Question: Is it true that ICE Field Agents unanimously passed a “vote of no confidence” for the agency’s leadership, saying ICE has “abandoned” its core mission of protecting the public to support a political agenda favoring amnesty?
This recent article reveals the eye-opening, but not surprising answer to this question-You Decide:
ICE Agents Vote ‘No Confidence’ in Leaders, Say Amnesty Coming–Posted on NewsMax.com-On August 9, 2010:
These are pertinent excerpts from this article:
“The union that represents rank-and-file field agents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has unanimously passed a “vote of no confidence” for the agency’s leadership, saying ICE has “abandoned” its core mission of protecting the public to support a political agenda favoring amnesty.
The National Immigration and Customs Enforcement Council of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 7,000 ICE agents and employees, voted 259-0 for a resolution saying there was “growing dissatisfaction and concern” over the leadership of Assistant Secretary John Morton, who heads ICE, and Phyllis Coven, assistant director for the agency’s office of detention policy and planning.
The resolution said ICE leadership had “abandoned the agency’s core mission of enforcing U.S. immigration laws and providing for public safety,” instead directing its attention “to campaigning for programs and policies related to amnesty and the creation of a special detention system for foreign nationals that exceeds the care and services provided to most U.S. citizens similarly incarcerated.
”It is the desire of our union … to publicly separate ourselves from the actions of Director Morton and Assistant Director Coven and publicly state that ICE officers and employees do not support Morton or Coven or their misguided and reckless initiatives, which could ultimately put many in America at risk,” the union said.
In a strongly worded statement, the union and its affiliated local councils said the integrity of the agency “as well as the public safety” would be “better provided for in the absence of Director Morton and Assistant Director Coven.”
The statement also noted that:
• The majority of ICE’s enforcement and removal officers are prohibited from making street arrests or enforcing U.S. immigration laws outside of the jail setting.
• Hundreds of ICE officers nationwide perform no law enforcement duties whatsoever because of resource mismanagement within the agency.
• ICE detention reforms have transformed into a detention system aimed at providing resortlike living conditions to criminal aliens based on recommendations not from ICE officers and field managers, but from “special-interest groups.”
• The lack of technical expertise and field experience has resulted in a priority of providing bingo nights, dance lessons and hanging plants to criminals, instead of addressing safe and responsible detention reforms for noncriminal individuals and families.
• Unlike any other agency in the nation, ICE officers will be prevented from searching detainees housed in ICE facilities, allowing weapons, drugs and other contraband into detention centers — putting detainees, ICE officers and contract guards at risk.
• Senior leadership ignores reports that ICE internal investigations by the office of professional responsibility conceal agency and supervisor misconduct and are used to retaliate against employees who make whistleblower-type disclosures or question inappropriate policies and procedures.
ICE spokesman Brian Hale said the agency meets regularly with representatives of the union to discuss its goal of ensuring public safety by focusing on finding criminal aliens and removing them from the country.
”We have fundamentally reformed immigration enforcement, and we are removing record numbers of criminal aliens because of it,” Mr. Hale said. “Half of the people we have removed so far this year have been convicted criminal aliens — up from 35 percent a year ago.
”We understand the union’s reason for engaging in creative collective-bargaining tactics and, regardless, we remain committed to working with them to address substantive issues in the interests of making our communities safer,” he said.
ICE documents show that during the first nine months of fiscal 2010, a total of 279,035 non-citizens were removed from the U.S. as a result of ICE enforcement — a 10 percent increase over the total in fiscal 2008, the last fiscal year of the Bush administration.
But according to the union, illegal immigrants now being held in state and local jails seek out ICE agents for deportation to avoid prosecution, conviction and prison terms. It said criminal aliens “openly brag” that they are taking advantage of a broken immigration system and will be back in the United States within days to commit crimes — while U.S. citizens arrested for the same offenses serve prison sentences.
”ICE senior leadership is aware that the system is broken, yet refuses to alert Congress to the severity of the situation and request additional resources to provide better enforcement and support of local agencies,” the statement said.
