New York Times - The Bipartisan Policy Center’s immigration task force released a set of recommendations on Thursday for an overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws and called on members of Congress to participate in a civil discussion aimed at finding areas of consensus.
“We should refrain from demonizing individuals or organizations for positions that may not align directly with either our views or our opinions on the best method for resolving these important matters,” the center wrote in a statement Thursday. “Instead, we encourage a respectful dialogue that acknowledges these concerns and moves forward to find common ground.”
To read the full article, please click: Bipartisan Group Offers Recommendations on Immigration
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Deferred Action Immigration Program In First Year Aids More Than 400,000
Huffington Post - One year ago on Thursday, undocumented young people turned out by the thousands across the country to apply for a new government program that allows them to stay in the U.S., work and remain safe, for now, from deportation.
A report released Wednesday by the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program provides new information on the so-called Dreamers who applied for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals relief beginning on Aug. 15, 2012.
There are more than 557,000 of them, and nearly 72 percent -- 400,562 -- had been approved for the program as of the end of June. Those Dreamers came to the U.S. as children from around the world, although a majority were born in Mexico, according to the report authored by Brookings senior fellow Audrey Singer and analyst Nicole Prchal Svajlenka. Nearly three-quarters of those Dreamers had been in the country for more than a decade by the time they applied for deferred action, and one-third entered before they were 5 years old. Most applicants were ages 15 to 23, with only about one-quarter of them older than 24, the Brookings report found.
To read the full article, please click: Deferred Action Immigration Program In First Year Aids More Than 400,000
A report released Wednesday by the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program provides new information on the so-called Dreamers who applied for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals relief beginning on Aug. 15, 2012.
There are more than 557,000 of them, and nearly 72 percent -- 400,562 -- had been approved for the program as of the end of June. Those Dreamers came to the U.S. as children from around the world, although a majority were born in Mexico, according to the report authored by Brookings senior fellow Audrey Singer and analyst Nicole Prchal Svajlenka. Nearly three-quarters of those Dreamers had been in the country for more than a decade by the time they applied for deferred action, and one-third entered before they were 5 years old. Most applicants were ages 15 to 23, with only about one-quarter of them older than 24, the Brookings report found.
To read the full article, please click: Deferred Action Immigration Program In First Year Aids More Than 400,000
McCain stubbornly believes the House can pass immigration reform
MSNBC - Senator John McCain isn’t ready to concede that House Republicans won’t pass real immigration reform. But he is watching the clock.
“It’s very important that we try to act before the end of this year,” McCain said at a town hall in Mesa, Arizona, on Tuesday. Waiting any longer will run into campaign season. But given looming battles over funding the government and increasing the debt ceiling, passing immigration legislation before 2014 may be unrealistic.
“I remain guardedly optimistic that our friends in the House of Representatives will agree to their legislative process and then we can get to conference,” McCain, who was joined by fellow Arizona Republican Senator Jeff Flake, told the audience. He cited the array of interests backing reform, including major business groups, labor unions, and evangelical organizations, as evidence of its momentum."
To read the full article, please click: McCain stubbornly believes the House can pass immigration reform
“It’s very important that we try to act before the end of this year,” McCain said at a town hall in Mesa, Arizona, on Tuesday. Waiting any longer will run into campaign season. But given looming battles over funding the government and increasing the debt ceiling, passing immigration legislation before 2014 may be unrealistic.
“I remain guardedly optimistic that our friends in the House of Representatives will agree to their legislative process and then we can get to conference,” McCain, who was joined by fellow Arizona Republican Senator Jeff Flake, told the audience. He cited the array of interests backing reform, including major business groups, labor unions, and evangelical organizations, as evidence of its momentum."
To read the full article, please click: McCain stubbornly believes the House can pass immigration reform
Friday, August 16, 2013
Republicans May Be Changing Minds on Immigration Reform
ABC News - Members of Congress have been on recess for only a few days, but it already seems the time away from Washington means more support for a pathway to citizenship among some Republicans.
In the past few days, two Republican members of the House of Representatives — Daniel Webster in Florida, Aaron Schock in Illinois — have expressed preliminary support for a way to legalize undocumented immigrants and allow them to eventually earn full citizenship. Even the House GOP whip, Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), announced support for legal status, although he stopped just short of supporting full citizenship.
The announcements come on the cusp of an intense campaign by pro-immigration advocates targeting key House members at town-hall events; it’s all part of a larger five-week plan for hundreds of rallies, petition drives and other events across the country timed for the Congressional recess.
“Our movement is taking the fight for immigration reform to every corner of the country,” Frank Sharry, executive director at immigration reform advocacy organization America’s Voice, told ABC News in a statement. “Advocates from the left, right and center are intent on surrounding House Republicans with some simple messages: immigration reform is an idea whose time has come, a proposal deserving of your support and an issue that deserves a vote in the House of Representatives where a bipartisan majority in support of it already exists.”
To read the full article, please click: Republicans May Be Changing Minds on Immigration Reform
In the past few days, two Republican members of the House of Representatives — Daniel Webster in Florida, Aaron Schock in Illinois — have expressed preliminary support for a way to legalize undocumented immigrants and allow them to eventually earn full citizenship. Even the House GOP whip, Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), announced support for legal status, although he stopped just short of supporting full citizenship.
The announcements come on the cusp of an intense campaign by pro-immigration advocates targeting key House members at town-hall events; it’s all part of a larger five-week plan for hundreds of rallies, petition drives and other events across the country timed for the Congressional recess.
