The Costs of Illegal Immigration to Californians: Executive Summary
Analysis of the latest Census data indicates that California’s illegal immigrant population is costing the state’s taxpayers more than $10.5 billion per year for education, medical care and incarceration. Even if the estimated tax contributions of illegal immigrant workers are subtracted, net outlays still amount to nearly $9 billion per year. The annual fiscal burden from those three areas of state expenditures amounts to about $1,183 per household headed by a native-born resident. This analysis looks specifically at the costs to the state for education, health care and incarceration resulting from illegal immigration. These three are the largest cost areas, and they are the same three areas analyzed in a 1994 study conducted by the Urban Institute, which provides a useful baseline for comparison ten years later. Other studies have been conducted in the interim, showing trends that support the conclusions of this report. Read the story here.
Prosecution Makes Impassioned Plea For Death
After a 2 1/2-hour delay, prosecutors in the Scott Peterson case made an impassioned plea Tuesday to jurors for a death sentence before beginning a parade of Laci Peterson’s family members to the stand as the penalty phase of the double murder case began. Peterson starred stoically at Prosecutor David Harris as he spoke of the pain endured by the Rocha family since Laci Peterson’s disappearance from her Modesto home on Christmas Eve 2002. “The circumstances of this crime are like ripples on water,” Harris said. “When the defendant dumped the bodies of his wife and unborn son into the bay those ripples spread out. They touched many lives.” Meanwhile, defense attorney Mark Geragos chose not to make an opening statement. The judge then recessed the court until 1:30 p.m. for lunch. Read the stoey here.
Peterson Penalty Phase Under Way
The sentencing phase of Scott Peterson’s murder trial got off to a delayed start late Tuesday morning. Earlier in the day, Judge Mark Forcum called a bartender and his lawyer, Ian Loveseth, into chambers. Peterson’s defense attorney, Mark Geragos, subpoenaed the bartender on the grounds that he allegedly overheard at least one juror discussing the case in his bar, according to a defense source. Jurors are forbidden from discussing a case they’re on outside the jury room. It was not clear how many jurors were involved, what they talked about or what further connections the bartender had to the trial. It also wasn’t known what exactly was discussed during the meeting with the judge Tuesday morning, though Forcum said the matter was resolved. Peterson, of Modesto, Calif., was convicted Nov. 12 of killing his wife Laci Peterson and their unborn child. The same jury that convicted Peterson of two counts of murder will hear further testimony before deciding to recommend life in prison or death by lethal injection. Read the story here.
Monday, November 29th, 2004
Poor leadership at ICE cited as security threat
U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement’s ability to gather and share intelligence data, conduct the investigations needed to guard the nation’s borders against terrorists and enforce immigration law is being challenged by a growing number of ICE supervisors and agents. Both supervisory and rank-and-file personnel, in numerous interviews, said the Department of Homeland Security agency is overwhelmed by low morale, mismanagement and the lack of a clearly defined mission, and said the lack of effective leadership threatens its ability to defend the United States against a new terrorist attack. At least two congressional committees are reviewing the accusations and have met with ICE supervisors and agents to discuss the matter. Read the story here.
Border agents are bracing for expected surge of immigrants
A renewed focus on immigration reform after the election by the Bush administration is making some Border Patrol agents nervous. They are worried that misinformation about an “amnesty” program will trickle down to prospective immigrants by word-of-mouth, resulting in a surge in illegal immigration similar to the one noted last spring, after President Bush announced plans for a foreign guest-worker program in January. Already there have been increases in apprehensions borderwide during this month, compared to the same period a year ago. While the reason for this increase is unclear, Border Patrol union leaders fear that with recent immigration reform discussions between U.S. and Mexican officials making headlines in both countries, an increase in illegal border-crossing traffic is sure to follow. Read the story here.
