Department of Homeland Security
DHS Begins Raids and Deportations of Central American Mothers and Children
This past weekend, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) conducted immigration raids, primarily in Georgia, Texas and North Carolina where, according to DHS, they rounded up 121 individuals, mostly women and children. DHS now is transporting the families to Texas to process them for deportation. The raids were anticipated,… Read More
Understanding DHS’ 2015 Deportation Numbers
This week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released its fiscal year (FY) 2015 deportation numbers. According to DHS, immigration enforcement agencies apprehended 406,595 individuals nationwide and conducted a total of 462,463 removals and returns. These totals include both people deported at the border and those removed from the interior of the United States. However, in order to understand what these numbers actually mean and if they reflect DHS’s new enforcement priorities, a closer look at enforcement actions by Border Patrol versus Immigration and Customs Enforcement is necessary. Read More
Congress Funds Government and Extends Immigration Programs for Ten Months
This week, the House and Senate overwhelmingly passed a $1.15 trillion omnibus spending bill that funds the federal government for the rest of the Fiscal Year (FY), through September 30, 2016, as well as a package of tax breaks worth around $620 billion. The spending bill, which was seen… Read More
Lengthy Detention and Deplorable Conditions the Norm in CBP Detention Centers
Each year, the Border Patrol—a division of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)—holds hundreds of thousands of individuals in detention facilities near the U.S. southern border. These facilities are meant to hold individuals for a short time while they undergo initial processing and a decision is made about where they… Read More
Corruption Flourishes Within CBP
In 2002, in the wake of 9/11, Congress and the White House embarked upon an unprecedented bureaucratic experiment: grafting together 22 federal agencies into a single entity that was supposed to protect the nation from terrorist attack or any other potential threat. The result was a multi-headed monstrosity known as… Read More
House Passes Visa Waiver Program Bill that Excludes Nationals of Syria, Iraq, Iran and Sudan
While Congress may be backing away from targeting the refugee resettlement program in reaction to recent terrorist attacks, lawmakers appear to have found a new target: the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). The VWP allows travelers from certain countries to enter the United States without obtaining a visa in advance. Currently, 38 countries, including France, the United Kingdom and Taiwan, are part of this program, with over 20 million visitors utilizing it each year. It was created to facilitate more efficient inbound travel to the U.S. and requires pre-screening of travelers who are pre-approved through the program. In designating a country to participate, the Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, considers only those the U.S. holds "the best law-enforcement and security relationships with." Read More
Due Process, Enforcement Reform and Family Unification Top Sanders’ Platform
Senator Bernie Sanders, a contender for the Democratic nomination for President, recently released his updated and vastly expanded immigration platform. His initial plan was short on detail; however, this newly-released document takes a deeper dive and presents a set of solutions to some of the worst problems plaguing our outdated immigration system. Read More
Setting the Record Straight on the Leaked Government Memo on Work Authorization
Recently, a leaked memo related to the Department of Homeland Security’s ongoing deliberations about reforming the employment-based immigrant visa system was published online. An “investigative associate” with the restrictionist organization Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) wrote an op-ed in The Hill making grossly inaccurate statements about the contents of… Read More
The Untold Story of ICE’s Criminal Alien Program
In a report released, the American Immigration Council shines a light on the primary channel through which Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducts immigration enforcement in the interior of the United States: the Criminal Alien Program (CAP). The report offers a unique, detailed examination of the population removed through… Read More
DHS Secretary Johnson Discusses Border Security, Executive Action, Refugees and PEP
On Thursday, Secretary Jeh Johnson of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) addressed the 12th Annual Immigration Law and Policy Conference, covering a wide-range of topics, from border security to the new Priority Enforcement Program (PEP) to executive action and refugees. Secretary Johnson began his remarks calling attention to… Read More
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