Archive for the ‘Immigration Reform’ Category

Immigration reform brings one family new hope this Christmas

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - For many Hispanic families here in the Houston area this Christmas brings new hope. Some say the best present is the President's immigration reform. One family shares their story of hope and determination.

Gabby Elvin, a mom of three, crossed the border from Honduras more than twenty years ago. She says this is her first Christmas finally feeling that America is truly home.

The executive order from President Barack Obama has Gabby Elvin and her three kids filled with the joyous holiday spirit.

"Truly it is like a gift because now I have the opportunity like what Obama just said for parents. Now I don't have to worry about being separated from my kids because that was something that worried me a lot," Elvin said.

She can't wait for deferred action which will protect many illegal immigrants from being deported. She says families will be able to get better jobs and no longer have to live in fear. The single mom has waited for this her whole life and now it's just a matter of time.

"I have my stuff together. So I'm good. I'm getting ready for them especially because they need me," Elvin said.

Like any parent, Elvin looks forward to giving her children a better life.

"I want my kids to go to college. I want my kids to do better than I did," Elvin said, "And they already have those documents and I didn't have the opportunity because of that."

In this home, the true meaning of Christmas is hope.

"Hope, chance. There's a lot of things I haven't had the chance to do and now I am going to have the chance with my kids," Elvin said.

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Immigration reform brings one family new hope this Christmas

Pro-Business Group Wants Immigration Reform

Local and State News

In South Carolina, state Attorney General Alan Wilson has joined with 16 other states in a lawsuit aimed at overturning Obamas executive action.

Amid the continued rancor where the debate often centers on border security, deportation and accusations of amnesty one angle of the debate not often heard is how comprehensive reform could have a positive impact on U.S. businesses.

However, there is an advocacy group in South Carolina composed of various business interests that is urging congressional and other leaders to address the nations broken immigration system.

There are a number of voices a number of organizations and groups of industries in South Carolina that have, for years, been calling for immigration reform, says Shell Suber, spokesman for the Partnership for a New American Economy. The tourism industry and the agricultural industry are two large industries that have been beating this drum for years. They have been joined in the last couple of years by chambers of commerce and a broader range of tourism [entities].

Suber says many in the tourism and agriculture industries would like to see immigration laws molded in such a way that would enable them to more easily staff their heavily seasonal businesses.

In agriculture, you have the harvest, Suber says. There are farmers here in South Carolina who have a terribly difficult time navigating the current broken immigration system. By the time they can verify the identity of [foreign-born] workers and they need hundreds of workers for several weeks the season is over.

In pushing for immigration reform, the Partnership for a New American Economy has also emphasized the spending power of Hispanics and sought to reform tourist visa laws.

According to a report released by the partnership, U.S.- and foreign-born Hispanics in 2013 had an estimated after-tax income of more than $605 billion, which is equivalent to about one out of every $10 of disposable income held in the United States.

As for tourist visas, tourism officials in the state say they would like to make it easier for citizens from certain nations to travel to South Carolina. On Dec. 15, Brad Dean, president of the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, and John Durst, president of the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association, called specifically for the expansion of the U.S. visa waiver program to include countries such as Brazil, Hong Kong, Turkey, Israel, South Africa and Poland.

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Pro-Business Group Wants Immigration Reform

The 7 Biggest Things That Didnt Happen in D.C. in 2014

TIME Politics Congress The 7 Biggest Things That Didnt Happen in D.C. in 2014 The U.S. Capitol stands surrounded by fog in Washington, D.C., March 20, 2014. Andrew HarrerBloomberg/Getty Images No immigration reform. No Supreme Court fight. No shutdown.

Lets face it: 2014 was no 2008. As far as politics goes, this year wont go down in American history as one of the more notable ones.

But sometimes its the things that didnt happen that are more interesting. And some very big things didnt happen this year, even though pundits and commentators once thought they might.

Heres a look at the seven biggest things that didnt happen in Washington in 2014.

The House never passed an immigration reform bill.

What might have happened: In June of 2013, the Senate passed a bipartisan overhaul of the nations immigration laws. The House could have voted on that bill or passed its own version.

Who thought it would happen: Some Republicans. Many party leaders thought Republicans needed to put the immigration issue behind them in order to win the White House in 2016.

Why it didnt happen: House Republicans sat the issue out. Speaker John Boehner never brought the Senate bill to the House floor or offered an alternative.

Could it happen next year? Not likely. When President Obama deferred deportation for millions on his own in November, Boehner argued that he had poisoned the well.

There was no big Supreme Court nomination fight.

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The 7 Biggest Things That Didnt Happen in D.C. in 2014

From Ferguson to Immigration Reform, this is the Endgame – Video


From Ferguson to Immigration Reform, this is the Endgame
news and biblical truth.

By: TeamKNEIN

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From Ferguson to Immigration Reform, this is the Endgame - Video

Immigration Reform 2014: Obama Immigrant Policy Will Result In More Crime, Border Crossings, Claims Arizona Lawsuit

President Barack Obama's immigration overhaul will allow more immigrants to illegally cross the border and commit crimes in the United States, overwhelming law enforcement agencies, according to a lawsuit filed byMaricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona. The lawsuit will be heard in federal district court in Washington D.C. Monday in the first major courtroom battle over the president's plan to allow nearly 5 million illegal immigrants to avoid deportation and obtain legal rights.

Arpaio's lawsuit claims Obama violated the Constitution by changing the nation's immigration policies without approval from Congress. "President Obama and others recite that the immigration system of the United States is broken," Arpaio's lawyer, conservative activistLarry Klayman,wrote in a court filing. "It is unmistakable that the only thing that is broken about the nation's immigration laws is that the defendants are determined to break those laws."

Arpaio said more than 35 percent of immigrants living in Maricopa County in central Arizona who served time in his jails in 2014 were repeat offenders. It's the latest case for legal activist Klayman, known for previously claiming President Obama was not a U.S. citizen and petitioning the Homeland Security Department to start deportation proceedings against him, according to the Associated Press.

The Arpaio lawsuit will be heard by U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, who was appointed by Obama. The Justice Department slammed the lawsuit, calling Arpaio's theory that more legal immigrants will result in greater crime "speculative and unsubstantiated" in its own court filing.

Arpaio, 82, calls himself "America's toughest sheriff." He is often celebrated by anti-immigration advocates and reviled by immigration proponents. A federal judge in 2013 ruledthat his law enforcement tactics had violated the civil rights of Latinos, according to Bloomberg.

Obama announced in November his immigration policy aimed at halting illegal border crossings and allowing high-skilled and educated illegal immigrants to stay."Why would we prefer a system in which they're in the shadows, potentially taking advantage of living here but not contributing?" Obama hassaidof his policy.

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Immigration Reform 2014: Obama Immigrant Policy Will Result In More Crime, Border Crossings, Claims Arizona Lawsuit