immigration reform. President Obama’s executive actions took temporary steps to provide relief for millions of undocumented immigrants who have spent years here, but it is up to Congress to pass legislation that would comprehensively improve the immigration system. According to a February poll from Public Religion Research Institute, nearly three-quarters of Americans […]
Read MoreImmigration divide could split Republican Establishment and grassroots
Republicans supportive of broad changes to immigration law are trying to build a political fence between their party’s presidential candidates and the anti-amnesty position popular with many in the conservative grassroots. Mitt Romney’s abysmal 27 percent performance with Hispanic voters in 2012, which many attribute to his hardline opposition to so-called immigration reform during the […]
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