A MESSAGE FROM SISKIND, SUSSER, HAAS & DEVINE

Dear Readers:

The bizarre US election is still not over and as unsettled as the political situation remains so goes the future of US immigration. We still do not know who will be the US President. If George Bush is elected, will he seek to reach out to Hispanic voters who voted for Gore and push Congressional Republicans to tow a softer line on immigration? Or will he be so weak that Congressional Republicans will be calling the shots on immigration? If Al Gore wins, he'll be facing the same Republican Congress as Bill Clinton. And just as Clinton has had little luck pushing through many immigration bills like the still pending Latino Immigration Fairness Act, Gore's challenge would probably be even greater. Add to this the uncertainty over whether the Republicans will or will not control the US Senate. A still too close to call Senate race in Washington State means that we do not know if the Republicans will control that chamber by a margin of 51 to 49 or whether it will be evenly split with the Democrats. Because Vice Presidential candidate Joseph Lieberman chose to run for reelection for his Senate seat, if Al Gore wins he will definitely face a Republican Senate. So it is not clear who will be running the show in that chamber and immigration legislation will no doubt be affected. And one more uncertainty - Senate Immigration Subcommittee Chairman Spencer Abraham was defeated for reelection. Abraham, one of the most pro-immigration Republicans in Congress, will be sorely missed by the pro-immigration community and the choice of his successor for that committee will probably make more of a difference on immigration issues than even the selection of the President. Confused? So are we.

As noted above, the fate of the Latino Immigration Fairness Act remains uncertain. The outgoing House of Representatives and Senate will come back to Congress this coming week to resume work on the budget. A "lame duck" session of Congress is so unusual that immigration pundits are just not certain how things will go for this major piece of immigration legislation. But we will keep you updated with any developments.

While all of our attention was diverted to the election this week, there was other news on immigration. Temporary legal status for nationals of several war-torn African countries was extended this week. Also, a number of important court decisions were released. We report on these stories as well and also have many of our regular features including Ask Visalaw.com, Newsbytes, Border News, Government Processing Times and an ABCs of Immigration story on the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Visa.

In firm news, we welcome Angie Clark, a new paralegal in our Memphis office. We also expect a story on our law firm to run in Monday's supplemental Money section in USA Today.

And finally, as always, we remind readers that this newsletter is published by Siskind, Susser, Haas & Devine, a law firm that represents
clients throughout North America. If you are interested in scheduling a telephone consultation to discuss immigration questions you may have or to discuss the possibility of Siskind, Susser, Haas & Devine handling your immigration case, please go to http://www.visalaw.com/intake.html. In most cases, we are able to schedule a consultation within two days and we can often accommodate evening and weekend appointments.

Thanks again for your continued loyalty

Greg Siskind

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Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk.