February 11, 2017

Deportation Raids Reportedly Ongoing Across U.S.

Source: Slate

President Trump(!) signed an executive order on Jan. 25 that vastly expanded the number of undocumented immigrants whose deportation is considered a priority for Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. Under Obama, ICE prioritized "those who had been convicted of serious crimes, were considered national security threats or were recent arrivals," in the New York Times' words. The Trump order targets criminals but also—among others—those who've been accused of crimes but not convicted, those who have engaged in document fraud, and those who "in the judgment of an immigration officer, otherwise pose a risk to public safety or national security."

Now, in the past two days, reports have begun to emerge of what seems to be a suddenly increased volume of crackdowns against undocumented immigrants across the country. From the Washington Post:

Immigration activists said Friday that they had documented ICE raids of unusual intensity in the last 48 hours in Vista, Pomona and Compton, Calif.; Austin, Dallas, and Pflugerville, Texas; Alexandria and Annandale, Va.; Charlotte and Burlington, N.C.; Plant City, Fla.; the Hudson Valley region of New York; and Wichita, Kan.
There were also reports of ICE checkpoints, targeting immigrants for random ID checks, in North Carolina and in Austin.
Both immigration activists and the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that some of the individuals who've been detained do not have criminal records.

Read more: http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2017/02/10/ice_deportation_raids_of_undocumented_immigrants_reported_across_u_s.html

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The raids against undocumented immigrants we've anticipated have now begun...Sorry if this is a duplicate.

February 2, 2017

Austin has become the first battleground in the Sanctuary Cities conflict

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/we-cannot-afford-to-make-our-community-less-safe-by-driving-people-into-the-shadows/2017/02/02/f14ed2d6-e5ac-11e6-ba11-63c4b4fb5a63_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-more-top-stories_austin-1240pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.d7142901b557

"Austin has become the first battleground in that conflict, where the governor and a local sheriff are now locked in a standoff over the issue. A liberal enclave in the heart of conservative Texas, the capital city lies a little more than three hours from the Mexican border. About 35 percent of its 931,000 residents are Hispanic, according to U.S. Census estimates, and the city is home to a vibrant sanctuary movement that sprang to life during President Barack Obama’s first term, when his administration carried out a record number of deportations.

In November, voters in Travis County, which includes Austin, elected a new sheriff, who campaigned on a promise not to detain people based solely on their immigration status. Hours after Trump took office, Sheriff Sally Hernandez (D) posted an eight-minute video on her official website explaining the new policy, which took effect Wednesday. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), a Trump supporter and immigration hard-liner, quickly fought back, accusing Hernandez of playing “a dangerous game of political Russian roulette — with the lives of Texans at stake... This week, Abbott made good on a threat to withhold $1.5 million in state criminal justice grants, money that funds services for veterans, parents struggling with drug addiction and victims of family violence. He also asked state agencies by Friday to prepare a full list of all state funding provided to Travis County, suggesting that additional punishment may be forthcoming.

Abbott called on lawmakers to act urgently to ban sanctuary cities. A measure drafted by state Sen. Charles Perry (R-Lubbock), an Abbott ally, would withhold state funding from cities, counties and colleges that do not comply with immigration detainers. It also would require county jailers to determine and record the immigration status of every arrestee. Supporters and protesters of the legislation crammed into the Texas statehouse Thursday for a hearing of the bill, which, as Perry acknowledged under questioning, does not actually define “sanctuary city.”

Last week, Abbott threatened to oust Hernandez, who was elected with 60 percent of the vote. Legislation to permit him to do so has yet to be filed, but a spokesman for Abbott noted that the threat to cut off state funding was sufficient to persuade the Dallas County sheriff to abandon sanctuary policies last year. Austin, however, is standing firm. Mayor Steve Adler, a Democrat, and other city officials have vowed to support Hernandez, arguing that most undocumented immigrants do not pose a threat to the community and that deportations have ripped local families apart."

I'm waiting for someone like Julian Castro to run for Texas governor or a dynamic woman like Ann Richards. Abbott is disgracefully blinded by his far right ideologies.

February 2, 2017

Virginia Just Filed A Contempt Motion Against Trump Over Immigration Order

Source: Huffington Post

The Commonwealth of Virginia asked a federal judge late Wednesday night to force President Donald Trump, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and top government officials to show why they shouldn’t be held in contempt for failing to obey a lawful court order.

The temporary restraining order issued Saturday night by U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema of the Eastern District of Virginia required Customs and Border Protection to allow attorneys access to legal permanent residents that CBP had detained at Dulles International Airport as a result of Trump’s executive order blocking people from seven Muslim-majority nations from traveling to the U.S. Saturday’s court order also forbade CBP from deporting any of the legal permanent residents ― also known as green-card holders ― detained at Dulles for seven days. When federal judges rule against the government, any official implicated in the order, including the president, is supposed to obey ― even if they believe the court’s order is incorrect.

But as The Huffington Post reported this weekend, CBP did not comply with the court’s order. The border agency never let attorneys near the people it was detaining. And when Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and at least four other members of Congress tried to get CBP to comply at various points over the weekend, CBP defied them.

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/virginia-trump-contempt_us_5892bb6ae4b070cf8b80b621?

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I hope this is the beginning of the unraveling...

February 1, 2017

Let's start a running count of trump's impeachable offenses so far

1 - Not divesting his businesses: http://www.yesmagazine.org/people-power/trump-impeachment-campaign-begins-20170126
2 - Defying federal judges' order to cease immigration ban of Muslims: http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/317282-dem-lawmaker-congress-should-consider-impeaching-trump-if-he