“Our movement is taking the fight for immigration reform to every corner of the country,” Frank Sharry, executive director at immigration reform advocacy organization America’s Voice, told ABC News in a statement. “Advocates from the left, right and center are intent on surrounding House Republicans with some simple messages: immigration reform is an idea whose time has come, a proposal deserving of your support and an issue that deserves a vote in the House of Representatives where a bipartisan majority in support of it already exists.”
To read the full article, please click: Republicans May Be Changing Minds on Immigration Reform
New York’s Sen. Schumer says Immigration Bill can Pass
Washington Post - One of the key Senate players in the push to overhaul America’s immigration system is voicing fresh confidence that an accommodation can be reached with the House.
Sen. Chuck Schumer says it’s OK with him if the House sticks with its piecemeal approach, as long as it can be reconciled with the version the Senate has passed.
The New York Democrat told CNN in an interview Wednesday that “we would much prefer the comprehensive bill, but any way the House can get there is all right by us.”
He adds that “things are moving in the right direction.” Schumer said a bill taking shape in the House “are very similar to our bill.” But he said the final product must include “some path to citizenship” for people living here illegally.
To read the original article, please click: New York’s Sen. Schumer says Immigration Bill can Pass despite House’s Methodical Approach
Sen. Chuck Schumer says it’s OK with him if the House sticks with its piecemeal approach, as long as it can be reconciled with the version the Senate has passed.
He adds that “things are moving in the right direction.” Schumer said a bill taking shape in the House “are very similar to our bill.” But he said the final product must include “some path to citizenship” for people living here illegally.
To read the original article, please click: New York’s Sen. Schumer says Immigration Bill can Pass despite House’s Methodical Approach
Zuckerberg Speaks out for Immigration Reform
San Francisco Chronicle -
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg took his first step on the national political stage Monday night when he joined publicly with tech leaders, civil rights activists and undocumented immigrants to call for a comprehensive overhaul of the nation's immigration policies - an issue he said touches not just Silicon Valley but "the whole country."
"This is something that we believe is really important for the future of our country - and for us to do what's right," the social media innovator told a crowd of several hundred at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.
To read the full article, please click: Zuckerberg Speaks out for Immigration Reform
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg took his first step on the national political stage Monday night when he joined publicly with tech leaders, civil rights activists and undocumented immigrants to call for a comprehensive overhaul of the nation's immigration policies - an issue he said touches not just Silicon Valley but "the whole country."
"This is something that we believe is really important for the future of our country - and for us to do what's right," the social media innovator told a crowd of several hundred at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco.
To read the full article, please click: Zuckerberg Speaks out for Immigration Reform
September Visa Bulletin is Available
To see the complete U.S. Department of State Visa Bulletin for September 2013, please click: September 2013 Visa Bulletin
Family-Based Immigrant Visa Priority Dates:
Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Priority Dates:
Family-Based Immigrant Visa Priority Dates:
| Family-Sponsored | All Charge-ability Areas Except Those Listed | CHINA- mainland born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| F1 | 15SEP06 | 15SEP06 | 15SEP06 | 08SEP93 | 08MAY01 |
| F2A |
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
| F2B | 15FEB06 | 15FEB06 | 15FEB06 | 22FEB94 | 22JAN03 |
| F3 | 22JAN03 | 22JAN03 | 22JAN03 | 15MAY93 | 22DEC92 |
| F4 | 22JUL01 | 22JUL01 | 22JUL01 | 08OCT96 | 15FEB90 |
Employment-Based Immigrant Visa Priority Dates:
| Employment- Based |
All Chargeability Areas Except Those
Listed
|
CHINA- mainland born | INDIA | MEXICO | PHILIPPINES |
| 1st |
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
| 2nd |
C
|
08AUG08 | 15JUN08 |
C
|
C
|
| 3rd | 01JUL10 | 01JUL10 | 22SEP03 | 01JUL10 | 01DEC06 |
| Other Workers | 01JUL10 | 15JUN04 | 22SEP03 | 01JUL10 | 01DEC06 |
| 4th |
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
| Certain Religious Workers |
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
|
5th
Targeted Employment Areas/ Regional Centers and Pilot Programs |
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
C
|
Monday, August 5, 2013
Advocates for Immigrants Up the Ante in a Capitol Sit-In That Brings Arrests
NY Times - Seeking to send a message to lawmakers as they leave to face their constituents over the August recess, 41 leaders of groups supporting an overhaul of the immigration system held a noisy but peaceful sit-in on Capitol Hill on Thursday and were arrested, in an escalation of their tactics.
Just after midday, the protesters filed onto Independence Avenue near the Capitol and sat in the street, unfurling a banner that said “Keep Our Families Together, Immigration Reform Now.” With a crowd of several hundred cheering from the sidewalk and calling for “citizenship now,” the protesters were handcuffed one by one and whisked away in police vehicles.
To read the full article, please click: Advocates for Immigrants Up the Ante in a Capitol Sit-In That Brings Arrests
Just after midday, the protesters filed onto Independence Avenue near the Capitol and sat in the street, unfurling a banner that said “Keep Our Families Together, Immigration Reform Now.” With a crowd of several hundred cheering from the sidewalk and calling for “citizenship now,” the protesters were handcuffed one by one and whisked away in police vehicles.
To read the full article, please click: Advocates for Immigrants Up the Ante in a Capitol Sit-In That Brings Arrests
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