Nations ponder uniting benefits
Thousands of workers in the United States and Mexico could be eligible for Social Security benefits under a proposed agreement between the two nations. But Republican members of Congress are concerned that the proposal may benefit illegal immigrants who did not have permission to work in the United States. Under the agreement, Mexican workers who have divided their working lives between the two countries would be eligible for partial U.S. or Mexican retirement benefits based on the combined credits earned from both countries. U.S. citizens working in Mexico also would qualify for partial benefits in both countries. Read the story here.
Wednesday, November 24th, 2004
White House Seeks Deal to Save Intelligence Bill
The White House held out hope on Tuesday that a compromise could be reached on legislation to overhaul American intelligence, as Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, who has been accused of working secretly to scuttle the bill, vowed his support for President Bush’s position. In a Pentagon news conference, Mr. Rumsfeld denied that he had exerted his influence to protect the Defense Department’s sweeping budgetary powers over intelligence. But he said that even the administration’s views on the legislation could shift as Congressional negotiators sought compromise language to revive the bill. “Needless to say, I’m a part of this administration,” Mr. Rumsfeld said. “I support the president’s position.” In Crawford, Tex., a White House spokeswoman said that Mr. Bush’s stance remained unchanged but that the administration was working with members of Congress on legislative language that could accommodate the concerns of House Republicans without diluting the essence of the changes the bill would bring about. Read the story here.
PETA Campaign Pitches Fish As Smart
Touting tofu chowder and vegetarian sushi as alternatives, animal-rights activists have launched a novel campaign arguing that fish – contrary to stereotype – are intelligent, sensitive animals no more deserving of being eaten than a pet dog or cat. Called the Fish Empathy Project, the campaign reflects a strategy shift by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals as it challenges a diet component widely viewed as nutritious and uncontroversial. “No one would ever put a hook through a dog’s or cat’s mouth,” said Bruce Friedrich, PETA’s director of vegan outreach. “Once people start to understand that fish, although they come in different packaging, are just as intelligent, they’ll stop eating them.” Read the story here.
Suicide Is Behind Homeowners’ Suit
They had been told that a prior owner had killed himself in the backyard, but Troy and Maysoun Fletcher did their best to forget about it when they moved into their Mission Viejo home. It wasn’t until a month later, when a mold inspector poking through the garage stepped into dried blood and what appeared to be human tissue near the water heater, that the couple realized there was a lot they didn’t know about their first house. The Fletchers feared that every time they turned on the heater or air conditioner, toxins were being spread through the house. “It was beyond disgusting,” said Maysoun Fletcher, 29. The Orange County couple have since filed suit, claiming they were not told that a previous occupant had killed himself in the attached garage and that the decaying tissue left behind had spread toxic mold throughout the house, which was built in 1981. Read the story here.
Budget includes funds for shrimp, fertilizer and rock
The spending plan awaiting President Bush’s signature is packed with them, doling out $4 million for an Alabama fertilizer development center, $1 million each for a Norwegian American Foundation in Seattle and a “Wild American Shrimp Initiative,” and more—much more. Despite soaring deficits, lawmakers who approved the $388 billion package last weekend set plenty of money aside for home-district projects like these, knowing they sow goodwill among special interests and voters. They also raised the ire of Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, a pork-barrel critic who took to the Senate floor to ask whether shrimp are so unruly and lacking initiative that the government must spend $1 million on them. Read the story here.
Declaration of Independence Banned at Calif School
A California teacher has been barred by his school from giving students documents from American history that refer to God—including the Declaration of Independence. Steven Williams, a fifth-grade teacher at Stevens Creek School in the San Francisco Bay area suburb of Cupertino, sued for discrimination on Monday, claiming he had been singled out for censorship by principal Patricia Vidmar because he is a Christian. “It’s a fact of American history that our founders were religious men, and to hide this fact from young fifth-graders in the name of political correctness is outrageous and shameful,” said Williams’ attorney, Terry Thompson. “Williams wants to teach his students the true history of our country,” he said. “There is nothing in the Establishment Clause (of the U.S. Constitution) that prohibits a teacher from showing students the Declaration of Independence.” Read the story here. You can call the Principal, Patricia Vidmar, at (408) 245-3312.
