Concerned Citizens Coalition

Rahm’s Plan for Mandatory Service

2008-11-25T05:21:00.001-06:00

Posted November 24th, 2008 at 11.59am in First Principles.

There has been a small uproar around Obama’s call for a “civilian national security force” especially one “that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded” as the military. But many have said that these words were taken out of context. If you read the whole speech, they argue, it is clear that he just wants to expand the Peace Corp a little bit.
Similarly, there was a mild uproar about his call for mandatory service from students, but many said that the programs were never intended to be mandatory. The college program was optional community service in exchange for a larger education credit, and the high-school one was no different from adding an art class or something to the public high-school curriculum. Obama initially called both mandatory on his change.gov website, but after the buzz began he changed the wording and removed several sections of the site.
But now there is new evidence that the critics are right. He does favor mandatory service and it might be worse than we thought. He has chosen Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff. Rahm Emanuel wrote a book called The Plan in 2006. On page 60-65 of the book Rahm calls for universal conscription of 18-24 year olds for civilian service in order to prepare for a potential terrorist attack.
All Americans between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five will be asked to serve their country by going through three months of basic training, civil defense preparation and community service.
In a 2006 radio interview Rahm explains more about the program. He speaks about the dangers of a chemical attack and about the wonderful common experience that all Americans could have by being drafted for 3 months into a civilian national security force training program. He seems to be using the fear of attack to justify drafting all youth into a militaristic civilian security force – something more reminiscent of a dictatorship than a democracy. And all of his calls to unity and common experience only confirm his preference for nationalism or collectivism over individualism and freedom.
That Obama has chosen this man as his chief of staff should give anyone pause. This man has a “Plan” for the country that involves training our youth like soldiers, and calls upon “a new patriotism that brings us together again in a common mission” for his plan which will “unite us in a higher national purpose.”

http://blog.heritage.org/2008/11/24/rahms-plan-for-mandatory-service/

Dallas ISD faulted for using fake Social Security numbers

2008-11-25T04:45:00.003-06:00

Dallas ISD... supporting illegal immigration at any cost again. Three or four years ago, they made several principals learn Spanish or be fired. I'll put the link to this story at the bottom of this entry. There's 430 comments. The ones I read were all mad as hell. -- Faye

12:04 PM CST on Friday, November 14, 2008
By TAWNELL D. HOBBS / The Dallas Morning Newstdhobbs@dallasnews.com

Years after being advised by a state agency to stop, the Dallas Independent School District continued to provide foreign citizens with fake Social Security numbers to get them on the payroll quickly.

Some of the numbers were real Social Security numbers already assigned to people elsewhere. And in some cases, the state's educator certification office unknowingly used the bogus numbers to run criminal background checks on the new hires, most of whom were brought in to teach bilingual classes.
The practice was described in an internal report issued in September by the district's investigative office, which looked into the matter after receiving a tip. The report said the Texas Education Agency learned of the fake numbers in 2004 and told DISD then that the practice "was illegal."
It's unclear how long DISD had been issuing the phony numbers, and district officials didn't know Thursday how many had been given out. But the investigative report and interviews with DISD employees indicate the practice went on for several years before it was discontinued this past summer.
DISD human resources chief Kim Olson, who came to the district in 2007, said that she learned about the false numbers this past summer around the time the district's investigative unit was looking into them and that she put a stop to the practice.
"There's no way we should be doing that kind of stuff," Ms. Olson said. "Even if your intention is good to help employees get paid, you can't use inappropriate procedures to do that."
Stopgap approach
The investigative report, obtained by The News through a records request, found "that the inappropriate procedure of assigning false SSNs has been systemic for several years" within DISD's alternative certification program, which prepares new teachers for state certification when they don't have traditional credentials.
A call Thursday to DISD's alternative certification office was not returned. In recent years, DISD has hired people from various countries, including Mexico and Spain, to deal with a shortage of bilingual teachers.
The fake numbers were assigned as a stopgap to expedite the hiring process, the report says. The numbers were supposed to serve as temporary identification numbers until employees received real Social Security numbers. Once employees got the real numbers, they were supposed to tell district officials so the fake ones could be replaced.
The investigation found no indication that the fake numbers were provided to the Teacher Retirement System, the Internal Revenue Service or the Social Security Administration.
However, according to the report, a sampling of several fake numbers showed that they had been included in a July quarterly report sent to the Texas Workforce Commission.
Also, when investigators reviewed a sampling of personnel files, they learned that the fake numbers were entered on Department of Homeland Security and IRS forms. The forms are not transmitted outside the district but are made available to the appropriate federal agency upon request.
In July, the district discovered that 26 of the false numbers were in use after matching DISD employee Social Security numbers with the Social Security Administration database. The numbers were already being used in Pennsylvania. DISD officials did not know Thursday whether the practice had caused problems for anyone holding the legitimate numbers.
The district's investigative unit, called the Office of Professional Responsibility, began looking into the fake numbers after the Texas Education Agency's division of educator investigations advised the unit in July that it had discovered the district issuing false numbers in 2004.
That year, the TEA division became aware of the practice when DISD faxed copies of about 100 new Social Security Administration cards for foreign citizens – most of whom had been assigned district-issued numbers – and asked TEA to replace the old numbers, according to the investigative report. The state office told DISD at the time that it's illegal to make up Social Security numbers and pass them off as legitimate, the report says.
'A mess'
Doug Phillips, TEA's director of investigations and fingerprinting, said his office believed the district had stopped the practice because there was no evidence that it continued. He said Thursday that he didn't know which laws forbid issuing fake Social Security numbers.
"We just knew it looked bad and smelled bad," Mr. Phillips said. "That was the first time we'd ever heard of that one."
Mr. Phillips said it created "a mess" in a state database. He said teacher applicants who don't have a Social Security number can receive a temporary identification number, which begins with a "P," from TEA until they get one from the federal government.
The DISD-issued Social Security numbers began with "200" – a prefix assigned to people in Pennsylvania, and Mr. Phillips' office noted that many ended with sequential numbers.
The investigative report also found that the district hasn't been turning in "new hire" forms to the Texas attorney general's office, which uses the information to find parents who haven't paid child support. Failure to provide the forms to the attorney general can result in a $25 fine for each employee. The district doesn't know yet whether it will have to pay any fines.
Ms. Olson said new processes have been put in place to address problems noted in the report, including making crosschecks with the Social Security Administration.
"You can't just arbitrarily issue Social Security numbers," she said. "Even if your intention is good, it's not legal."
How the process worked
Here's how the Dallas school district's false Social Security number process worked:
•Foreign educators on visas were assigned false Social Security numbers to get them on DISD's payroll.
•The foreign employees were instructed to obtain Social Security numbers from the Social Security Administration and report them to the district.
•Once employees received the real numbers, the district entered those numbers in place of the fake ones in a computerized management system.
•The fake numbers were supposed to be used temporarily until real numbers were in place. But some of the fake numbers wound up being sent to the Texas Education Agency when DISD asked TEA to conduct background checks on new hires. Those numbers stayed in the system if DISD didn't replace them with real Social Security numbers obtained by the employees.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/111408dnmetdisdsocials.3d93dbc.html?ocp=42#slcgm_comments_anchor

