Tag: Trump immigration

Migrant parents could face fateful choice: Be separated from their children or stay together in jail

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The federal judge who oversees long-running litigation about the treatment of migrant children in U.S. custody ordered the government Friday to finalize its procedures for providing parents a fateful choice: allow their children to be released to a designated guardian, or remain together in immigration jail.

Such a decision, known informally as “binary choice,” could transform the family migration dynamics that have confounded the Trump administration and the Obama administration before it as successive waves of Central American families crossed the border and overwhelmed U.S. capacity to process their humanitarian claims.

Most important, it would shift the nature of the decision about whether to separate children from their families at the border. Instead of it being up to the government, as it is now, it would be up to the migrant parents. Continue reading.

Trump’s Racist Immigration Policy May Leave Food To ‘Rot In The Fields’

Early signs show that the systems that get fresh fruit and vegetables to American homes is strained and may experience major failures. The Trump administration is only making matters worse, allowing his racism against Mexicans to inflict damage on American farms that depend on legal labor from south of the border.

In Florida, winter crops are rotting in the fields because the prime products like blemish-free squash, spinach and lettuce—sold to restaurants—lack buyers, according to the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association. It offers members extensive advice on how to stay in business during the pandemic.

“Nearly all of our fruits and vegetables are not automated and you need a strong labor force to handpick those crops,” John Walt Boatright of the Florida Farm Bureau Federation told the Palm Beach Post.  “We are hearing a lot of concerns from the blueberry industry and other labor-intensive crops, and working to find a solution.” Continue reading.

Deported to death: US sent 138 Salvadorans home to be killed

At least 138 people deported from the United States to El Salvador since 2013 have been killed, according to a new reportby Human Rights Watch, which investigates human rights abuses worldwide.

The 117-page report also says researchers identified at least 70 deportees who were sexually assaulted, tortured or kidnapped. Many victims were asylum-seekers attacked or killed by the gangs they originally fled.

The findings show that “the U.S. is repeatedly violating its obligations to protect Salvadorans from return to serious risk of harm,” Human Rights Watch says. Continue reading.

Is Immigration at Its Limit? Not for Employers

New York Times logoMIAMI — After finishing a particularly satisfying dinner at a Coral Gables restaurant with his wife, Pedro Martinez quietly slipped around to the back alley where the kitchen is.

“Whatever you’re making, I’ll give you a raise,” Mr. Martinez whispered when the back door swung open. An executive at 50 Eggs, a restaurant group based in Miami, he is always ready with a stack of business cards for occasions like this.

More immigrants have streamed into South Florida than to most American cities, and for decades, employers have relied on them to wash dishes, put up drywall and care for grandmothers. Still, there are not enough to fill Miami’s relentless boomtown demand for workers.

View the complete August 22 article by Patricia Cohen on The New York Times website here.

FACT CHECK: Wardlow Would Use the Attorney General’s Office to Enforce President Trump’s Cruel Immigration Policies

Recent reporting counts the number of children detained at the border at more than 12,800, but Wardlow would enforce Trump’s immigration policies as AG

Minnesota  – During tonight’s Attorney General debate between Congressman Keith Ellison and Doug Wardlow on KSTP, Congressman Keith Ellison reiterated his long-standing belief in a humane immigration policy that treats people fairly while protecting the security of all Americans.

Meanwhile, Republican Doug Wardlow continued to stand by President Trump’s cruel immigration policies, even as recent reporting has shown thatmore than 12,800 children are being detained at the border in recent months.

But Wardlow not only supports the President’s cruel immigration policies, he would use the Attorney General’s Office to enforce them. In a recent WCCO TV interview, Wardlow stated his strong support for President Trump and his immigration policies:

WARDLOW:
“I think it’s very important that the Attorney General work with federal law enforcement to make sure Minnesotans are safe by enforcing our immigration laws”

INTERVIEWER:
“You are a strong supporter of President Trump’s. Do you feel that President Trump’s policies on immigration are right for Minnesota?”

WARDLOW:
“I think they are right for Minnesota.”

Last month, a Wardlow campaign document was released, stating that “Doug Wardlow will institute these duties when he is your MN Attorney General,” including: “Defend President Trump’s agenda in court.”