Tuesday, November 23rd, 2004
Many Women Say Airport Pat-Downs Are a Humiliation
At a security checkpoint recently at the Fort Lauderdale airport, Patti LuPone, the singer and actress, recalled, she was instructed to remove articles of clothing. “I took off my belt; I took off my clogs; I took off my leather jacket,” she said. “But when the screener said, ‘Now take off your shirt,’ I hesitated. I said, ‘But I’ll be exposed.’ ” When she persisted in her complaints, she said, she was barred from her flight. Heather L. Maurer, a business executive from Washington, had a similar experience at Logan Airport in Boston recently. And a few weeks ago, Jenepher Field, 71, who walks with the aid of a cane, was subjected to a breast pat-down at the airport outside Kansas City, Mo. These women and a good many others, both frequent and occasional travelers, say they are furious about recent changes in airport security that have increased both the number and the intensity of pat-downs at the nation’s 450 commercial airports. And they are not keeping quiet. Read the story here.
Area Immigration Booming
More than 34 million immigrants now live in the United States, 10 million of them illegally, according to recent census numbers that show big gains in local and national foreign-born populations. The Washington-Baltimore area, which has the strongest metropolitan economy in the nation, now has nearly 1.3 million immigrants, an increase of 379,000 since 2000, according to a report to be released today by the Center for Immigration Studies. The flow of people into the country has continued at a significant pace despite an economic slowdown, which traditionally discourages migration, and despite restrictions on immigration and more stringent security in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001. Read the story here.
Baca: Federal funds lacking
The $388 billion spending package Congress just approved will do little to relieve California of the crippling financial burden of jailing illegal immigrants, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said Monday. The House and Senate approved allocating $305 million for state and local governments nationwide that shoulder the costs of incarcerating undocumented aliens convicted of crimes. Los Angeles County received just $13.5 million last year, he said, and expects to receive only slightly more this year. California expects to spend more than $600 million, with the cost of jailing illegal immigrants in Los Angeles County running from $80 million to $100 million. “It’s really not adequate,” Baca said in a phone interview. “The magnitude of illegal immigrants in prisons and local jails in the United States is huge. It’s well over $1 billion of costs.” Read the story here.
Monday, November 22nd, 2004
Judge Rejects Peterson Motions; Geragos To Appeal
The same jury that convicted Scott Peterson of killing his pregnant wife and the fetus she carried will also determine whether he lives or dies for his crimes, a judge ruled Monday. Also, the judge delayed the start of Monday’s penalty phase until Nov. 30, citing discovery issues between attorneys in exchanging evidence.Defense lawyer Mark Geragos argued that a new jury was needed after panelists were released from sequestration and sent out into the community, where he said they have been tainted by intense media coverage. Geragos also cited the ousting of two jurors in as many days during deliberations, noting that one, the jury’s foreman, told the judge there had been threats to his safety and talk in the jury room of the “popular verdict, the expected verdict.” Read the story here.
Bush Renews Migrant Pledge
President Bush vowed Sunday to push a plan that would allow undocumented immigrants to remain in the United States as guest workers even though it appears less likely to win backing in a Congress that grew more conservative in this month’s elections. Bush made the commitment during a half-hour meeting with Mexican President Vicente Fox in the Chilean capital, where the two leaders are attending the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference. But neither Bush nor his aides could offer any details of where the plan stood on Capitol Hill. “I told President Fox that I had campaigned on this issue,” Bush told reporters as he sat with Fox in the Hyatt Regency hotel in an upscale Santiago neighborhood with views of the snow-capped Andes mountains. Read the story here.
