July 31, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association has released a video proposing solutions to this nation’s immigration crisis.

Immigrant organizations must continue to ensure that the facts are clearly stated and not drowned out by the rhetoric of the anti-immigrationists.

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July 29, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

Governor Brewer and the State of Arizona have filed an appeal with the Ninth Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals seeking to overturn the preliminary injunction handed down by a District Court judge yesterday.

My prediction is that the traditionally liberal ninth circuit will uphold the injunction however, if (or rather when) this case gets to the US Supreme Court, the outcome is less predictable.  In the end, it would be chaotic if every state were to enact its own immigration laws in addition to the maze of existing federal laws.

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July 28, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

According to the USCIS, as of July 23, 2010, the agency has received 26,000 FY-2011 cap-subject H-1B petitions of the 65,000 available.  The agency has received 11,300 of 20,000 available advance degree petitions.

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July 28, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

The August 2010 visa bulletin is now available.

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July 28, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

According to latimes.com:  “A federal judge on Wednesday blocked the most controversial elements of Arizona’s new immigration law, thrilling the law’s opponents, dismaying its advocates and setting the stage for more legal battles in the future.”

The injunction is a temporary measure and this case is most likely headed for the US Supreme Court down the road.  For those of us who favor the federal government enacting Comprehensive Immigration Reform, this case is a double-edged sword.  On the one hand, it is great to see that a Federal judge believes that a state enacting immigration law violates the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution.  On the other hand, if the immigration issue remains on the radar when the mid-term elections come around in November, opponents may be more motivated to show up and vote.

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July 7, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

According to a article on miamiherald.com:  “Arguing that only Washington can set the nation’s rules for arresting illegal immigrants, the Obama administration launched a legal attack on Arizona’s strict new immigration law Tuesday.”

This lawsuit once again puts the immigration issue in the spotlight, where it needs to be should there be any hope for CIR in the near future.  It would be a great accomplishment for this administration to enact CIR given that the last decade resulted in failed attempts by Congress to get it done.

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June 30, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

As of June 25, 2010, the USCIS had received 23,500 H-1B cap-subject petitions out of an available 65,000 and 10,000 out of 20,000 available advanced-degree petitions.

This means that there is still time for companies to file H-1B petitions for workers to start on or after October 1, 2010.

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June 29, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

After meeting with immigration advocates earlier this week, President Obama will be speaking about his plans for reforming this nation’s immigration system on Thursday.  The consensus seems to be that absent a miracle, CIR will not pass before the mid-term congressional elections in November.  That begs the question:  What can the President say or do to appease those who voted for him based on his promise to make CIR a priority?  There are a couple of things he could do, the first would be to declare a moratorium on deportations of non-criminal undocumented aliens until CIR is passed, and the second would be to challenge the constitutionality of the new Arizona immigration law in court.

For the President to simply ask Republicans to reach across the aisle and support CIR in the months preceding the mid-term elections would likely be a futile effort dooming the initiative to failure.  On the other hand, if the President makes a good-faith down payment on his promise to try to enact CIR, it will show the American people that he is serious about his commitment to reforming our broken immigration system.

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June 28, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

According to an article (with accompanying video) on myfoxny.com:  “Chief executives of several major corporations, including Fox 5 parent company News Corp., are joining Mayor Michael Bloomberg to form a coalition advocating for immigration reform.”

If Lou Dobbs and Rupert Murdoch now both support CIR which would have a legalization component, there is hope for passage after the mid-term elections.  The media was largely responsible for the failed attempts at passage of CIR in the past.  If the news networks were to minimize the sensational coverage, perhaps politicians will vote for what they understand is best for the country rather than succumb to the whims of the loud minority who oppose CIR.

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June 25, 2010 by Bradley Maged.

According yo an article on miamiherald.com:  “Eight Republican senators sent a letter to President Barack Obama this week asking for confirmation that the White House is planning to defer deportations or grant parole to millions of undocumented immigrants, pending congressional debate on immigration reform.”

If this were to occur, it would force ICE to spend its limited resources arresting, detaining and removing aliens with criminal histories rather than indiscriminately chasing all undocumented aliens.  It would also take the teeth out of Arizona’s new law set to go in effect soon in that absent a criminal record, there would be no grounds for detaining those deemed to be “reasonably suspicious”.

This administration is very smart.  It will carefully consider all ramifications - both politically and practically in determining the right course of action.  If the rumors are true - this would be the President’s good faith down payment on his promise of Comprehensive Immigration Reform, most likely after the November elections.

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