NPR Discovers NAFTA Really Boosted Illegal Immigration
“The North American Free Trade Agreement, known as NAFTA, turns 20 next week. Hailed as a boon for regional trade, it had some undesirable effects. It hastened a trend away from small farmers, and speeded illegal immigration to the U.S.” says NPR.
“The big wave in illegal immigration from Mexico began in the 1980s. But it picked up strongly after NAFTA. That wasn’t unexpected. Philip Martin predicted it before the trade agreement passed. But Martin – a UC Davis professor who’s long been studying migration – was surprised by how soon and how big the wave came after NAFTA.”
Deportation Fear Cited in Lack of Obamacare Signups
“Enrollment numbers aren’t in yet, but the Obama administration already knows it has fewer Latinos signed up than it would like. One of the reasons they’re not enrolling? Immigrants worry personal information submitted under the Affordable Care Act could be used to deport someone in their family,” National Journal writes.
“The issue is especially critical in California, which has a big Latino population and has employed one of the most vigorous public-outreach campaigns in the country.”
Amnesty Push May Wait Till After GOP Primaries
CBS News has an article about the push for amnesty coming next year. “John Feehery, a Republican strategist and former congressional aide, said getting immigration done will be important for the GOP in the long run if they can do it on their own terms – in a series of shorter bills. But he also predicted that legislation won’t move for several months until the primaries for the 2014 elections have concluded House members will less concerned about challenges from the right.”
DOJ Says Detention Documents Hard to Produce
“Federal prosecutors say they can’t meet a judge’s demands they quickly deliver documents about thousands of immigrants who’ve been detained nationwide for months or years as their immigration statuses are reviewed.
The office of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara laid out the government’s position to U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman in a letter made public Wednesday,” Fox News reports.
“The letter, dated Tuesday, came five days after the judge criticized the government, saying it had been on notice since the American Civil Liberties Union requested the documents nearly five years ago. The ACLU eventually filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit in Manhattan federal court in 2011 seeking documents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”