The no-confidence vote, taken in June and made public last week in a letter by the union, said the agency’s senior leadership dedicated “more time to campaigning for immigration reforms aimed at large-scale amnesty legislation than advising the American public and federal lawmakers on the severity of the illegal-immigration problems.”
The vote, first reported by the Washington Examiner, said Mr. Morton and Ms. Coven also ignored the need for more manpower and resources within the agency.
Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee and a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, told The Washington Times that the Obama administration is “simply not serious about enforcing all of our immigration laws.”
Mr. Smith said ICE doesn’t have the resources because it didn’t ask for them, adding that “the Obama administration did not request a single new detention bed in their most recent budget request.”
”So the limits on detention capacity that they now claim hold them back from further enforcement are of their own making,” he said. “What’s more, ICE is running under its average daily detention capacity — the Obama administration is not even using all the resources it has.”
Michael W. Cutler, a retired 31-year U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) senior criminal investigator and intelligence specialist, said the no-confidence vote “makes it clear that the leadership at ICE has politicized a major component of national security at the behest of the administration.”
”It is clear that the marching orders coming from the administration have nothing to do with securing our nation’s borders or enforcing the immigration laws,” Mr. Cutler said.
”It is an absolute absurdity to believe that our nation can successfully wage a war against terrorists who are determined to enter our nation and then embed themselves in our nation with virtually no fear of being identified, arrested or removed from our country,” he said.
Janice Kephart, director of national security policy at the Center for Immigration Studies, described the no-confidence vote in a statement last week as an example of how ICE’s mission was being “skewed towards supporting an unflinching goal of amnesty by refusing to allow agents to do their job.”
Ms. Kephart, former counsel to the Sept. 11 commission and a nationally recognized border-security authority, suggested that ICE leadership — particularly Mr. Morton — needed to pay attention to the no-confidence vote and the concerns expressed by the rank-and-file agents.
”May I suggest that a significant problem with dismissing a no-confidence vote from your entire employee population is, when you run an agency of 7,000 officers and agents, you can’t do your job unless they do theirs?” she said. “Oh wait, that is the whole point, is it not?”
Mr. Morton recently announced new guidelines telling ICE agents to focus on apprehending terrorists and criminals, causing many of agency’s rank-and-file agents to wonder who, then, is responsible for tracking down and detaining the millions of other illegal border-crossers and fugitive aliens now in the country.
The new guidelines noted that ICE “only has resources to remove approximately 400,000 aliens per year, less than 4 percent of the estimated illegal-alien population in the United States,” and that as a result, it needed to focus wisely on the limited resources Congress had provided the agency.
He said the agency would “prioritize the apprehension and removal of aliens who only pose a threat to national security and/or public safety, such as criminals and terrorists.” Lesser priorities were given to foreign nationals caught crossing the border illegally or using phony immigration documents to gain entry, and those identified as fugitives after failing to show up for immigration or deportation hearings.”
Note: What follows are numerous articles and/or blog posts and videos that relate to and/or support the above article and/or blog post-You Decide:
Judge Rules In Favor Of ICE Agents Suing Obama!–Posted on Western Journalism-By BREAKING NEWS-On February 2, 2013:
http://www.westernjournalism.com/judge-rules-in-favor-of-ice-agents-suing-obama/
ICE agents union to AFL-CIO president Trumka: ‘You don’t speak for us’!–Posted on The Daily Caller-By Caroline May, Political Reporter-On February 1, 2013:
Obama administration to offer Immunity to younger immigrants!–Posted on FoxNews.com-By Associated Press-On June 15, 2012:
Video: Breaking: Obama Just Legalized 800,000 Illegals Today!-Posted on Western Journalism-By DANIEL NOE-On June 15, 2012:
