A Note from the Editors:

The Gauntlet Is Thrown

In a bold, decisive and long overdue action, the Senate responded today to President Bush's historic immigration reform initiative. Sen. Hagel, a Republican and Sen. Daschle, a Democrat joined forces to introduce a bipartisan bill for comprehensive immigration reform. What the legislation proposes would amount to a mini-revolution in immigration law. While the actual text of the bill is not yet available, a close reading of the press releases from the two senators (see items below) suggests that the bill would mean the end of the 3 and 10 year bars - these bars are one of the fundamental causes of the dysfunctionality of our immigration system today. The bill would also mean the end of registry and 245(i) by substituting a rolling registry-cum-245(i)-like provision for which millions of the undocumented would be eligible. The bill would also at long last increase the permanent immigration quotas. With a vision quite different from the President's, the Senate bill will ensure that there will at least be a true debate on immigration reform this election year - it will not be possible for the White House to get political brownie points on immigration unless concrete action follows the President's sweeping and moving words on immigration reform earlier this month. The Senate bill also sets the stage for a major battle with the House - the House's vision on immigration reform will likely be very different from the Senate's. The Senate bill will likely be the immigration story of the year. Perhaps the best way to end this comment is with Senator Hagel's words from his press release "... It is not in our security interest to have 8-10 million people undocumented and unaccounted for in our country. Congress must reform the patchwork of immigration laws that have created an underground, black market labor force. The legislation we introduce today is responsible immigration reform. This is a debate that we have deferred for too long. President Bush deserves credit for the leadership he has shown in putting this issue back on the agenda. Congress must now meet that leadership by having a courageous debate on the tough issues of immigration reform."

We welcome readers to share their opinion and ideas on this topic with us by writing to weeklyeditor@ilw.com.

Articles

Highlights And Lowlights Of 2003
Alan Lee, Esq. writes "Looking back to 2003, we can begin to assess many of the more important immigration related events and non-events which had important effects or will have importance in the future in the field of immigration."

Foreign Service Officer Pleads Guilty To False Statements Of Entry Visas
A foreign service officer assigned to the US Embassy in Seoul, South Korea pled guilty to a charge stemming from false statements made to the US.

The Anti-Assimilation President: Democrats Need A Values-Based Alternative To Bush Immigration Initiative
Paul Donnelly writes "For better or worse, even without actual legislation, Bush has said he supports the most significant change in our national approach to immigration since 1965 – a radical shift away from the assimilation model epitomized by Ellis Island, and toward a German gastarbeiter approach."

EOIR Announces Latest Disciplinary Actions (1)
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) announced its latest disciplinary actions dated January 20, 2004, including: the immediate suspension of one attorney, the final order of discipline for two attorneys, and the reinstatement of one attorney.

EOIR Announces Latest Disciplinary Actions (2)
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) announced its latest disciplinary actions dated January 21, 2004, including: the final order of discipline for two attorneys and the reinstatement of one attorney.

J-1 Waiver Flowcharts
Gregory Siskind provides seven flowcharts for the J-1 waiver process. These visual tools will be of interest to all those involved in J-1s.

Senators Hagel And Daschle Introduce Comprehensive Immigration Reform Legislation
Senators Hagel (R-NE) and Daschle (D-SD) introduced "The Immigration Reform Act of 2004: Strengthening America’s National Security, Economy, and Families". For Sen. Hagel's press release, see here. For Sen. Daschle's press release, see here.

President Bush Speaks On Immigration In State Of Union Address
President Bush spoke about immigration during his State of the Union address.

Little Comforts That Make Work (And Life) Lots Easier
Carol L. Schlein, Esq. writes "This [ ] is a natural time to reflect on the year just ended and the upcoming 12 months. Evaluate what worked well for your firm and what didn’t."

How Do I Get a Travel Document?
Read a response from the USCIS on how to obtain a travel document.

ILW Highlights

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Letters to Editors

To write to Editors, send emails to weeklyeditor@ilw.com.

Dear Editor:
With regard to the SS number issues Chris McKinnish and Rafael Guarin are experiencing, I would suggest they contact their local congressional office to seek assistance. They can look up their Congressman and address of their local office at: http://www.house.gov/. Many times these offices have their own contacts at different government agencies and can get these matters resolved quicker. Not all congressional offices will help, but many do and actually have specific employees to help with immigration matters such as these.

Michelle Pinter

Dear Editor:
How are "temporary workers" expected to go back after 3, 6, maybe 9 years? They come here with children, they will buy houses, those children will grow up, start college, university, get friends, girlfriend, boyfriend, then the father loses his job, gets sick, whatever reason he doesn't work, they will leave the country just like that? How long will they have to get their stuff together and leave the country and they cannot try to get better jobs... those one are for americans so they will be legal as long as they do slaves jobs, but has no chance of improving their lives by getting better jobs, getting a house etc... doesn't that remind us of the African who came here legally to work a few centurys ago?

Nicole Dagenais

Dear Editor:
A possible answer to a question from a student published earlier is: "Section 301, 8 U.S.C. 1401 Nationals and Citizens of the US at Birth (f) a person of unknown parentage found in the US while under the age of five years, until shown, prior to his attaining the age of twenty-one years, not to have been born in the US".

Jonathan Moore

Dear Editor:
I am forwarding you my message to Mr. Khanna to support the class action lawsuit. Besides the sufferings I have mentioned in my email to Mr. Khanna due to INS's delays, I want to add that I did second fingurprinting in October 2003. I had to cancel my classes and stayed overnight in a hotel in order to make INS scheduled appointment. My case is still pending.

Hui Wu

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