GENERAL MOTORS TO INVEST $1 BILLION IN BRAZIL OPERATIONS

2008-11-24T12:40:00.001-06:00

Money to Come from U.S. Rescue Program

Russ Dallen Latin American Herald Tribune November 21, 2008

General Motors plans to invest $1 billion in Brazil to avoid the kind of problems the U.S. automaker is facing in its home market, said the beleaguered car maker.
According to the president of GM Brazil-Mercosur, Jaime Ardila, the funding will come from the package of financial aid that the manufacturer will receive from the U.S. government and will be used to “complete the renovation of the line of products up to 2012.”
“It wouldn’t be logical to withdraw the investment from where we’re growing, and our goal is to protect investments in emerging markets,” he said in a statement published by the business daily Gazeta Mercantil.
Meanwhile, he cut the company’s revenue forecast for this year by 14% to $9.5 billion from $11 billion, as the economic crisis began to cause rapid slowdowns in sales.
GM already announced three programs of paid leave, and Ardila added that GM Brazil “is going to wait and see how the market behaves in order to know what decision to take” with regard to possible layoffs.
For Ardila, the injection in Brazil’s automobile sector of 8 billion reais ($3.51 billion) recently announced by the federal and state governments of Sao Paulo “has already begun to revive sales,” which fell by 12% in October.
The executive said that the company will operate a “conservative” scenario in 2009 with an estimated production of 2.6 million units, and another more “optimistic” that contemplates sales of 2.9 million.
This year sales will reach 2.85 million vehicles, which represents a growth of 15% over last year.

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=320909&CategoryId=12396

Crackdown on 1,300 Cases of Suspected Identity Theft in Colorado

2008-11-21T08:34:00.002-06:00

November 21, 2008

Chris Casey and Mike Peters

Weld County, Colorado authorities this month unleashed a large-scale sting they hope will net about 1,300 suspects who may have used false identification to receive millions of dollars in U.S. tax refunds.The arrests for ID theft or criminal impersonation are expected to snare hundreds of suspects. Authorities said two years worth of federally approved tax refunds from suspects' jobs — they work in agriculture, corporations and small businesses across northern Colorado — could total $2.7 million.The sweep follows the August 13th arrest of Servando Trejo, who was linked to a Texas man who told local authorities that someone working in northern Colorado had been using his Social Security number.

Trejo, a native of Mexico, told a Weld County Sheriff's Office detective that he bought the ID in Texas after he crossed the border in 1995. He used the ID to get jobs, obtain loans, get a Colorado driver's license and pay taxes, which in recent years he filed through Amalia's Translation and Tax Services, 1501 9th St. in Greeley.

Weld sheriff's deputies on Wednesday launched what they're calling "Operation Number Games." The round-up of suspects were identified through other suspicious IDs found in an October 17th search of Amalia's office. Thirteen suspects were arrested Wednesday and Thursday, and teams will work Friday and through this weekend to pick up more suspects they believe were living here with stolen identities. Authorities plan arrests for the rest of the year and much of 2009.The sting will likely have wide ramifications:
- A measure of long-sought justice for many victims — people who for years have fought the IRS over mysterious reports of underreported income in tax filings.
- A high-profile example of the national stalemate on the immigration issue. The sting brings to light the inability of government agencies to share information that would lead to the enforcement of current law.
- Backlash from the Latino community, which remains raw to the federal raid at Swift & Co. meatpacking plant in 2006. That early morning raid, which picked up 262 workers suspected of committing identity theft, left scores of households without a breadwinner as the workers were jailed and most deported.

On Thursday, one local Latino businessman called the investigation into Amalia's Tax Service "racial profiling" and a "fishing expedition."John Bach, the founder and membership director of Colorado HUG, a Greeley-based nonprofit that serves the Latino community and businesses, said the records search at Amalia's is an invasion of privacy and could result in a class-action suit."Something like this, if it continues, there will be a revolt on a local level," Bach said.Each of the suspects will be booked into the Weld County Jail, and also placed on an "ICE hold," which means they will be investigated by Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents to determine if they're living legally in the United States.Meanwhile, the governmental inter-agency stalemate is born out in the investigation's methodical pace.

Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck said his office receives a "steady stream" of complaints from out-of-state victims of identity theft.Local authorities redoubled efforts to combat identity theft around the time of the Swift raid, reflected in their successful push to get the federal government to open a local ICE office.Whether this sting puts a large dent in the identity theft problem is uncertain, considering authorities don't know how many of the local tax filings will turn up invalid Social Security numbers.Of the roughly 1,300 Social Security numbers being investigated, the Social Security Administration is, per regulations, granting only 10 names a week to the DA's Office."The only thing they'll tell us is if it's valid or fictitious. They won't tell us who the owner of the valid Social is," Buck said of each number. "It will take us 2 1/2 years to find out if these 1,300 numbers are valid or fictitious, much less find victims involved.

"Four-step system"
Weld sheriff's detective Josh Noonan began the investigation months ago, when he got a call from Jose Lopez, the man in Texas.The resulting investigation brought search warrants for Amalia's Translation and Tax Services. Authorities said owner Amalia Cerrillo prepared the irregular tax returns for more than 1,300 undocumented workers.According to investigators, the system had four steps:
- A new illegal alien arrives in the country and buys a Social Security number from someone on the street, or from criminals that specialize in obtaining ID from legal citizens.
- When the immigrant gets a job, he or she uses the Social Security number for withholding taxes from his or her paycheck. Many times in these cases, the worker claimed to have numerous children, which lowered the amount of taxes that would be owed.
- At Amalia's Translation and Tax Services, the owner would use the alien's stolen Social Security number under a phony name, secure a legal tax identification number, then fill out forms, which would result in a large tax return.

According to the DA and sheriff's investigations, many of the illegal immigrants would pay only a few hundred dollars in withholding taxes, but would receive an average of $2,000 in a tax refund.If the 1,300 suspects total about $2.6 million in refunds over the 2007 and 2006 tax years, authorities said, the amount they paid in income taxes is estimated to be less than half of that, about $1 million.

Internal Revenue Service Records show the transactions are legal, because the illegal immigrants used tax identification numbers to file for refunds and claiming children under the child tax credit system."She knows (the clients seeking a tax identification number) are illegal, but the IRS is saying we want to know everybody who is working in this country," Buck said. "They're getting a boatload of money back (in refunds), more than they're even paying (in taxes)."

'Haven't done anything wrong'
In 1996, the IRS launched the Individual Tax Identification Number program to track resident and non-resident aliens' income derived in the U.S. from sources such as investments and interest-bearing bank accounts. The number is issued to people ineligible for Social Security Numbers — more than 12.4 million ITINs were issued from 1996 to 2006 — enabling them to open bank accounts and report taxable income.By law, a person can't have both an ITIN and Social Security number.In the case of the Greeley tax preparer, the returns, typically showing both numbers, were processed and refund checks were delivered.

Cerrillo, 36, said she processes tax returns in accordance with IRS rules. She said the ITIN is issued to individuals, and their spouses and dependents, who are non-resident or resident aliens and not eligible for a Social Security number. She said it's commonplace nationally for tax preparers to process ITIN applications and subsequent tax returns. She said clients know their current Social Security number isn't a valid match to their name, so they seek an ITIN for tax purposes. Cerrillo sat behind a desk in her office Thursday morning. Nearby were some of the 49 boxes of records taken by police last month."I'm open because I haven't done anything wrong," she said. "I will continue to help these people until the IRS says something different. If I'm breaking the law, the IRS is making me break the law. I'm just doing what the IRS directions say."Bach, of Colorado HUG, stopped by Cerrillo's office Thursday morning, soon after she was contacted by the Tribune. He said the federal government devised ITINs as a "profit maker" to generate tax revenue from undocumented workers."Everybody knows the federal government says one thing and does another, and this (arrest sweep) is a prime example," he said. "The federal government says if you are an undocumented immigrant, an illegal immigrant, you don't have a right to work in the United States. But if you are (working), here's a number so you can file your tax return. That's very convenient."Cerrillo feels her 10-year-old business was targeted because she's Latino."I think (authorities) came here because of my (Latino) name," she said. "They must have thought, 'Well, a lot of these people go here.' But it's not something I'm doing that's illegal. It's something that people who do taxes do because it's an IRS thing."She said she understands authorities' desire to clean up identity theft cases, but "why don't they get their records from the IRS? That's where they're from — not just (my records)."Bach said he suspects that tax returns involving ITINs would be in greater numbers at other local tax preparers such as H&R Block and Liberty. He said the investigation into Amalia's amounts to "profiling."The search warrant presented to Cerrillo in October gave officers authority to search for 2007 and 2006 tax records, Bach said, but they took records of more than 4,000 clients dating to 2000. About half of those, according to Cerrillo, are filings by legal permanent residents."That's flat-out invasion of privacy," Bach said.Buck said Cerrillo's business was targeted because that's where the paper trail led when the Sheriff's Office looked into Lopez's complaint. When police began searching for a "Jose Lopez" in northern Colorado, they found Trejo using that identity as an employee of Five Star Cattle Co., a Kersey feedlot."He used her to file a tax return so we had probable cause based on our interview with her," Buck said. "We didn't have probable cause on other tax preparers."Buck added, however, he believes similar cases occur at other tax preparation offices. "Absolutely, I think this is a widespread problem. But (Cerrillo) was interviewed and indicated this is what the IRS wants, and she does it for a number of people. At that point we had probable cause to conduct a search at her office." He said Weld authorities will likely investigate other tax preparers, but it will be a lengthy period before that happens."We probably have 1,300 cases now," Buck said. "We're absolutely overwhelmed, as is the court system, as is the jail."Buck said the officers acted within protocol on the search warrant. The deputies began their search for only 2007 and 2006 records, but expanded their seizure of information based on the "plain view doctrine.""In looking there, they found other returns that violated the law, in their opinion, so that allowed them to take other returns as a result of them being in plain view," he said.

Tax refunds pile up
The DA's office calculated the tax filing information of 23% of the 1,300 suspected invalid Social Security numbers taken from Amalia's Tax Service. The average refund was $1,986, of which $1,309 came through child tax credits. Other averages found in the returns:
- Earned income, $27,771.
- Taxable income, $5,343.
- Number of deductions claimed, 4.8. In one instance, a client earned $51,548 and claimed eight exemptions. The suspect had $3,864 of federal income tax withheld, and received a $5,205 refund. Another client reported $33,341 in income with six exemptions. That suspect had $756 of federal income tax withheld and received a $4,062 refund ($3,306 through the child tax credit).

Jean Carl, spokeswoman of the IRS's Colorado office, said she's unfamiliar with the case in Weld County. But, she said, instances of a tax preparer handling hundreds of ITIN applications and subsequent tax returns has occurred elsewhere."It's happening all over the country," she said. "These scams are out there and people have to understand when they sign the return they're responsible for whatever's reported, not the preparer."She said the IRS is bound by law to process returns as quickly as possible, so it's typically not until after the refund goes out that inconsistencies are discovered. Electronic filing has made curbing identity tampering even more difficult, she said.Previously, when the IRS accepted paper-only forms, the data-entry person could freeze the return if a name/number mismatch appeared."A lot of these things don't come to light until after (initial processing) when we do our record matching," Carl said. Even then, it's difficult to pin down an undocumented worker to collect the fraudulent refund."It becomes a very difficult job to do when you're talking about people who are here illegally and not supposed to be working," she said. Adding to the problem is the fact that IRS code restricts the agency from disclosing tax return information. The law, which provides that tax returns and tax return information be kept confidential, was enacted as part of the Tax Reform Act of 1976.

'Could be total zero'
Marti Dinerstein, a fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C., said ITINs are used as a way to get undocumented workers onto the income tax rolls. In a 2002 report "Giving Cover to Illegal Aliens:" Dinerstein said it's a laudable goal for the IRS to collect taxes from the broadest population base possible, but problems arise when the IRS determines resident alien state based on "substantial presence" in the United States, not legal residence. "Thus, illegal aliens who file tax returns are treated in the same way as legal foreign residents and receive the same tax benefits, such as spousal exemptions, child and education tax credits," her report said. And she believes the child tax credits — which bring in the largest amounts of the tax refund — amount to "invisible welfare."In a phone interview with the Tribune, Dinerstein said the government began scaling back welfare programs in the 1990s, while driving up the income tax credits for dependent children."Everybody thinks it's so wonderful that illegals are paying taxes," she said, "but what they don't understand is filing taxes is not the same as paying taxes." She said that because undocumented workers typically have low-income jobs and numerous dependents, they end up drawing more from the income tax system than they pay in."It could be a total zero (in tax revenue for the government)," Dinerstein said. "It could be a minus, if they're paying no taxes and yet they have children and they qualify for the child credits. Then the government transfers money to them."She said getting false Social Security numbers "opens the door" to undocumented workers getting employment "and almost everything a U.S. citizen can do."ITINs, meanwhile, are not valid for ID outside the tax system, but several states — not Colorado — allow their use to get a driver's license. Dinerstein said she suspects that undocumented workers, generally struggling with English, are often steered toward buying a Social Security number by a fellow immigrant. In some of the cases, "an immigrant has put an awful lot of faith in someone they know who doesn't do the right thing," she said. Rounding up sellers of the gateway identification — a Social Security card — is a difficult task, Buck said. He said when individuals with fraudulent cards are asked where they got it, the answer is often a physical description of someone who met them in a far-off city."It's difficult for Weld County law enforcement to track down the information," he said. "The information is often vague and almost always outside of Weld County." Also difficult is getting at a key player in the problem — employers who hire the workers with false ID. Buck said employers are accepting workers' documents that look valid. "Unless we can prove their state of mind" knew the documents were fraudulent, it's difficult to make a case against an employer. He noted it's important to look at employers and not just the employees in these cases. "When we start to see some patterns (with employers), we'll get into that and start making more interviews," Buck said.

Employer accountability
About 12,000 companies nationwide currently use E-Verify, a worker identity verification system. JBS Swift & Co., which had 262 employees arrested on suspicion of identity theft in December 2006, was using an employee identification system, Basic Pilot, prior to the raid and now uses E-Verify. No charges have been filed against Swift officials in the wake of the raid by Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents. Mark Everson, Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service, in July 2006 spoke Before the House Committee on Ways and Means on immigration issues. He said, " If an employer asks a worker for an accurate Social Security number or ITIN, he has performed due diligence under IRS code and is free of penalty." He told the committee that mismatched identifications on tax forms tend to occur among the lowest wage earners who have little tax liability. Based on an IRS' analysis of tax year 2004, he said, about 75% of all mismatched W-2s reported wages of less than $10,000. About 2 percent of W-2s with invalid Social Security numbers that year reported wages greater than $30,000. The average wage for all mismatches was about $7,000 annually. But, he said, many employees receive more than one W-2 in a tax year, so their gross incomes could be higher.Dinerstein, the fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, said identity theft is a growth industry that has homeland security implications."It gives documents to people who could be a real danger to the United States, and it gives cover to people who are living here illegally," she said. "It's a very dangerous thing to be able to get fraudulent documents. You can do a lot of harm. And why should they be taking advantage of tax rebates that are meant for American citizens?"

"People broke law'
In the arrest affidavit on Trejo, an agent with the Colorado Department of Revenue said Amalia's Tax Service is conducting business according to IRS guidelines and has not violated any laws. Buck said he can't speculate on whether Cerrillo, the tax preparer, will face any charges. He said the arrests could spark another wave of backlash in the community. He said some people will be upset that potentially millions of dollars were refunded to illegal residents. Others will be angry that families are again being broken up by deportations."The bottom line is people broke the law," Buck said. "At the end of the line, people will realize you can't use another person's identity or a false identity in this county."

In other Weld identity theft cases involving illegal immigrants, Buck said, an "overwhelming number" of victims have Latino surnames. Bach and Cerrillo were upset to learn about this week's sting operation. They said tax filers seeking ITINs generally got the Social Security numbers assuming they were fictitious and made up. The workers had no intent to duplicate another person's identification, they said. Cerrillo brushed away tears as she thought about the arrests of clients she believes did nothing wrong. "I don't know how many of these people will be deported or have legal issues," she said. "Why? Because they came to Amalia's Tax Service."— Tribune reporter Andrew Villegas contributed to this report.

FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributors Chris Casey and Mike Peters write for Colorado’s Greeley Tribune

http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.1829/pub_detail.asp

Postville Saga Continues, Latest Batch of Disgusted Workers Leaves, New CEO Charges

2008-11-21T07:34:00.002-06:00

This was an interesting story, beginning when ICE raided the plant and found over 300 illegal aliens working there. The proponents of illegal immigration all protested, bussing protestors in from all over. Then the stories about the working conditions at the plant and all the identity theft going on came out. Ugly, ugly story of employer greed and desperate people. The stories about the U.S. citizens affected by the identity theft have not been reported. Pity. Evidently, the employers were not held to account because they roped in these people from Palau. Another pity. If you want to know more, just type "Postville" into your search bar. -- Faye

"Agriprocessors is again losing a significant part of its workforce, but this time it's not because of an immigration raid. The meat packing plant recently hired more than 150 workers from Palau, a small island nation in the Pacific Ocean. But this weekend, the majority of those workers left, saying what they expected in Postville was far from what they found there," KCRG reports.
"The workers arrived in September on the promise from Palauan recruiters of cheap rent and decent wages, despite letters of warning from union leaders and residents. Most expressed anger at Agriprocessors, but also at its government for allowing them to make the exhausting and expensive 72-hour trip by plane and bus to a doomed situation. When Hersey Kyoto, Palauan ambassador to the U.S., arrived in Postville Friday, his countrymen had just found out they would not be paid for the most recent two weeks of work, and some had their electricity cut off," The Courier writes.
"At an initial appearance Friday on new charges of bank fraud, [former CEO] Rubashkin, 49, was ordered by Magistrate Judge Jon Scoles to be held until a detention hearing Wednesday. It appears Rubashkin faces a significant chance of being denied bail at that hearing," The Gazette reports.
10:22 AM link: 6 comment(s) Last comment by Sick 'n Tired at 12:25 20
Share Story Via Email or Web
http://www.steinreport.com/archives/011995.html#comments

MAYBE YOU CAN MESS WITH TEXAS

2008-11-21T07:08:00.004-06:00

I found this on the Dan Stein Report under the title above. I'll give the links below the story so that you can go read the comments. Waaa! People have had enough. In fact, I'm surprised to see this in a Houston paper. I'd say they're not forgetting Rodney Johnson any time soon. Up until that time, Houston was a pretty safe place for illegals to go because nobody in Houston was going to say anything.

Probation, instead of deportation
Though eligible to be put out of the country, some illegal immigrant criminals avoid prison
By SUSAN CARROLL Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Nov. 18, 2008, 9:14AM

Bayron Orlando Euceda, an illegal immigrant from Honduras, did not serve a day in prison for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old Houston girl.
Instead, a Harris County judge sentenced the 21-year-old to eight years deferred adjudication, a form of probation. A sticky note on his plea agreement reads, "Best interest of victim."
"That's incredible," said Andy Kahan, director of the Houston Mayor's Crime Victims Office and a former probation officer, after thumbing through Euceda's court paperwork. ''The best interest of the victim would have been to have that guy locked up."
A Houston Chronicle investigation found 330 cases involving defendants sentenced to some form of probation in Harris County — despite admitting to the jailer upon their arrest that they were in the country illegally.At least 44 of those cases involved defendants who later had their probation revoked and were sent to prison or who now have outstanding arrest warrants, the investigation found.
Slightly more than half of the 330 cases involved felony charges. In a handful of cases, illegal immigrants under the county's supervision later were accused of committing serious crimes, including aggravated assault and sexual abuse of a child.
The review was based on arrest, immigration and court records for more than 3,500 inmates who said they were in the country illegally when they were booked into jail over a span of eight months, starting in June 2007, the earliest immigration documents available.
The Chronicle's investigation found:
•A shortage of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents assigned to screening inmates at the county's jails, which has allowed illegal immigrants eligible for deportation to end up on probation. ICE agents filed paperwork to detain only one in four inmates who admitted they were undocumented during the Chronicle's review period.•The Harris County District Attorney's Office lacks an official policy on offering probation to illegal immigrants.•Prosecutors and pretrial service officers frequently lack access to accurate information about defendants' immigration status when preparing reports for judges. As a result, some judges say they often know little about the immigration status of defendants before sentencing.•Once illegal immigrants are sentenced to probation, there is no streamlined process to cull them from supervision rolls. Harris County probation officers try to help ICE agents whenever possiblebut lack the means and manpower to verify probationers' immigration status, said Ray Garcia, deputy director of operations for Harris County Community Supervision and Corrections Department.Robert Rutt, special agent in charge of the ICE criminal investigation office in Houston, said ICE officials "triage and tend to go after the worst of the worst" of immigrants who are sentenced to probation and released from jail but who are eligible for deportation. ICE has improved screening in Harris County's jails in recent months and has stepped up efforts to catch immigrants who have not complied with an order from an immigration judge to leave the country.
For example, in the 2008 fiscal year, Houston's fugitive teams made 1,587 arrests, up 28 percent from 2007, ICE officials said. Nationally, ICE fugitive teams made nearly 34,000 arrests — more than double the number two years ago.
Case draws criticismThe practice of sentencing illegal immigrants to probation attracted sharp criticism after an illegal immigrant from Mexico killed Houston police officer Rodney Johnson.
Juan Quintero, who is serving a life sentence for the murder, had several DWI convictions and was sentenced to deferred adjudication for indecency with a 12-year-old girl in 1999. Quintero was deported but returned to Houston illegally and shot Johnson on Sept. 21, 2006.
Johnson's widow, Houston police Sgt. Joslyn Johnson, said she hopes for a policy change that would stop illegal immigrants from ending up on probation, saying prison time would be more of a deterrent to coming back to the U.S. illegally.
"They broke the law when they came into the country illegally, and if they've committed another crime on top of that, I think they should be automatically deported," she said. "They should not be allowed to stay in the country on probation."
Some lie about statusEuceda's case highlights the system's shortcomings in not identifying illegal immigrants early on.
Euceda told jailers when he was arrested on the sexual assault charge in July 2007 that he was in the country illegally. He filled out court paperwork saying he was from Honduras. There is no record of ICE agents filing paperwork to detain him.
In November 2007, state District Judge Jim Wallace signed off on a plea agreement that granted Euceda deferred adjudication, a form of probation that allows defendants to avoid a formal conviction if they successfully complete the terms of their supervision. The prosecutor on the case, Connie Spence, declined comment through a district attorney's spokesman.
Wallace said he did not remember the case but likely did not know Euceda was undocumented.
"My policy is not to give deferred (adjudication) or straight probation to anyone who is here illegally because I'm of the opinion that there is that much more of a reason for that person to flee the jurisdiction," he said.
Wallace said he generally asks a defendant's attorney whether the client is undocumented before signing off on a plea, but he said that is probably not a very reliable measure.
Some defendants lie about their immigration status and are sentenced to probation, "and then next thing we know, they're gone," Wallace said.
He added: "Effectively, they've committed whatever offense they've committed for free. ... It's irritated me for years."
Euceda was released from Harris County Jail after signing the plea agreement on Nov. 30, 2007, and was picked up by immigration agents five days later. He was formally deported to Honduras in April.
On Aug. 9, U.S. Border Patrol agents caught Euceda trying to sneak back into the U.S. through West Texas, court records say. He was charged with illegal re-entry after deportation. His case is pending.
Separating issuesWhile some judges said they were simply unaware of a defendant's immigration status, others said the status should not matter.
George Godwin, a Harris County district judge, sentenced 19-year-old Hugo Sanchez to eight years' deferred adjudication in February for having sex with an 11-year-old girl. Immigration officials filed paperwork to detain Sanchez within two days of his arrest in September 2007.
Godwin could not comment specifically on the Sanchez case, but he said he generally tries to keep immigration issues separate from the criminal cases.
"We don't do immigration work here," he said. "That's one reason why it gets sticky and it gets complicated. You just sort of have to divorce yourself here from the immigration problems."
Kelli Johnson, the prosecutor in the Sanchez case, declined comment through the District Attorney's Office spokesman. Sanchez's attorney did not return phone calls.
Asked whether probation or deferred adjudication is an appropriate punishment for someone facing deportation, Donna Hawkins, a spokeswoman for the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said, "I don't know how to answer that question.
"We would, as prosecutors, want to see that justice is done," she said. "If we knew the defendant was going to be immediately deported, in most cases we would not offer a probation they could not complete. If that happens, obviously, we would not feel justice is being done because they're not being punished, aside from possibly deportation."
Patrick McCann, a Houston defense attorney, said defendants should be eligible for probation regardless of their immigration status.
"Judges cannot as a matter of due process and equal protection say you're not eligible because you don't have documentation," McCann said. "First off, it's not a state judge's call, ever. It's not their business. It's not their jurisdiction."
Again and againIsrael Lopez, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, finished a seven-year Texas prison sentence in July 2006 for aggravated sexual assault of a child and was turned over to ICE agents, prison records say. ICE officials confirm he was deported in August 2006.
Less than a year later, in June 2007, Lopez was arrested again on suspicion of assaulting a Harris County sheriff's deputy and told jailers he was in the country illegally, records say. Lopez was sentenced to eight months in jail. There is no record of ICE filing paperwork to detain him then.
In February, Lopez was arrested again, charged with assaulting his wife. He was sentenced to probation by a visiting Harris County Criminal Court-at-law judge. A motion was filed to revoke his probation after the Chronicle asked the sitting judge, James Anderson, about Lopez's sentence. Lopez is now a fugitive, according to court records.
Breaking their wordOther illegal immigrants have slipped through the system by not divulging their legal status.
In 2001, a federal immigration judge told Teodorico Cespedes, a native of Costa Rica, to leave the U.S. but allowed him to opt for "voluntary departure," meaning Cespedes agreed to leave on his own terms, rather than be formally deported. There is no evidence that Cespedes ever returned to his home country.
In January 2007, Cespedes was arrested and charged with assault in Houston. He never told jailers or court officials that he was in the U.S. illegally, records say. A judge sentenced him to one year of community supervision, and he was released from jail after immigration officials didn't file paperwork to detain him.
Ten months later, Cespedes was charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, accused of raping and sodomizing a 4-year-old girl. He is being held without bail, pending his January trial date.
Harris County Criminal Court-at-law Judge Reagan Helm, who sentenced Cespedes on the original assault charge and opposes putting illegal immigrants on probation, said he was not aware of Cespedes' immigration status.
Garcia, the probation official, declined to comment on any specific cases in the Chronicle review. He said his office provides ICE with a list of probationers who have told probation officers they are foreign-born whenever ICE requests it.
Rutt, the ICE official, said the agency trained nine Harris County jailers in August to help file paperwork to detain illegal immigrants. Last month, ICE also gave Harris County jailers access to an immigration database that allows them to check inmates' immigration history automatically.
Garcia said if ICE could identify illegal immigrants before they reach probation officials, it would help ease the county's caseload and the financial burden on local taxpayers.
''If we could have more of the upfront identification of people, so you knew their status prior to placing them on supervision, I think that would save our system and the state money," Garcia said.
mailto:susan.carroll@chron.com

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6118065.html

http://www.steinreport.com/archives/012002.html#comments

Sheriffs identify 3,300 illegal immigrants

2008-11-21T06:46:00.002-06:00

staff reports
• published November 19, 2008 12:15 am

RALEIGH – Seven North Carolina sheriff offices partnering with federal immigration officials identified at least 3,359 inmates so far this year who are in the country illegally.

All but 177 of them have been handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation proceedings, Eddie Caldwell, executive vice president of the N.C. Sheriffs' Association, told legislators Tuesday.
Seven sheriffs offices, including Henderson County, participate in the program known as 287(g), which trains jailers in immigration procedures.
Jailers interviewed 4,511 suspected illegal immigrants through Sept. 30, and turned over 3,182 for deportation.
Most of the charges for those slated for deportation involved driving offenses.
Of the charges, 44 percent involved criminal violations, from trespassing to murder, 23 percent involved impaired driving and 33 percent involved other driving violations.

CITIZEN-TIMES.COM, ASHVILLE, NC
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008811190334

First Steps to GOP Recovery

2008-11-21T06:36:00.002-06:00

By Mort Kondracke

How can the Republican Party rebound? The first step would be to quit letting Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham set its agenda.
A second step would be for Congressional Republicans to actually try to help President-elect Barack Obama succeed in addressing the country's dire problems -- offering better ideas where appropriate and opposing just when necessary, not reflexively.
And the third -- maybe the biggest one -- would be for GOP governors to use their posts to show the country how conservatives can solve problems, especially the dismal state of American education and its menacing cousin, lagging American competitiveness.
If one governor would fully implement a widely circulated proposal to transform U.S. education -- based on having most children graduate after 10th grade and using the savings to pay teachers like professionals -- it could serve as a model for the nation and bring the United States back to world standards.
But Step One is to fire Rush Limbaugh and his ilk as the intellectual bosses of the GOP. They shouldn't be muzzled, as some liberals want to do by reviving the "fairness doctrine" in broadcasting, just ignored more frequently.
In recent years, Republicans have let right-wing talk show hosts whip the GOP base into frenzies -- over immigration, brain-damage victim Terry Schiavo and same-sex marriage -- that have branded the party as troglodyte.
The result is that the demographic groups representing the future of American politics shifted decisively to the Democratic Party in 2008 -- Latinos, young people, the well-educated, moderates, working women, first-time voters, suburbanites and "seculars."
As former White House political guru Karl Rove observed last week, "the GOP will find it hard to regain the majority" if it keeps losing Latinos.
Immigration scarcely was an issue during the fall campaign. But the damage was done over the past two years as the radio screamers roused the rabble, who then beat on GOP Members of Congress, presidential candidates and even the Bush administration not just to control the border but treat undocumented residents as felons.
At a briefing last week jointly sponsored by the "New Democrat" Progressive Policy Institute and Web site Democratic Strategist, author Ruy Teixeira said that the gist of his widely doubted 2002 book, "The Emerging Democratic Majority," is now becoming reality.
"Democrats are going where they're growing," he said, while Republicans are isolating themselves in a fading portion of the population -- old, white, less-educated, highly religious Southerners.
Others at the briefing, notably Bill Galston, a former Clinton White House aide now at the Brookings Institution, cautioned that the country has not taken a sharp left turn, a re-alignment has not yet occurred and that Democrats should beware of overreaching.
Which brings us to Step 2 for Republicans: Be positive and pragmatic, not negative and fundamentalist. If Democrats go off the left end, following their Rush Limbaughs in the blogosphere, the GOP may only need to sit and wait until the inevitable reaction occurs.
But Obama appears to be a pragmatist and is hiring pragmatists -- Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) in the lead -- to run his administration.
So Republicans should follow the advice of Senate Republican Conference Chairman Lamar Alexander (Tenn.): "if [Obama] governs from the center, we'll support him and suggest better ways of doing things. If he goes too far left, we'll object."
Part of the problem, of course, lies in deciding what's "center" and "too left." Right now, Republicans are merely saying "No" to a new economic stimulus and rescues for auto companies and homeowners, rather than devising alternatives.
Conservative economist Martin Feldstein of Harvard University, for instance, contends that the government should prevent a cascade of mortgage foreclosures by lending "underwater" homeowners part of the difference between their home's value and what they owe -- but on terms that allow garnishment of their wages if they don't pay the debt.
Longer range, as Alexander says, Republicans can't simply dust off 20-year-old mantras of the Reagan era, but have to devise 21st century solutions for America's problems like health care, entitlements, energy and transportation.
And GOP Members of Congress should do everything possible to assist GOP governors in addressing their problems -- and also learn from what they are doing to solve them.
Which brings us to Step 3. Governors like Sarah Palin (Alaska), Tim Pawlenty (Minn.), Bobby Jindal (La.), Haley Barbour (Miss.), Charlie Crist (Fla.) and others actually have responsibility for implementing health care programs, building infrastructure, saving energy, developing economies and balancing budgets.
Three governors -- Republican Jon Huntsman Jr. (Utah) and Democrats Deval Patrick (Mass.) and John Lynch (N.H.) -- have set up pilot projects partially implementing proposals of the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce, issued last year.
Significantly, their initiatives have been blessed by leaders of the National Education Association, though its rival, the American Federation of Teachers, opposes them.
Under the proposal, states would take over schools from local boards, teachers would form corporations to run schools on contract and hire principals, salaries would go up significantly to attract first-rate teachers and standards would be set to international norms.
Most students would graduate after 10th grade and go on to upgraded trade or tech schools, while others stayed and took college-level courses. And money saved would also fund preschool for needy kids.
If one governor fully implemented the proposal, his or her state could be a competitiveness juggernaut, set a model for the nation -- and begin solving America's biggest long-term problem.
Actually solving big problems -- not pandering to a shrinking demographic base -- is the key to Republican success. Good luck.
Mort Kondracke is the Executive Editor of Roll Call, the newspaper of Capitol Hill since 1955. © 2007 Roll Call, Inc.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/11/first_steps_to_gop_recovery.html

Bills targeting illegal immigration likely to fuel clashes in Legislature

2008-11-21T06:26:00.001-06:00

By Enrique Rangel A-J AUSTIN BUREAU
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Story last updated at 11/19/2008 - 1:46 am

AUSTIN - Many of the divisive issues that triggered tension and nasty verbal fights in the last legislative session apparently will make a return appearance next year.
For starters, on Monday Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, introduced a series of bills aimed at putting the brakes on illegal immigration in Texas, including one that would make English the official language in the state. And though a good number of legislators and legal analysts don't think Berman's bills will go anywhere, all sides agree that the proposed legislation is likely to trigger nasty legislative fights.
If that happens, Panhandle and South Plains legislators could be dragged into the political melees, just like last session.
"I am confident that they will get through the House this time," Berman said of the bills he filed Monday. The ones he filed last year never saw the light of day last because they were killed by Rep. David Swinford, R-Dumas, chairman of the House State Affairs Committee, the panel the bills were sent to for preliminary hearings.
A committee chairman has the power to kill bills he or she does not like, and Swinford said he killed Berman's bills because if they had passed in the Legislature, they could have not survived court challenges and the state of Texas would have been stuck with millions of dollars in legal fees for defending them.
Berman is uncertain whether his bills can pass in the Senate because the upper chamber requires two-thirds of its 31 members to agree on bringing a bill to the floor, and supporters of the bill, most or all of them Republican, do not have a two-thirds majority.
Nonetheless, he filed his bills because like millions of Texans, he is frustrated that the federal government has done little to stop illegal immigration, Berman said.
"If it is a federal issue, why hasn't the government dealt with it?" he asked.
"Illegal aliens are costing our state millions of dollars," he said. "At Parkland Hospital in Dallas, 70 percent of all births are to illegal aliens, and we have 25,000 illegal aliens in jail that are costing the government $39 million. It's the largest unfunded mandate in our state."
His English-only bill would require that all state government agencies deal with English only, he said. His bill is similar to measures that Arizona, California and other states have passed in recent years, he said.
In addition to the English-only bill, Berman filed a measure that would deny citizenship to U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants, another that would require employers to verify whether an immigrant worker is in the country illegally, and several others.
Swinford and Rep. Joe Heflin, D-Crosbyton, say they understand Berman's frustration but the law is very clear: Illegal immigration is a federal issue.
"I cannot comment on those bills because I have no idea what committees I am going to be in or what committee will hear those bills" next year, Swinford said. "(But) my personal reading is that the Constitution has not changed. Immigration is part of the federal government, not of the state."
Heflin said that as happened last year, he anticipates that Berman's bill may trigger ugly floor fights, mainly along partisan lines, with a majority of Republicans in favor and a majority of Democrats against it.
"I think Swinford is absolutely correct," Heflin said. "I think that the (Texas) attorney general is going to come back with the same opinion that this is a federal issue and that we would be well advised not to deal with it."
Texas Solicitor General James C. Ho, an expert on illegal immigration issues, particularly on birthright citizenship, said through Texas attorney general spokesman Jerry Strickland that because of his current post, he could not comment on any pending legislation.
However, in testimony before Swinford's committee last year - before becoming solicitor general - Ho told panel members that Berman's bills would be unconstitutional, especially denying U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants American citizenship.
"Citizenship laws are dictated by Congress, not the states under Article I of the Constitution," Ho said.
Berman said he is not worried about what the Attorney General's Office may say if his bills pass in the Legislature.
"We're a separate branch of the government," he said of the Legislature.
To comment on this story:
enrique.rangel@morris.com 512-673-7553

http://lubbockonline.com/stories/111908/loc_357554196.shtml

STATE SENATOR RANDY BROGDEN FROM OKLAHOMA

2008-11-21T04:59:00.005-06:00

There's more than the one road. In this video they're talking about the Trans-Texas Corridor. But there's the La Entrada and the Port to Plains. And another in Texas, I haven't been able to track yet. I heard a while back that the La Entrada was dead and that Gov. Richardson in New Mexico had said they'll just build La Entrada in New Mexico. Looks like La Entrada is not dead. With the moritorium on the TTC, it looks like they've just switched over to accomplishing their goal by increments on the other roads... or more likely, from all the maps and info I've seen, they're just continuing the overall plan. These other roads aren't being planned to be toll roads or as big as the TTC at this time. They still open our borders, and leave us open to the other provisions of NAFTA and the SPP that will jeopardize our sovereignty. So what happens when all that traffic gets on our current roads? They start with wanting to make them toll roads and selling off our infrastructure to foreign interest groups because of the maintenance costs. Same story, different day.

THE PETER MORRISON REPORT 11-20-08

2008-11-20T10:24:00.003-06:00

Summary of this week's report: State Rep. Debbie Riddle filed five important bills for the 2009session of the TX Legislature dealing with the problem of illegal aliens. These important bills will seek to allow for better enforcement of our immigration laws, sanction businesses who hire illegals, require photo ID for voting, and repeal instate tuitionf or illegal aliens.

Take Action:Please send a fax to Rep. Riddle thanking her for filing this important legislation:http://morrisonreport.com/fax/index.php?fax_id=62

Also, if you have time, a phone call would be even more meaningful.Please call her office at (281) 537-5252 or (512) 463-0572 and lether know we appreciate her efforts.

The full report:Amidst the endless pomp and circumstance surrounding the electionof President-elect Barack Hussein Obama, and the defeat of numerousRepublican senatorial candidates nationwide, it would seem thatgood news for the GOP is hard to come by right now.But, conservatives should remember the fall of 1964 in these perceived dark times that we are now entering. It was after Lyndon Johnson's complete dismantling of Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater to win the presidency in a landslide that year that the Right got serious about conservatism. Had that defeat not taken place, which emboldened conservatives such as future president Ronald Reagan, who knows where the country would be today?Just as the ashes of the failed conservative movement in 1964 produced a new conservative movement that would eclipse the Left and see Reagan elected to the White House in 1980, so will conservatives rise from this defeat in 2008, prepared to take astrong stand against the rising tide of socialism and radical liberal policies.Remember that in wars, defeats in battles allow you to gauge the effectiveness of your current campaign strategies and ascertain the weaknesses in your opponent. We are in a cultural war with the Left: with those who want to welcome every person in the planet into the United States and grant them citizenship; with a President-elect who isn't afraid to embrace the tenets of communism; with a political party that wants to raise your taxes during a time of economic crisis.Remember also that in the 2008 election, we saw an issue that conservatives continue to win on completely ignored: immigration.Thankfully in Texas, a rising star in the Republican Party and an individual who will play a major role in the reshaping of conservatism's future is making noise with her legislative tenacity.Rep. Debbie Riddle - a state representative from Tomball - has filed numerous anti-immigration bills for the 2009 session of the Texas Legislature. This horse-breeder from House District 150 isnot afraid of controversy if it means standing up for her constituents. A couple of quotes from her:

"Where did this idea come from that everybody deserves free education, free medical care, free whatever? It comes from Moscow,from Russia. It comes straight out of the pit of hell. And it's cleverly disguised as having a tender heart. It's not a tender heart. It's ripping the heart out of this country."

