Monday, June 15, 2009

Is Obama holding up E-Verify?


Legislators and advocates are questioning President Obama's commitment to enforcing immigration laws after, again, delaying when federal contractors need to adhere to an order to use an employment-verification system designed to identify illegal immigrants.

Originally scheduled to go into effect last January, the Obama administration rescheduled for June 1. The order to use E-Verify has now been pushed back until Sept. 15.

The administration says it gives the president more time to review the program.

E-Verify is a free program that allows employers to verify applicants’ Social Security numbers with federal databases. We reported last month that more and more N.C. employers are signing up for the program amidst warnings from the government that it is going after unscrupulous employers.

Obama’s own Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano, has been on Capitol Hill for months advocating for the program.

“I've seen it work,” Napolitano told a congressional hearing in May. “I used it as a governor. We intend to make it, like I said, an integral part of our ongoing workplace enforcement.”
But with no requirements in place for federal contractors, critics are questioning whether the strong rhetoric is more bark than bite.

"The same administration that rushed through the most massive spending bill in history before anyone had a chance to read it claims to need months of delay to review regulations for a program that state and local governments are already using successfully," said Dan Stein, president of Federation for American Immigration Reform, which supports greater immigration enforcement. "The fact that we are facing yet another delay demonstrates that gaining amnesty for people who broke our immigration laws remains a higher priority for President Obama than the plight of millions of unemployed Americans."

Some U.S. representatives like Republicans Ken Calvert of California and Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida are calling on the president to implement E-Verify immediately.

“Frankly, I cannot understand what there is to review,” Brown-Waite said in a statement. “E-Verify… has been in operation since 1997. Furthermore, President Obama was a United States Senator for four years and has had ample time to learn about the E-Verify program.”

Opponents say the program ensnares American job-seekers in database errors, adds to employers' costs and does not actually prevent undocumented immigrants from getting jobs.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated that expanding E-Verify could cost $17 billion over the next 10 years.

Tyler Moran of the National Immigration Law Center said the system "simply isn't ready for prime time." He points to a 2007 study commissioned by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that states improvements are needed and the program's "still not sufficiently up to date."

But U.S. officials say many of E-Verify’s earlier problems have been fixed and that the program now has a 96 percent accuracy rate.

Said Rep. Calvert: “When Americans are losing jobs, we should be doing everything we can to ensure that federal funds are going to employ American citizens and legal workers – not illegal immigrants.”

Photo: Mandi Bickes of ResourceMFG interviews a client. The company has enrolled in E-Verify. T.ORTEGA GAINES-ogaines@charlotteobserver.com

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

Obama's kissing Hispanic butts for their votes I guess.

Anonymous said...

National Immigration Law Center=leftwing pro illegal immigration group.financed as a tax write off

Anonymous said...

Rep. Calvert was correct in saying “When Americans are losing jobs, we should be doing everything we can to ensure that federal funds are going to employ American citizens and legal workers – not illegal immigrants.”

I think E-Verify should be required of ALL employers in the US and employers should be held accountable for making sure all workers are checked.

Anonymous said...

Obama's kissing Hispanic butts for their votes I guess.

+1

Anonymous said...

I don't know really know anything about E-Verify. My only interaction with those people are when they cut my lawn and the lady that cleans my homes. I like Mexican food if that helps.

Anonymous said...

i totally agree that employers need to verify immigration status before hiring! but what about the news agencies (tv and print) that go out and interview illegals and then protect them? shouldn't we all be enforcing the laws of this country?

Anonymous said...

This is the hope and change pin they voted into office.

Anonymous said...

Obama's kissing Hispanic butts for their votes I guess.

+2

Anonymous said...

People who hire the illegals are part of the problem, hire an American to cut the grass and clean your house.

Anonymous said...

Why is this even as issue? A GOOD President, who looks out for his country would have had this in place from the beginning. The way the US treats illegals is sickening. No other country in the world lets illegals use the tax payers resources. Shameful.

Left wing = pro ILLEGAL immigration... is right on! They depend on it for false votes.

Michael said...

There shouldn't be a question mark after your title. Of course, Obama *is* holding up E-Verify.

One can only guess why, but more than likely he doesn't want to upset the Hispanic community. Or, doesn't want to upset the greedy businesses that depend on cheap illegal labor. He's probably bowing to both. That's just too bad. President Obama needs to set an example and do everything in his power to see that our laws are being executed. He is, afterall, in the *Executive* branch, the head executive in charge.