http://www.westernjournalism.com/breaking-obama-just-legalized-800000-illegals-today/
Video: Sheriff Joe: Arrest Obama’s Illegals!-Posted on Western Journalism-By DANIEL NOE-On June 15, 2012:
http://www.westernjournalism.com/sheriff-joe-reacts-to-obamas-illegal-illegal-immigration-change/
Obama’s New Illegal Alien Czar!–Posted on FrontPage Magazine-By Frank Crimi-On February 17, 2012:
http://frontpagemag.com/2012/02/17/obama’s-new-illegal-alien-czar/
Border Patrol Order Patrol Agents Slam Their Superiors and Obama Administration!-Posted on News With Views-By NWV News Writer Jim Kouri-On January 20, 2012:
http://www.newswithviews.com/NWV-News/news294.htm
Outrage! Author of ‘stimulus’ linked to companies it helped: ‘Received hundreds of millions in government grants and loans!’–Posted on WND.com-By Aaron Klein-On December 14, 2011:
http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=377465
Court-sealed Diaz case documents posted online: ‘Activists say ‘facts filtered’ by judge ‘to prevent jury from learning truth’’-Posted on WND.com-By Bob Unruh-On November 23, 2011:
http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=370805
Lawmakers grill Obama over Border agent trial!-Posted on WND.com-By Bob Unruh-On November 17, 2011:
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=369013
Union President Testifies: ICE HQ Ordered Agents Not to Arrest Illegals—Including Fugitives!–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On October 20, 2011:
Republican Threatens Legal Action Against DHS Over Immigrant-Data Subpoena!-Posted on FoxNews.com-By Judson Berger-On November 19, 2011:
Napolitano: DHS Authorizing Illegal Aliens to Work in U.S.!–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On October 19, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/napolitano-dhs-authorizing-illegal-aliens-work-us
More Evidence Surfaces: Obama’s Unlawful Amnesty for Illegal Aliens!–Posted on Americans For Legal Immigration-On June 27, 2011:
http://www.alipac.us/article-6370-thread-1-0.html
DREAM Act Implemented Through Executive ICE Memo!–Posted on Human Events-By Katie Pavlich-On June 26, 2011:
The Reckless Folly of the “Undocumented Immigrant”!–Posted on Human Events-By Michelle Malkin-On June 24, 2011:
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=44421
Obama Administration Stresses ‘Discretion’ in Deporting Illegal Aliens!–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Susan Jones-On June 20, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-administration-stresses-discretion
Former Intelligence Agent: Terror Group Hezbollah Has Infiltrated Our Southern Border!–Posted on The Blaze-By Jonathon M. Seidl-On May 6, 2011:
Sheriff Tells Congress That Border Patrol Agents Ordered to Reduce Arrests–Posted on FoxNews.com-By Jana Winter-On May 3, 2011:
Congressman Outraged That 3 Convicts in Terror-Related Cases Were Granted U.S. Citizenship–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-May 03, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/house-panel-chairman-calls-it-outrageous
34,448 Illegal Immigrants Spared Deportation–Posted on Judicial Watch-On May 2, 2011:
http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2011/may/34-448-illegal-immigrants-spared-deportation
ICE’s Inability to Account for 10 Libyans It Caught and Released in U.S. ‘Cause for Alarm,’ Say Security Experts–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Penny Starr-On April 26, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/ice-not-knowing-status-10-released-libya
America’s Third War: An Informant’s Story–Posted on FoxNews.com-By William La Jeunesse-On April 27, 2011:
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/04/27/americas-war-informants-story/
Never Mind Representational Government…Emotional Congressman Demands Obama Use Executive Power Or Latinos Won’t Vote For Him; Urges Use Of Homeland Security Memo As Cover To Decree Immigration Reform–Posted on The Blaze-By Naked Emperor News-On April 26, 2011:
Obama claims those who came to America by illegally crossing Rio Grande same as those who came to Ellis Island–Posted on GlennBeck.com-On April 25, 2011:
EXCLUSIVE: DHS Can’t Account for 10 Libyan Men It Caught and Released Inside U.S.–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Penny Starr-On April 22, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/dhs-can-t-account-10-libyan-men-it-caugh
La Raza (The Race) Fox in the Redistricting Hen House: ‘Amnesty pusher Luis Gutierrez is in Charlotte, NC advocating that illegal aliens should be able to commit crimes and go to jail without being deported. His supporters now call him the ‘Latino Moses’–Posted on YouTube.com-By ALIPAC1-On Apr 20, 2011:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sufoa6RhMTk