Minnesotans need an Attorney General who will work for Minnesotans and protect the rights of all families, not someone who will serve President Trump and his cruel policy of family separation.

Past 48 Hours: Trump Pushes Anti-Immigrant Agenda, Lost Track of 1,500 Immigrant Children

The Trump administration continues to push its anti-immigrant agenda. Here’s some of the worst developments over just the past 48 hours alone:

The Trump administration lost track of 1,500 more immigrant children.

New York Times: “The Trump administration is unable to account for the whereabouts of nearly 1,500 migrant children who illegally entered the United States alone this year and were placed with sponsors after leaving federal shelters, according to congressional findings released on Tuesday.”

Trump suggested he would use unilateral executive powers to continue to push his anti-immigrant agenda before the midterms.

The Hill: “President Trump hinted in an interview with Hill.TV that he will use his executive powers to do more on immigration before the midterm elections. ‘I’ll be doing things over the next two weeks having to do with immigration, which I think you’ll be very impressed at,’ the president said during an exclusive 45-minute Oval Office interview on Tuesday with Hill.TV.”

Continue reading “Past 48 Hours: Trump Pushes Anti-Immigrant Agenda, Lost Track of 1,500 Immigrant Children”

New poll is a ‘punch to the gut’ for Trump on immigration

The following article by Oliver WIllis was posted on the ShareBlue.com website July 3, 2018:

New Quinnipiac poll shows America rejecting Trump’s anti-family immigration policies in every way possible.

Trump’s assault on families has landed with a resounding thud among American voters, according to new polling from Quinnipiac.

Trump likes to boast that he is “strong” on immigration — but 58 percent of voters actually oppose his immigration policy, while only 39 percent agree with it.

When asked to describe the Trump administration’s new “zero tolerance” policy that forces families to be separated, the top three responses are “sad,” “terrible,” and “bad.”

View the complete article on the ShareBlue.com website here.

Trump’s favorite pollster shows him tanking after ripping families apart

The following article by Eric Boehlert was posted on the ShareBlue website June 27, 2018:

Trump’s vicious attack on families is only hurting him.

Credit: AP, Susan Walsh

If there were any Republicans left who thought Trump’s plan to heartlessly rip families apart at the border was going to translate into a political win, a wave of new polling data has dashed those dreams.

Not only did Trump’s approval rating drop a net nine points in the latest Gallup poll — the largest one-week decline of his presidency — but Trump’s favorite, Republican-friendly pollster, Rasmussen, now shows him tumbling.

“With the debate over immigration policy continuing, the president’s overall job approval rating has fallen to its lowest level since late March,” Rasmussen notes. Continue reading “Trump’s favorite pollster shows him tanking after ripping families apart”

Fact Check: Trump’s False and Misleading Claims About Germany’s Crime and Immigration

The following article by Christopher F. Schuetze and Michael Wolgelenter was posted on the New York Times website June 18, 2018:

BERLIN — President Trump castigated the German government on Monday for its open-door policy toward migrants, saying that it was responsible for an increase in crime and could conceivably lead to the downfall of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition.

He followed a day later with a second tweet defending his comments and accusing Germany of underreporting crime, saying, “Crime in Germany is up 10% plus (officials do not want to report these crimes) since migrants were accepted.” Continue reading “Fact Check: Trump’s False and Misleading Claims About Germany’s Crime and Immigration”

Laura Bush: Separating children from their parents at the border ‘breaks my heart’

The following commentary by former First Lady Laura Bush was posted on the Washington Post website June 17, 2018:

ProPublica obtained audio from inside a U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility, where children can be heard wailing as they ask for their family members. (ProPublica)

On Sunday, a day we as a nation set aside to honor fathers and the bonds of family, I was among the millions of Americans who watched images of children who have been torn from their parents. In the six weeks between April 19 and May 31, the Department of Homeland Security has sent nearly 2,000 children to mass detention centers or foster care. More than 100 of these children are younger than 4 years old. The reason for these separations is a zero-tolerance policy for their parents, who are accused of illegally crossing our borders. Continue reading “Laura Bush: Separating children from their parents at the border ‘breaks my heart’”