I can't believe people are going to tolerate this much longer, this will start to affect certain politicians at the polls.

Speak up, people. Let the politicians know we are not going to tolerate lax enforcement of our laws and lax protection of our borders. We've had enough.

I do give you credit, Franco, for posting this. Although, it's about time you posted something on *legal* immigrants and how they did things the *legal* way.



TWISTED TIDINGS
http://twisted-tidings.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

Franco:

Please change the description under your name to correctly state that you write about "illegal" immigration. It is misinforming to state you write about immigration.

Anonymous said...

The reason it has not passed is the contractors are all illegal! What gets me is Obama said his administration would create thousands of jobs like contractors for building greener Federal buildings. We all know that the majority of construction jobs are all undocumented workers who are supervised by Americans. All this spending isn't creating jobs for Americans, just sinking us further in debt. I still see more and more companies shutting down across the US and taking up residence in other countries. We must stop buying "Made in China" but everything is made there so we are screwed either way. Maybe, we should start defecting this country that caters to those who want us destroyed.

Brittanicus said...

Do I have it wrong? Are the politicians we elect in office, supposedly work for the majority of the American people? Isn't that what their oath of allegiance is to protect and represent--THE PEOPLE? Isn't that what they get paid humongous salaries for, including platinum heath care and extended lists of benefits? Yet these creeps have confused illegal immigrants, with the legal population of this country? Where illegal immigration is concerned, they have cheated the taxpayer? Not only have the legislators made it a civil offense, to unlawfully enter these United States without being inspected for contagious diseases or to investigate their character for criminal backgrounds--WHEN IT SHOULD BE A FELONY LIKE MEXICO AND EVEN INDUSTRIALIZED NATIONS? Liberal judges have sacrificed our citizenship laws, so any pregnant female who gives birth. The baby is automatically granted citizenship. In truth this was meant for slaves after the Civil war when emancipated. This has led to hundreds of thousands of impoverished women, collecting citizen welfare checks, low income housing and a long list of benefits.

But by mandated law, we have to pay for their education, housing, emergency room activities, but also a very large population of foreign nationals branding in our prison system. Everything that is welfare is given to them, whereas American citizens must express a need or are denied, or haunted by debt collectors and bankruptcy. Doesn't the balance of our laws, seem to be one-sided, that gives the advantage to business who hire them as cheap labor? It's far too late to blame previous administrations, but the current one run by a majority of liberal Democrats have already crafted a new path to citizenship, for lawbreakers. Why should they get yet another priority when honest foreigners await patiently their turn, to enter on a permanent residency visa? This is not just about immigration as a whole or part, but OVERPOPULATION.

We know that the Sen. Harry Reid's and Nancy Pelosi's will lie to the American people and they are well and truly hypocrites. Not so long ago Harry Reid was a zealot against the illegal immigration invasion? To he defies all sense of his loyalty to the American worker, slaughtering and under funding E-Verify. This being a sensible, reliable tool, to eject illegal aliens from the workplace. This crowd of Democrats have allowed an estimated 300.000 illegal aliens to take stimulus jobs, plus used their political influence to impair many new immigration laws, such as abandoning ICE raids. It should be noted, that very few executives who hire illegal immigrants never see a prison cell? Their is little doubt in my mind, that the general public are going to be ignored, when it comes to an imminent AMNESTY E-Verify will be dropped, so will any heavy enforcement at the border, the National guard, so that the current waves of poor people will have easy access to jobs.

Any rumor of AMNESTY will entertain even more millions upon millions skirting the border patrol, hoping to be part of a path to citizenship or BLANKET AMNESTY? You cannot listen to the open border, free trade fanatics, businesses, faith based and radical groups as they all have something to--GAIN-- as they are ready to undermine any new laws that enforce immigration law. Digest more of the facts and unbiased truth at NUMBERSUSA, JUDICIAL WATCH, CAPSWEB, and ALIPAC. At AMERICANPATROL, learn about the massive upsurge on illegal alien criminal activity.

Anonymous said...

Right after his aunt who has already been up for deportation twice becomes legal now thanks to her powerful nephew. Gotta love politics.

Anonymous said...

Franco has to write about illegal immigration, because there is no news in the legal side. The people who do it the right way don't have nearly has much drama as those parasitic illegals. I agree, he should change the subtitle to ILLEGAL immigration. They are like roaches - fast breeding and destructive.