Border Agents Confirm Orders Not to Arrest Illegals–Posted on by Conservative Byte-On April 19, 2011:
http://conservativebyte.com/2011/04/border-agents-confirm-orders-not-to-arrest-illegals/
Obama Spares Arrested Illegal Immigrant Protesters–Posted on Judicial Watch-On April 15, 2011:
http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2011/apr/obama-spares-arrested-illegal-immigrant-protesters
Environmental Laws Stymie Border Patrol’s Effectiveness, Report Says-Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On April 19, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/border-patrol-s-effectiveness-curbed-fed
Enforce Our Existing Border and Immigration Laws NOW!–Posted on YouTube.com-On April 18, 2011:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZxE6eCx2Mc&feature=channel_video_title
EXCLUSIVE: Federal Agents Told to Reduce Border Arrests, Arizona Sheriff Says–Posted on FoxNews.com-By Jana Winter-On April 1, 2011:
Napolitano: Border is Not ‘Out of Control’–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On April 1, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/napolitano-obama-border-security-approac
Arpaio Rejects Napolitano’s Safer Border Claim—Sends in New Armed Forces–Posted on NewsMax.com-By Jim Meyers-On March 30, 2011:
Border Patrol Union Say Napolitano Projects ‘False Sense of Security’ About U.S.-Mexico Border–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Fred Lucas-On March 29, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/border-patrol-union-say-napolitano-proje
Border Patrol Chief: We Have ‘Operational Control’ of U.S.-Mexico Border Where We Need It–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Penny Starr-On March 29, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/border-patrol-chief-we-have-operational
Obama on Non-Criminal Illegal Aliens: We Don’t Want to Deport Them; ‘We Want Them To Succeed’–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On March 28, 2011:
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/obama-illegal-alien-we-don-t-want-deport
Eight Out of Ten Illegal Aliens Apprehended in 2010 Never Prosecuted, Says Border Congressman–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On March 17, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/eight-out-ten-illegal-aliens-apprehended
ICE Director: U.S.-Mexico Border Is Secure As It Has Been in 20 Years–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On March 03, 2011:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/crime-part-life-america-and-border-secur
SHOCKER! Avi Lipkin says OBAMA Plans to allow 100 Million Muslim Refugees to enter America–Posted on Floyd Reports-By Floyd Brown-On March 3, 2011:
Napolitano Scolds Reporter for Airing Complaints of Dead Border Agent’s Family–Posted on FoxNes.com-On December 23, 2010:
The Campaign to Protect Our Illegal Alien Criminals–Posted on National Review Online- By Heather Mac Donald-On November 18, 2010:
Backdoor Amnesty: Deportations Dismissals Up 700 Percent–Posted on ExposeObama.com-On October 18, 2010:
Nonprofit Leader Says DHS Illegal Immigrant Removal Report Is Skewed-Posted on Personal Liberty Digest-By Personal Liberty News Desk-On October 15, 2010:
Labor Department Does Not Track Illegal Aliens’ Complaints Against Employers: ‘We Can Help’ won’t release information on complaints against employers.–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Fred Lucas-On September 27, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/75795
Arizona Sheriff: Obama ‘Undermining’ Law on the Border–Posted on NewsMax.com-By David A. Patten-On September 16, 2010:
Sanchez ‘Can’t Answer in 30 Seconds’ Whether She’s Committed to Securing Border against Drugs–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Edwin Mora-On September 16, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/75411
ICE Freed Illegal Alien In Mass. Double Murder–Posted on Judicial Watch-On September 10, 2010:
http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2010/sep/ice-freed-illegal-alien-mass-double-murder
U.S. shifts approach to deporting illegal immigrants-Posted on USA Today-By Marcus Stern, ProPublica-On September 10, 2010:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-09-10-immigration10_ST_N.htm
ICE Says It’s Caught-and-Released 506,232 Illegal Aliens Who Are Now Fugitives–More Than Entire Population of Sacramento, Calif.-Posted on CNSNews.com-By Penny Starr-On September 07, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/72328
