DHS Ends TPS for Hondurans

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) granted to Hondurans in the United States. This status allows foreigners to stay in the U.S. if their countries have suffered natural disasters or some other calamity. They are supposed to go home after conditions improve. The Hondurans received TPS in 1999 after a hurricane struck their country. Critics of TPS it is anything but temporary, and point to the fact Honduras recovered from the hurricane quite some time before now.

Poll: Americans Want Less Immigration

A survey by The Polling Company Inc. found that most Americans want less immigration. People surveyed were told that the U.S. now admits one million legal immigrants  a year, and were given six options as to how many they thought should be admitted. The largest percentage (49 percent) chose 250,000 or less. Only 17 percent supported the current level or more. By a margin of 63 percent to 20 percent, respondents opposed an amnesty for illegal aliens in the DACA category unless there were substantial cuts in legal immigration and the requirement that businesses use the E-Verify system to determine if the workers they hire are legal residents.

Orban Pushes Amendment

With his party now holding two-thirds of the Hungarian parliament, Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban is pushing for a constitutional amendment to limit immigration. The amendment would prevent enactment of policies by the European Union that would change the religious and ethnic makeup of Hungary.  Said Orban, "We will defend [our] Christian culture, and we will not give the country to foreigners. I feel obliged to implement this constitutional amendment now." The Prime Minister also accused billionaire currency speculator George Soros of being a major force to erase European identity with mass migration. "George Soros," said Orban, "has an army of shadows working in Hungary. We want to unmask it. We want to show that migration is not a human rights issue, but a national security issue."

Illegal Immigration Increases

Illegal immigration across the Mexican border was 230 percent higher during April of this year than April of 2017. A major reason is that illegal aliens are becoming more aware of the "catch and release" policy the Border Patrol has to follow. Illegal aliens who claim asylum under this policy are commonly released on their promise to show up for an asylum hearing. Often they don't show up. Their claim was just a ruse to get into the U.S. Brandon Judd, president of the Border Patrol Council, estimates that 75 percent of illegal aliens apprehended by the Border Patrol get catch and release. This loophole, he maintains, encourages illegal immigration. He noted , "If you can cross the border illegally without any consequence, why not? As long as the catch and release policy-program exists, large numbers of people are going to cross the border illegally."

Texas Leads Challenge to DACA

Texas is leading a legal challenge to the DACA amnesty, a legalization of some illegal aliens unilaterally decreed by former President Obama. President Trump has tried to phase out DACA, but recent federal court rulings have upheld the program. The action of Texas, joined by Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina and West Virginia, will serve as a challenge to those rulings. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton stated that "Texas has argued for years that the federal executive branch lacks the power to unilaterally grant unlawfully present aliens lawful presence and work authorization. Left intact, DACA sets a dangerous precedent by giving the executive branch sweeping authority to ignore the laws passed by Congress and change our nation's immigration laws to suit a president's own policy preferences."

Taxpayers Fund Illegal Alien Health Care

Although federal policy seeks to prevent illegal aliens from accessing taxpayer-funded health care, specifically Medicaid and Obamacare, they still receive substantial support for the use of medical services. An article in Forbes magazine calculates that "All told Americans cross-subsidize health care for unauthorized immigrants to the tune of $18.5 billion a year. O this total, federal taxpayers provided $11.2 billion in subsidized care to unauthorized immigrants in 2016."

Migrant ‘Caravan’ Arrives at Border

More than one hundred and fifty members of the migrant "caravan" have arrived at the U.S. border at Tijuana, Mexico. They will try to gain entry into the United States by claiming asylum. Critics of this strategy note that if these Central Americans were truly seeking refuge from persecution, they could could have requested it in Mexico. The reason they want it here is that the U.S. offers more benefits and economic opportunities than Mexico.

Expert: Reform Refugee Program

Mary Doetsch is a retired veteran of the State Department with long experience in the refugee program. She says it is broken and "cries out for a fix." In the past, private charitable agencies in the U.S. resettled refugees with mainly their own money. Today the work is almost completely done by nine federal contractors called "Voluntary Agencies" or VOLAGS. The term is ironic because most of their funding comes from taxpayers. As Doetsch notes, "The VOLAGS receive between 57 percent to 99.5 percent of their funds from the federal government. Perhaps most troubling, top management typically receives salary and benefit packages in the mid-to-high six figures, ranging from $260,000 to more than $700,000 annually. [These] contractors have a vested interest in processing ever-larger numbers of applicants, since they make money on every refugee settled. "  As the VOLAGS enrich themselves from resettlement, taxpayers are hit again by having to pay for public assistance that the refugees receive.

Koch Bros: Pass Amnesty or Lose Funds

A spokesman for the billionaire Koch brothers says they are "disappointed" that Congress has not passed an amnesty for the illegal aliens in the DACA category.  The spokesman, Tim Phillips, says that congressmen who do not vote for this amnesty could lose Koch campaign contributions in the upcoming midterm elections. He stated, "We've been disappointed so far this year, and it's going to cause us to closely evaluate the involvement we may or may not have in individual races, The Koch brothers are followers of the libertarian ideology, which supports virtually open borders so that businesses can enjoy a steady stream of cheap labor and keep wages low.

DHS Warns ‘Caravan’

The Trump Administration has warned migrants in the "caravan" coming up through Mexico that they could face prosecution, detention, and deportation if they try to cross the U.S. border. Kristjen Nielson, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, stated, "DHS will continues to monitor the remnants of the 'caravan' of individuals headed to our Southern border with the apparent intention of entering the United States illegally. A sovereign nation that cannot--or worse, chooses not--to defend its borders will soon cease to be a sovereign nation. The Trump Administration is committed to enforcing our immigration laws--whether persons are part of this 'caravan' or not."