Anonymous said...

Remember the motto of the National Immigration Law Center, it is the same as ACORN. "Vote Early and Vote Often. Very Often."...

Anonymous said...

Why is it taking so long for Washington to do something about ILLEGALS? They are costing taxpayers too much for medical costs, benefits which they shouldn't get, court costs, and most of them don't pay taxes. Most of them don't have a license or insurance,and some of them get caught driving drunk. If they get arrested and go to jail, check then to see if they are legal or illegal, and if they are illegal send them back home before we have to pay to keep them up in jail or prison. Every greedy lawmaker that wants their votes should be voted out. We have stupid lawmakers that don't have any common sense. They don't care about these people, they just want their votes. It's time to vote them out. Some of them have been in office too long. We elect them to work for us but instead they help themselves and get fat pockets. They are rich and arrogant and don't care about anything or anybody except themselves. It's time for them to take the money they have made off of taxpayers and say Bye Bye.

Anonymous said...

The bigoted manipulative racism of Obama and Co. clearly plan to reduce the white population to a minority to get 8 yrs plus control the WH for decades to come with illegal overpopulation and misgenation.

This will antagonize white Anglicans and white Latinos who will seceed from America and form their own new nation taking away the wealth and tax base leaving America a 3rd world cesspool nation like Rhodesia or South Africa where private land has been confiscated as murder rape crime and mayhem against whites have taken over with 3rd world conditions.

There are some who believe 150 million or so disenchanted whites will buy a region in Mexico or possibly Brazil where they can utilize the tens millions of red labor force for cheap labor at good pay scales and abandon America before things get out of hand.

Everything in the formulative stages.

Anonymous said...

The simple solution is to start prosecuting employers that hire illegals. Start with the obvious cases of food processing plants, garden maintenance, restaurants. The problem is that all of these companies donate a lot of money to elected officials, so the citizen's intestests take second (or last) place to the interest of illegal foreigners. I'm SO tired of hearing how oppressed they are. If the employers stop hiring them (and enabling illegal behavior) then they'll eventually go back to their own countries.

Is there a number where illegals can be reported? That'd be a great service to provide to citizens.

Anonymous said...

Obama's "Hope and Change"?

I just hope it changes!!!!

Anonymous said...

Franco:

Please change the description under your name to correctly state that you write about "illegal" immigration. It is misinforming to state you write about immigration.



_______

+1

Anonymous said...

I wish all americans that are against the illegals being in the US would fill the mailboxes with letters to the President, Congress, Senators, and the lawmakers in Raleigh and let them know how the taxpayers feel about illegals being here and we want something done about it before they take over. It just might get their attention. I'm going to write Obama and let him know how I feel about a lot of things that are going on in Washington. Another subject we should let them know about is if we get healthcare for everyone, every lawmaker should have to pay for his or her own healthcare insurance. It is ridiculous that taxpayers are paying for the lawmakers healthcare when some of the taxpayers don't have healthcare.
Their needs to be big cutbacks in Washington and Raleigh for the lawmakers. Taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for anything for these lawmakers. Charlie Gibson gave a report last week on "It's Your Money" on how much it's costing taxpayers for the trips that senators in Washington are taking on private jets. A senator from Texas had one of the highest amounts of taxpayers money spent for his trips and it was in the thousands. We pay taxes, the lawmakers waste it, then they want us to pay more. What arrogant b@#$%#ds. I guess they forget that we voted for them to serve us not themselves. Please, lets not keep voting these same people in.

Anonymous said...

A couple of corrections to your article.

First, E-verify only checks for work eligibility, not immigration status.

Second, if I decided to use E-verify, I CAN NOT use E-verify during the pre-employment process. I must hire that person, have them report to work and then I can run them through E-verify.

Then, one of three things can happen, they are confirmed as being employment eligible, then everything is fine. They can be found non-conforming and I must terminate them immediately. The third thing is they are temporarily confroming which means I must employ them until I hear back from E-verify that they are conforming or non-conforming. This can take from a few days to six months. After training an employee for six months, you are required to terminate them.

As part of E-verify, the employer is required to sign a memorandum of understanding. Since 1997, I have had three different immigration attorneys tell me not to sign this agreement. It basically absolves the Federal Government from any liability and leaves the employer hanging for any discrimination claims or claims of unlawful discharge.