Obama Wants Change to Allow Thousands of Illegals to Stay in US–Posted on NewsMax.com-On August 27, 2010:
Feds moving to dismiss some deportation cases–Posted on Americans for Legal Immigration-On August 27, 2010:
http://www.alipac.us/article-5603-thread-1-0.html
Border Patrol Joins ICE Agents to Condemn Obama Administration–Posted on Family Security Matters-By Jim Kouri, CPP-On August 20, 2010:
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.7106/pub_detail.asp
Despite Recent Record Spending, Congress Failed to Fund Detention Space to Hold Captured Illegals From Terror-Sponsoring Countries–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Penny Starr, Senior Staff Writer-On August 20, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/71345
La Raza: Deporting 12 Million Illegal Aliens ‘Not a Realistic Solution’ and U.S. Should Stop Trying-Posted on CNSNews.com-By Adam Cassandra-On August 19, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=71225
EXCLUSIVE: Arizona Sheriff: Border Patrol Has Retreated from Parts of Border Because It’s ‘Too Dangerous’–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Terence P. Jeffrey, Editor-in-Chief-On August 16, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/71105
Arizona Sheriffs Call ICE Chief’s Visit a ‘Stunt’–Posted on NewsMax.com-By Jerry Seper-On August 11, 2010:
EXCLUSIVE: DHS Caught and Released 481 ‘Fugitive’ Illegals from State Sponsors of Terror and ‘Countries of Interest’–Posted on CNSNews.com-By Penny Starr, Senior Staff Writer-On August 12, 2010:
http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=70944
Lack of Resources Curtails ICE Tracking of Illegals–Posted on NewsMax.com-By Jerry Seper-On August 9, 2010:
Video of the Day: A Day on the Border–Posted on ExposeObama.com-By Floyd Reports-On August 11, 2010:
Note: This recent video relating to this issue seems extremely appropriate –You Decide:
Ray Stevens – God Save Arizona–Posted on YouTube.com-By danthemusicman405-On August 05, 2010:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrA07jcIHZI
Note: The above articles and/or blog posts relate to and/or support my following blog posts-You Decide:
ICE chief says feds might not ‘process’ illegals arrested in Arizona!
Arizona-Style Rebellions Over Immigration Spread!
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/05/06/arizona-style-rebellions-over-immigration-spread/
Obama is fomenting a race war?
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/05/01/obama-is-fomenting-a-race-war/
Obama’s Arizona Immigration Law Hypocritical Lie!
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/04/29/obama’s-arizona-immigration-law-hypocritical-lie/
How the “Illegal Immigration” issue affects our everyday lives!
Middle Eastern illegals find easy entrance into U.S. from Mexico!
Is “Illegal Immigration” Illegal?
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/01/29/is-“illegal-immigration”-illegal/
Backsliding On National Security: The Immigration Connection!
New World Order By Executive Order!
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2011/02/13/new-world-order-by-executive-order/
Nearly 80 percent don’t trust the government!
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/04/19/nearly-80-percent-don’t-trust-the-government/
Where Is America Today?
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/05/26/where-is-america-today-2/
Is it time to call for Obama’s resignation!
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/06/09/is-it-time-to-call-for-obamas-resignation/
Washington Times Calls for Obama’s Impeachment!
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/08/31/washington-times-calls-for-obama’s-impeachment/
A Nation Adrift Theme and Disclaimer:
https://weroinnm.wordpress.com/2010/01/26/disclaimer/
“Food For Thought”
“God Bless & Keep Our USA Safe”
Semper Fi!
The border is NOT more secure and resourced than it has ever been. Clearly Alan Bersin knows nothing of the Punitive Expedition or the Mexican Border Campaign which occurred 94 years ago and involved more than 100,000 National Guard and Regular Army troops. Unfortunately, most American citizens are also ignorant of this key moment in our history.
Here is a link to letters written by a National Guardsman on the Border exactly 94 years ago. Too bad our politicians are more interested in being politically correct than robustly defending the sovereignty of the United States.
http://worldwar1letters.wordpress.com/2008/06/29/rio-grande-el-paso-southwestern-rr-tunnel-7281916/