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Washington Watch
The past few weeks have been filled with a number of legislative, regulatory and enforcement developments relating to immigration law. Here’s a quick review of some of the more recent noteworthy events that help shape the dialogue of immigration law. ***** Mel Martinez Bids Farewell, Urges Senate to Pass Immigration Reform A voice of reason in the GOP on immigration departs. He will be missed in this process. In the mean time, Florida's new Senator, George LeMieux, is certainly not sounding like a fighter for immigration reform. According to the Orlando Sentinel: LeMieux appears likely to steer clear of Martinez's controversial attempts to overhaul immigration law, which would include a path to citizenship for the undocumented. 'We need tosecure our borders,' LeMieux said. 'After we do that, we can figure what happens to people already here.' ***** CBP Confirms EB-5 Visa Holders to be Admitted After September 30th The regional center EB-5 program expired on September 30th and despite the fact that the Senate has passed an extension as part of the DHS spending bill, final passage remains stalled. It is likely Congress will pass a continuing resolution extending the program, but just in case, EB-5 advocates are asking questions regarding what happens while we wait. Question: Based on the October Visa Bulletin, the Department of State will be issuing EB-5 visas for the full validity period up to close of business on September 30, 2009. Could you confirm that CBP will be admitting these EB-5 visa holders on or after September 30, 2009? Answer: If the visa is valid and the applicant is otherwise admissible, there should not be an issue with CBP admitting as an EB-5. ***** There has been an interesting alliance of antis in both the health care and immigration arenas to scare people in to believing that illegally present immigrants will be eligible for subsidies to secure health insurance under the health care reform proposal being pushed by President Obama. That claim is patently false. But that did not stop one extremist in the Congress, Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC) from screaming "You lie!" when President Obama addressed that myth. This appalling lack of respect has already led the GOP to go in to damage control mode and Wilson issued an apology within minutes of the President's speech ending. The apology was really one of those non-apology apologies where he didn't apologize for making a false claim, just for the outburst. Wilson later tried to save face by telling reporters that he was actually an immigration attorney in the past. The NY Times: “I’m for immigration,” [Wilson] said, adding that he had been an immigration lawyer, although he did not specify exactly what he had done. “But people who come to our country and violated our laws, we should not be providing full services.” It struck me immediately that this would be bizarre if true. Going from representing immigrants to being a member of the virulently anti-immigrant Immigration Reform Caucus and getting an A- rating from anti-immigrant group Numbers USA as well as support from the anti-immigrant fundraising group ALIPAC would show a dramatic tranformation in one's views.I've been practicing immigration law in the South for nearly 20 years and know a lot of my fellow immigration lawyers in this region. I didn't recognize the name Joe Wilson from West Columbia, South Carolina. So I decided to call some of my friends in the Carolina immigration bar - including some from Columbia - and no one is aware of Congressman Wilson ever handling immigration matters. An AILA spokesperson confirmed that “no one from South Carolina by the name Joe Wilson or Addison Wilson has ever been a member,” effectively answering the question of if Rep. Wilson had ever practiced immigration law.***** Conrad 30 Program Extended through October 31st Did you forget? Despite the fact that the Senate has approved a three year extension in the DHS appropriations bill, the House and Senate have yet to complete negotiations on a compromise bill. The program, which set to expire September 30th, is now extended until October 31st while House and Senate conferees work out longer term extensions as part of their work on the DHS spending bill. 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. |
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