Web site reports on immigrants
From 1,000 miles away, Rhonda Roseto sought to deport a Santa Ana maid she’s never met. Roseto logged on to her home computer in Denver after reading an Orange County Register story about Maria Duran, an undocumented Mexican immigrant. Roseto went to the Web site reportillegals.com to file a report she hoped would send Duran back across the border. For $10, the for-profit Web site reports suspected illegal immigrants to federal authorities. Complaints are free if the immigrant’s status surfaces in a news article, as in Duran’s case. She had attended a march supporting driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants. Read the story here.
Fans, Players May Face Charges Over Fight
Fans, players and other team personnel could face criminal charges for their roles in a brawl that broke out at the end of an Indiana Pacers-Detroit Pistons game at The Palace of Auburn Hills, a prosecutor said on Monday. Oakland County Prosecutor David Gorcyca said he repeatedly viewed a videotape of the melee at Friday night’s game. He said authorities have identified and questioned a fan who they say threw a cup that hit Indiana’s Ron Artest and started the brawl. A resident of West Bloomfield Township confirmed in a telephone conversation with Auburn Hills police that he is that fan, Gorcyca said Monday. However, he failed to show up for a scheduled in-person interview, and authorities have lost contact with him. Read the story here. See the fight here.
Friday, November 19th, 2004
Congressman Gary Miller
Congressman Miller made the following argument on the House floor opposing an amendment allowing U.S. banks to accept, as proof of identity, easily forged ID cards issued by the Mexican government to illegal immigrants living in the United States: I rise today in opposition to the amendment offered by my friends, Chairman Oxley and Ranking Member Frank of the House Financial Services Committee. No matter how you spin it, the fact of the matter is that this amendment is about making it easier for illegal immigrants to remain in the United States. Read more here. Tonight at 5pm, John & Ken will speak to Congressman Miller about the Bush Amnesty plan.
Norwood targets Bush illegals plan
The author of a House bill giving 600,000 state and local police officers authority to enforce federal immigration law wants the Bush administration to abandon plans to grant guest-worker status to millions of illegal aliens now living and working in the United States. Rep. Charlie Norwood, Georgia Republican and chief sponsor of the Clear Law Enforcement for Alien Removal Act (CLEAR Act), joined with 21 other House Republicans this week in urging President Bush not to grant what they called amnesty to illegal aliens, saying it would be “detrimental to our national and economic security.” “There is absolutely no doubt this nation’s immigration system is badly broken and needs repair in the worst way,” Mr. Norwood said. “But disregarding the immigration laws already on the books and giving legal status to individuals entering America illegally would only make the problem much worse. Read the story here.
Diplomats: Iran is processing gas with nuclear potential
Iran is spending the last few days before it must stop all work related to uranium enrichment converting tons of ore into a dual-use gas that could then be processed to make nuclear weapons, diplomats said Friday. Iran recently started producing uranium hexafluoride at its gas processing facilities in Isfahan, the diplomats told The Associated Press. When introduced into centrifuges and spun, the substance can be enriched to low levels for use as fuel to generate electricity or to levels high enough to make weapons-grade uranium that forms the core of nuclear warheads. Read the story here.
The Polar Express
Want to see what $165 million buys you these days in animated technology? Then here’s my advice – don’t see this movie in just any old theatre, see it in “IMAX 3-D”. Hmmmm, don’t have one of those just around the corner from you? That could be part of the problem here.
Still, all in all, it’s a nice tale about a boy who’s reaching the age of “Santa skepticism”, and to maybe turn him around, he takes a ride on “The Polar Express”, to see what it’s all about. Tom Hanks takes on multiple roles here, but the prime one is playing the train conducter.
The story is set during Christmas Eve, and the boy, apparently disregarding his parent’s advice to “never take a ride from a stranger”, boards the train to find other kids all on their way to The North Pole. There’s a cute black girl, a nerdy, annoying, know-it-all boy with glasses, and the kid from the “wrong side of the tracks” (yes, “trailer trash”) who has never had a proper Christmas. (more…) 
