Will Obama’s Homeland Security Chief Secure The Borders? : Lone Star Times

Will Obama’s Homeland Security Chief Secure The Borders?

by RickG · 12/01/2008 6:55 pm

Barack Obama’s choice for Homeland Security director, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, may not excite border-security advocates. A year ago, she identified what she considered a border security fix:

beefing up border security with technology and manpower, cracking down on employers who hire illegal workers, increasing the availability of work visas, and offering the country’s 12 million illegal immigrants a pathway to citizenship.

Though the first two points make good rhetoric, I suspect conservaties are not satisfied they will take priority over the latter two proposes - increased work visas and, uh, non-amnesty - in an Obama administration. She made her position clear multiple times. See if this sounds familiar:

“I’m going to direct the secretary of Labor to tell us what our labor market needs are, and we’re going to adjust the visas accordingly, and we’re going to put in place a process to do that, protecting jobs for American workers but realizing that we will have a national labor shortage moving forward. I’m going to pay specific attention to certain areas such as H-1B visas [for skilled workers], where there is such a demonstrated need and there’s more than enough work for everyone to go around. The third thing is, we’re going to deal with the 12 million in this country. We’re not going to have a permanent underclass. They’re going to have to pay a fine, get in line, and pay their taxes. And I don’t call that amnesty.”

Hey, if she says it’s not amnesty, it must not be amnesty, right? Oh, and one must remember that she opposes the border fence and vetoed a voter photo ID bill. Not comforting.

Coincidentally, as Obama named his security chief, President Bush was busy apologizing about the current fiscal crisis and admitting he was unready for war, yet somehow still found time to chide the American people for their anti-immigrant attitude in the last amnesty debate:

”I firmly believe that the immigration debate really didn’t show the true nature of America as a welcoming society,” he said. “I fully understand we need to enforce law and enforce borders. But the debate took on a tone that undermined the true greatness of America, which is that we welcome people who want to work hard and support their families.”

In other words, you’re still a bunch of bigots.

It’s looking more and more like the border enforcement movement had its last hurrah with defeat of the 2007 bill. Amnesty is on the horizon, folks.

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Comments

10 Responses to “Will Obama’s Homeland Security Chief Secure The Borders?”

pimlico on December 1st, 2008 at 7:00 pm

Of course not. This one hasn’t. Why should the new gal??

THey don’t understand the importane of protecting The Constitutionand the Country in general.
Shamaal on December 1st, 2008 at 7:13 pm

Cofirmation hearings will be held by the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. Lieberman will be held over as Chairman. The rest of the makeup has not been confirmed.

I would recommend that those who feel strongly start working on Lieberman and whomever else is on the committee after the next Congress convenes. Don’t wait for Savage and O’Reilly to spin you up one week prior to the hearings. Work Democrats and Republicans and demand they ask the right questions. Once the committee make up is known, it will be easier to target the Senators up for re-election in 2010.
Wino on December 1st, 2008 at 7:20 pm

I hereby copyright the term “Obamnesty” ©

You can use it for $5 each use, or for free, with expressed written permission. You can email for permission or bulk licensing.

wine underscore drinker at hotmail dot com
Shamaal on December 1st, 2008 at 7:30 pm

Already used in June. But I won’t tell anyone if you cut me in on 50% of the take collected from the rubes.
whitetop on December 1st, 2008 at 7:41 pm

Lieberman only stands with conservatives on the issue of the war on terrorist; everything else he is a frigging die-hard liberal. Why else would McLame consider him as a running mate?
american woman on December 1st, 2008 at 7:44 pm

I’m taking a wait and see attitude.
vlou on December 1st, 2008 at 9:57 pm

The fence will never be completed and they will probably get Ms. Napolitano to think of something else to do with the situation…perhaps she can hand out lotteryt ickets at the border (just kidding) to see who wins and gets to stay,
conservative on December 1st, 2008 at 10:19 pm

From MySanAntonio.com

RAYMONDVILLE — Indictments alleging a chain of corruption stretching from Willacy County to the White House were summarily dismissed Monday after a judge found the grand jury hadn’t properly convened.

Presiding Judge Manuel Bañales said District Attorney Juan Angel Guerra “failed to comply with the law” in obtaining the eight indictments handed up Nov. 17.

Specifically, there were alternates deliberating as grand jurors without a court order for them to stand in.

“Motions to quash and dismiss must be granted,” Bañales said.

The dismissals made mute a flurry of other motions to dismiss the cases on a variety of grounds.

The indicted included Vice President Dick Cheney, former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, two state judges, two special prosecutors, a prison company and a district clerk.

In several cases, the victim in the indictments was Guerra himself, as target of a conspiracy to protect profits of prison companies that do business with the government.

Bañales earlier in the day threw out the indictment against state Sen. Eddie Lucio, D-Brownsville, finding it failed to specify Lucio’s alleged offense.

That dismissal in particular riled Guerra, who has said the senator abused his senate seat during his sideline as consultant on contracts for private prison contracts.

“If the jury finds that this company is hiring him because of his position and not because of the service he’s providing, then that’s kickbacks and that’s it,” Guerra said.

Defense attorneys, fearing Guerra would seek new indictments when the grand jury reconvenes Dec. 12, beseeched Bañales to keep an attorney pro tem on duty as prosecutor while Guerra finishes the last month of his term.

Bañales complied, forbidding Guerra from presenting any cases naming himself as the victim and urging him to refer other cases to his successor.

“Come January 1 you will not be the district attorney. You will not be prosecuting cases before a jury,” Bañales said.

He was the second judge Monday to scold Guerra for acting as both prosecutor and victim. San Antonio-based Judge Michael Peden, who denied Guerra’s request to recuse Bañales, told Guerra he’d never heard of such a case.

“The rules say you can’t do it,” he said.

Guerra called the rulings “expected.”

“I hope the media doesn’t put any weight on that and continues looking at what’s going on behind the walls of the state prison system,” he said.

It would appear that the border is taking care of itself. At least there is a little sanity down there.
Darren10 on December 1st, 2008 at 10:26 pm

I’m a member of BBB (Biggots By Bush). As one of those biggots by Bush, I’ll be sending off my emails off to my senators and make phone calls if needs be and blogging on the topic.
wfish on December 2nd, 2008 at 10:58 am

She talks a pretty good game…most of the time. Has to be better than what we’ve got now, which is next to nothing. I’ll go along with ‘wait and see’ and be prepared to speak up if she doesn’t stand up for the USA.