Blog: Think Immigration
We believe that immigration law is an integral part of America’s past, present and future. We also know that immigration law is complicated. Here you’ll find experts writing in an accessible way about immigration issues, from big, broad ideas down to specific cases. Our members bring knowledge they’ve gleaned from the daily practice of immigration law to this space and offer their expertise to readers.
Browse the Blog: Think Immigration collection
Senator Grassley and H-1Bs–What’s the Deal?
You have to ask yourself, what is the deal with Senator Grassley and H-1B visas? Most of us have seen Senator Grassley's rather bizarre and factually inaccurate letter to Director Mayorkas, a mere two months into Director Mayorkas's term as Director of USCIS. The question we have to ask is why write
Immigration and The Media—A Public Forum, A Spirited Debate, and An Excellent Meal
Are they “illegal aliens“ or “undocumented noncitizens“?Are representatives of certain anti-immigrant groups credible media sources or racist hate mongers not to be quoted by credible print and electronic media?What is the role of responsible journalism in the public debate about our bad
RFE Hell and Increased USCIS Filing Fees
Dear Director Mayorkas: Last week in a speech you broached the subject of the possible need to increase filing fees because of a decrease in the number of applications received by USCIS this fiscal year. You also noted that there was over $100 million shortfall in your budget because of these decrea
Enough Is Enough
CNN has a journalistic obligation to dump Lou Dobbs and his campaign of hate against immigrants. It is unthinkable that a major network would permit someone to build a career based on fear and hatred of human beings.Why the double standard when it comes to immigrants? As Janet Murguia, the President
Due Process Restoration Now!
There has been a lot of talk recently about what might be included in an immigration reform bill. Will there be a legalization/amnesty/forgiveness of “lawbreakers“ rule? Will there be an expansion of employment based and family based immigrant visa numbers to solve the economically devastating
LIAR! What Does Health Care Have To Do With Immigration
During President Obama's address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, Congressman Joe Wilson (R. SC), shouted “LIAR!“ when President Obama stated that the proposed health care plan would not cover “illegal aliens.“ Now, Joe Wilson said he should know this because he once was an imm
9/11/2001 and U.S. Immigration
It does not seem possible that eight years could have passed since that terrible day when the U.S. was attacked. 9/11 marked many lasting changes here in the U.S., but it has forever changed how the issue of immigration is viewed. Immigration through an enforcement only lens has led to an incredible
Have you Given Your Input to DHS Yet?
Right now, the DHS is in the middle of its Quadrennial review, where, apparently all areas that DHS works on are subject to public comment and discussion. If you go to this page you can comment directly on a variety of DHS, including immigration issues. We understand that these comments are given di
America’s Shrinking Immigration Advantage
Today's guest blogger is William Stock, member of AILA's Board of Governors and partner in the law firm Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer Employers who rely on foreign nationals to provide needed expertise in their workforce - from technical programmers to biochemists to wind turbine engineers - should
Vendors to the Federal Government Face E-Verify Mandate
Today's guest blogger is Kevin Lashus, Senior Attorney with FosterQuan, LLP in its Austin, Texas office. On 8/25/09, a federal district judge for the District of Maryland denied the US Chamber of Commerce's challenge to an amendment to the Federal Appropriation Regulation-originally mandated by a Bu
Senator Kennedy–An Immigration Hero
Much will be said about Senator Kennedy's passing over the next few days. My own personal experiences with the Senator were limited, but were nonetheless emblematic of what Senator Kennedy was to many-an Immigration Hero. My last opportunity to be with Senator Kennedy happened about 4 years ago, whe
Immigration Reform Would Boost US Economy
The Center for Trade Policy Studies issued a report which claims that an immigration reform program which included a legalization would save literally billions of dollars over the current policy of enforcement only. In Restriction or Legalization? Measuring the Economic Benefits of Immigration Refor
The Healthcare “Debate” and Immigration Reform
Unless you have had your head buried in the sand for the last thirty days, you are aware that America is having a national “Debate“ on healthcare reform. That is if you call a “debate“ yelling at each other, accusing the other side of the “debate“ of being a Nazi, a socialist, a bi
USCIS–H-1B Investigations Run Amok!
As many of our members know, the USCIS is like a Jekyll and Hyde creation. With one face, USCIS happily grants benefits, issues approvals, and welcomes people as citizens. With the other face UCSIS distrusts everyone, believes there is a lie on every application, and looks for ways to disqualify cle
This Is Not Immigration Reform
David W. Leopold President-Elect, AILA Unfortunately Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano seems more intent on continuing to target undocumented workers—the victims of a broken immigration system—rather than the bad-actor employers who attract them to the U.S. and then exploit them through l
State Legislatures–We need to pay attention
Today's report from the National Council for State Legislatures on the 2009 legislation related to immigration provides a stark view into the minds of local politicos on the issue of immigration: While national attention on immigration has declined, state legislatures are deliberating record levels
MPI’s Provisional Visa System—A Good Concept But The Devil Is In The Details
By Deborah J. Notkin, AILA Past President This month, Migration Policy Institute rolled out its immigration reform proposal entitled Aligning Temporary Immigration Visas with US Labor Market Needs: The Case for a New System of Provisional Visas. The report acknowledges the current misguided requirem
A Tale of Two Villages
Take 15 minutes today and watch this very moving Frontline documentary about the devastating effect of the Postville, Iowa ICE raid on the town and on the two villages in Guatemala where the immigrants came from. http://bit.ly/GWBVu The Postville operation was the largest ICE raid in U.S. history an
You, Sir, Are No Thomas Paine
Guest blog by AILA Board member Jerome Grzeca, Grzeca Law Group, S.C. In just 4 months since its original posting, over 6 million people have tuned in to You Tube to see actor Bob Basso take on the role of Founding Father Thomas Paine in the video titled, “We the People Stimulus Package.“ View
The Immigration “Commission”: Poison Pill?
AILA Past President and current Board of Governors member, Deb Notkin, posts on the idea of “Immigration Commission.“ It sounds like a reasonable idea: Create an expert “commission“ of immigration to determine labor market needs and adjust flows accordingly. But looking deeper calls into
287(g), Immigration Enforcement and the Census
Today, the New York Times opined on the late Friday afternoon announcement from DHS/ICE that 287(g) authorization was granted to an additional 11 law enforcement agencies, including one here in my home state of Georgia. Gwinnett County, which has had the distinction for the last 10 years of being on
Immigration And Blogs
Because the concept of “immigration“ is so broad it touches virtually every aspect of life today in America. Whether it is health care, the environment, crime, or sports, the discussion almost always come back to immigration. That said, there are a number of terrific blogs in the “blogospehere
The Senate is at it again! Hold Onto your INA!!!
The Senators are coming, the Senators are coming! That's right, the Senate is debating the DHS Appropriations bill right now, and immigration amendments are being offered. I blogged about the Sessions E-Verify proposal yesterday. Well bill, that passed by voice vote this morning, but not before the
Employers Beware: ICE Commences Nation-wide Audit of Business Immigration Records
Guest blog by Josie Gonzalez, Gonzalez & Harris U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced today that it is issuing 652 Notices of Inspection (NOIs) to businesses in order to audit I-9 records that contain information regarding an employee's right to work legally in the U.S. ICE was qu
There He Goes Again–Sessions and E-Verify
Senator Sessions cannot leave his hands off of E-Verify. Now in “stealth“ mode, Senator Sessions has slyly introduced an E-Verify amendment (SB 1371) during today's full Senate vote on the DHS appropriations bill. The Sessions amendment calls for a permanent reauthorization of the Basic Pilot/