U.S. Spares “Noncriminal” Illegal Immigrants
Wed, 10/06/2010 - 11:18am
As federal immigration officials celebrate an increase in the removal of illegal aliens with criminal records, the reality is that there has been a drastic decline in deportations of undocumented aliens deemed “noncriminal” by the government.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) revealed in a news story this week that more illegal immigrants with criminal convictions have been deported in recent years. This is driving up the number of people being removed from the United States, according to the article which was published in a northern California paper.
The story has a colorful graph that helps illustrate how convicted criminals have made up an increasing percentage of U.S. deportations in the past few years. Of the 350,000 removed this year, the story says, more than half were convicted for crimes. That marks a 55% increase since 2008, according to ICE data provided for the article.
While this may sound wonderful, the agency admits it’s essentially ignoring illegal immigrants who don’t have serious criminal histories, leading to a 30% drop in the number of so-called “noncriminal deportations.” Those figures include what ICE refers to as “voluntary departures,” illegal aliens who are actually given an option to return to their home country willingly.
The statistics demonstrate a shift in the agency’s priorities to focus on extracting the most dangerous criminals, according to the feds’ public relations campaign. “But if we are looking at a guy who’s just here with his family trying to better his life vs. a repeat offender, our priority is the criminal,” said a northern California ICE field director.
Americans will never know the magnitude of the agency’s selective deportation program because it’s illegally withholding data about its overall enforcement performance, despite President Obama’s promise to create an unprecedented level of openness in government.
Earlier this week an independent research center that monitors the federal government revealed that ICE has committed serious legal and procedural violations for failing to disclose performance data on how the agency is enforcing immigration laws. In doing so, ICE is violating long standing provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) as well as its own administrative rules and policies set by the Department of Justice.
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REALITY CHECK: HOMELAND SECURITY is now HOMELAND SECURITY = PATHWAY TO CITIZENSHIP… Obama has no intentions of keeping illegals out. For him and the La Raza dems, Boxer, Feinstein, Clinton, Pelosi and Reid… they’re only “UNREGISTERED VOTERS”!
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The numbers come in the middle of a heated national debate on immigration. Republicans and Democrats alike have called on the administration to pursue more vigorous enforcement, both on the border and in the interior, but Ms. Napolitano said federal officials have to use their limited resources to try to take the biggest public safety threats off the streets, which means focusing on aliens with serious criminal records.
More criminal aliens deported last year
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/6/more-criminal-aliens-deported-last-year/
President Obama's new immigration enforcement strategy led to a record number of criminal aliens being deported last year, but removals of other illegal immigrants fell to the lowest rate since 2007, before the Bush administration began a crackdown.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported 392,862 aliens in fiscal year 2010, slightly less than a 1 percent increase over 2009 but short of the agency's goal to remove 400,000 this year.
Still, the administration said its new focus on immigrants with criminal records is paying off, with about half of those deported in 2010 being convicted criminals. In 2009, when 389,834 immigrants were deported, only about one-third of them had criminal records.
"This administration takes very, very seriously the responsibility to secure the borders and enforce immigration laws," Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said in announcing the numbers Wednesday. The fiscal year ended Sept. 30.
The numbers come in the middle of a heated national debate on immigration. Republicans and Democrats alike have called on the administration to pursue more vigorous enforcement, both on the border and in the interior, but Ms. Napolitano said federal officials have to use their limited resources to try to take the biggest public safety threats off the streets, which means focusing on aliens with serious criminal records.
She and Mr. Obama have tried to cut a middle ground between those who favor a crackdown and the immigrant rights groups who want to see fewer deportations.
But by following that new course, ICE has fallen down on other basic enforcement, said Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee.
He said administrative arrests of illegal immigrant workers are down 77 percent under Mr. Obama, criminal arrests are down 60 percent and convictions are down 68 percent.
"Worksite enforcement has been all but forgotten by the Obama administration," the Texas Republican said. "Millions of Americans are struggling to find work, while an estimated 7 million illegal immigrants are working in the U.S. Worksite enforcement could help make those much-needed jobs available for U.S. citizen and legal immigrant workers."
Meanwhile, immigrant rights groups said the government is still not doing enough to limit deportations.
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