Musings on Immigration

As   reported  extensively over the last two weeks, and in a way that was grossly misunderstood by the average person,  the Obama administration plans to issue a regulation that would address a long-standing problem in immigration law—a Catch 22 created by requiring the spouses and children of U.S. citizens who entered the country unlawfully to depart the U.S. before completing the processing of their application for lawful permanent residence. The trouble is that once they leave the country, they are subject to a   three or ten year bar   for unlawful presence and need a waiver to get   back   into the US earlier than the 3 or 10 year bar would allow.  The new proposal would allow them to submit the waiver application to the USCIS in the United States and receive a decision before departing the U.S., thus reducing the time, anxiety, and sometime danger inherent in waiting abroad for a decision. This Catch-22 is one of the most notorious pro...

You know, when you appear on Fox News that the questions are going to be tough. That is what I love about this discussion--Tough questions, Tough answers: Russ and I spoke both before and after this segment about Immigration and Immigration Reform. What I admire about him, is that he get both sides of the debate and understands that we are all going to have to settle somewhere in the middle.

I was driving to court recently down a highway in Atlanta when I drove past a toll booth with a HUGE sign on it. The sign read “AMNESTY.” I thought: “wait a second! Amnesty” is a dirty word, literally unmentionable in polite company. How could there be an “Amnesty?” On my way back to the office, I passed the toll booth again. Again, the sign was there. This time I slowed down (a little), and noticed it was a “Toll Amnesty.” This toll “Amnesty” is apparently a regular event in Georgia. I explored a little more about this “Amnesty,” trying to understand how a toll “Amnesty,” turning illegal drivers into legal ones is permitted, but an “Amnesty” that would turn “illegal” people into legal people is not. I dug around a little on the Internet and found some information about the reason for and the goal of this toll “Amnesty:” What is the toll violation amnesty program? Normally, the State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) charges a $25 administrative fee, as provided by Georgia ...