Finally, South Carolina does not require all employers to use E-verify. On January 1, 2009 all public employers were required to either use E-verify, must require a valid South Carolina driver's license, ID, or any other documents accepted by the DMV. You may currently accept diver's licenses from twenty-three other states as approved by the Department of Labor. North Carolina is NOT one of those states.

Employers with more than 150 employees must comply with these requirements by July 1, 2009. Employers with less than 150 employees must comply by July 1, 2010. Last year and in the new budget the General Assembly has not funded this program so the issue is mute.

Once you sign up for E-verify, you MUST check every NEW employee, even your own children, through E-verify. You are not allowed to check current employees. This is a violation of Federal Law.

Anonymous said...

Of course he's not holding this up. He will do whatever is necessary to protect our country's borders and protect American jobs! He is, after all, our President. He certainly will put American citizens' interests first. Won't he??

Anonymous said...

Obama's aunt is an illegal alien.
She lived in state funded public housing. When they found out she was illegal they threw her out. Then she moved into a federally funded public housing. They can't check your immigration status. Even though it's a federal law you are breaking.
Makes absolutely no since.
Tax payer money to give free housing to illegals!

Anonymous said...

I have a question. Let's say I have a common name and that my identity is frequently confused with someone else. Can I go on the E-Verify site and find out whether it thinks I have the right to work in the US? I want to be sure it thinks I'm ok, so I can fix the problem before I apply for a job.

I don't think I can do this, though I might be wrong. If I can't do it, I think this is a problem.

Anonymous said...

Barry has been in office for what, about 150 days, and he's dealing with the worst financial crisis in 80 years. Bush did nothing major about immigration for 8 years. NADA. NUNCA (In Spanish for you). NOTHING. I guess Bush was just too inept or also trying to hatch a diabolical plan get that hispanic vote for the Rep?

And to the lunatic talking about "white-anglos" buying a piece of Brazil or Mexico. You are totally off your rocker.

Anonymous said...

Obama is doing EXACTLY what bush did during his 8 miserable years. Nothing!!! Politicians are ONLY interested in maintaining their attained position with its accompanying power and perks.Obama promised change, but has basically kept going inthe SAME direction as bush with very little deviaiton from the "course" that bush stayed. Limitless crying, whining and lieing fromt he right wing doe NOT change this fact. I voted for Obama hoping to abandon the ways of bush and his cronies that have left our nation at the brink of disaster-I HAVE BEEN DISAPPOINTED. It is STILL government of the people, by big business for big business. Big business wants unreasonably cheap labor despite the damage it does to our cities and economy, so THE ILLEGALS ARE HERE TO STAY. I expected bush to sign a presidential order giving them ALL HERE NOW amnesty at any minute. I am now waiting for Obama to issue that SAME order.

Anonymous said...

10:07
Sad but probably true.

Retired Vet said...

If anyone thinks Obama and the Democrats want to ever support American citizens jobs over Illegals, you are deluded!

SandT said...

O h
B ummer
A nother
M exican
A dvocate

Fits...don't you think?

Anonymous said...

Lets break the myth and stop degrading the use of Latino and Hispanic.

These illegals are NOT real Latinos and not real Hispanics and never have been.

They are Asian red mongoloids referred to as indians who crossed the Bering Strait to get here 2500 yrs ago creating the Aztec and Incan empires.

They are NOT of the elite European caucasoid Latino and Spanish white race.

This misconception needs to be clarified over and over until America and especially mongoloids understand the truth and real history.

Spain is a wealthy elite white modern 1st world European caucasoid race nation and always has been.

Spanish is a European language derivative of Latin or Latino the language the original Bible was written in in the 3rd century putting together the Torah and NT to complete what was referred to as white man religion based in Rome Italy at the Vatican.

Spanish is NOT a red mongoloid Asian language but has been adopted only because the former Aztecs and Incans were conquered 500 yrs ago by brave Latinos like Cortes and Pizarro after a brave heroic Euro Latino named Columbus discovered these western continents later named for another European Latino Americus Vespucia.

Forget the brainwash lies about the white man Latino or Anglican bringing disease to the red pagan cannibal heathen savages. This is pc mindwash.

The illegal reds need to be called Mexicans. This is the name they adopted in 1821 after getting their independence to replace New Spain who ruled 350 yrs and still do.

Mexico is a modern democracy only because of Latino Hispanic Spain.