"My constituents are being taxed out of their homes . . . and their taxes are providing services for people who are here illegally."The new House bills that Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Houston authored and filed include:

1. Police checks - Allow police to check immigration status on"reasonable suspicion" and arrest those with illegal status for violating criminal trespassing laws.
2. Business sanctions - Sanction employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
3. Photo ID for Voting - Require voters to show photoidentification before voting, a sensible measure that even Mexico requires.
4. Better Law Enforcement -Allow law enforcement officials to arrest illegal immigrants
5. Repeal In-State Tuition for Illegal Aliens

These are sensible, winning issues that the recently defeated JohnMcCain never even touched on during his run for The White House. These bills that Riddle has proposed are helpful solutions to the problem of illegal immigration, and also show what courage can do in the face of overwhelming odds. With the federal government firmly in the hands of open border globalist elites, it is here at the state and local level that we can best hope to elicit change,for here you will have an audience of neighbors, friends and family who will support you, who know you and will work tirelessly for you. Riddle has shown a winning strategy for conservatives in our great state in the coming two years: introduce legislation that will winback the conservatives who are fed up with the direction the state and nation are going. Texas, mind you, does not have an initiative process, so we are powerless in effecting change, unless one of our elected officials proposes a bill. Riddle is a heroine for doing this; our job is to make sure the rest of our elected officials follow her lead.I encourage each of you reading this report to send faxes, emails and letters to her office letting her know how valuable her work isto you, and how you feel she is a patriot who perhaps should consider higher office... soon.

1964 was the year conservatives knuckled down and began a grassroots movement that would ultimately propel Reagan to The White House 16 years later. Barack Hussein Obama will not bring desired change to WashingtonD.C., just more radical socialism (bordering on Marxism) and he will continue to turn the Federal Government's eyes away from the illegal immigration crisis. Back at home, the eyes of Texas will be upon our state legislature during the coming session. We can support Riddle and those like her, who hopefully are learning from the mistakes of conservativesin past election battles, and realizing what it will take to win the war for our state and our nation. Remember, Obama may have won the battle, but we will win the cultural war. In these times, we need to be reminded that we have persevered before, and we will again.

Take Action:Please send a fax to Rep. Riddle thanking her for filing thisimportant legislation:http://morrisonreport.com/fax/index.php?fax_id=62Also, if you have time, a phone call would be even more meaningful.Please call her office at (281) 537-5252 or (512) 463-0572 and lether know we appreciate her efforts.
Sources:http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/6105162.html http://www.kvue.com/news/top/stories/111608kvue-new_bills-mw.1bd554487.html http://www.ktrh.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=121300&article=4574545

The Peter Morrison Reporthttp://www.petermorrisonreport.com/
That's it for this report. Watch your inbox next week for the next issue of The Peter Morrison Report, a free newsletter for Texas conservatives.

DOUBLESPEAK 101

2008-11-19T15:44:00.002-06:00

REGISTERED TRUCK CAUGHT CARRYING LARGE LOAD OF DRUGS

2008-11-19T15:30:00.001-06:00

November 10, 2007
Feds seize tons of pot in Calexico

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized 8.85 tons of marijuana from a truck from Mexico on Friday afternoon, the largest marijuana load ever to be seized at the Calexico port of entry, officials said Saturday.

A 25-year-old Mexicali resident registered with the Free and Secure Trade program was driving a 1992 GMC tractor-trailer with a shipment described as flat-panel-screen televisions. As the truck waited to enter the U.S. about 4:20 p.m., border patrol agents with a police dog checked the truck. The narcotics dog alerted agents of the truck's load and agents then inspected the load with a gamma-ray system that showed images of anomalies inside the shipment, officials said.

When agents opened the truck doors, several large packages fell out. Officials said 1,019 large packages of marijuana valued roughly $67.3 million were seized. The driver was arrested and booked into the Imperial County jail.

Posted by Angelica Martinez November 10, 2007 06:17 PM TrackBack
http://weblog.signonsandiego.com/news/breaking/2007/11/feds_seize_tons_of_pot_in_cale.html

SECRET CONFAB TEACHES OFFICIALS TO SELL FOREIGNERS U.S. ASSETS

2008-11-19T15:19:00.002-06:00

PREMEDITATED MERGER
Carlyle executive among moderators of conference that barred WND reporter
Posted: September 24, 20078:27 p.m. Eastern
By Jerome R. Corsi© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A top Carlyle Group executive is leading a panel tomorrow at a conference to teach government officials in the U.S. how to lease public assets to foreign groups – an event that barred WND.

Barry Gold, managing director in charge of infrastructure investment, will be at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City to lead a session at the "North American PPP & Infrastructure Finance Conference."

The government of Abu Dhabi has made an investment in the Carlyle Group, a Washington-based private investment firm with close ties to former President George H. W. Bush and his family and top officials in the Reagan and Clinton administrations.

Organizers say the conference's aim is to teach state and local government officials in the U.S. how to lease a wide range of public assets to international and foreign private investment groups.

WND reported last week, EuroMoney closed the conference, refusing to accept from WND the $1,999 registration fee because WND was "too political" to attend.

Gold is heading a panel on how institutional investors are approaching PPP structures in which state departments of transportation can lease current toll roads or develop a new generation financed and operated largely by foreign investment consortiums for decades after the roads are completed.
Last week Mubadala, a wholly owned investment arm of the Abu Dhabi government, purchased a 7.5 percent share of the Carlyle Group, permitting the Arab emirate's government to own or receive fees as a minority shareholder on PPP toll road infrastructure projects the Carlyle Group structures or finances.

With this equity structure, state departments of transportation that contract PPP toll road projects with or through the Carlyle Group may end up with UAE ownership of the operating leases. The roads could operate under that arrangement for decades without residents of the state being aware of Abu Dhabi ownership.

The following state department of transportation participants are listed on the EuroMoney seminar brochure:
Kenneth Newman, chief financial officer, Wisconsin DOT
Barbara Reese, deputy secretary of transportation, Virginia
James Bass, chief financial officer, Texas DOT
Cedric Grant, assistant secretary, Louisiana DOT
Peggy Catlin, deputy executive director, Colorado DOT
Kathy English, chief financial officer, Delaware DOT
Emeka Moneme, director, Washington, D.C., DOT

Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, Colorado and Delaware are listed on the Federal Highway Administration website as being among the 21 states that have enacted PPP-enabling legislation for highway projects, containing the 28 key elements the FHWA recommends be enacted into state law.

The Carlyle Group website credits Gold with leading PPP financing for the Chicago Skyway, Autopista Central in Chile, Highway 407 in Toronto, California State Route 91 and the Santiago Airport.

The Carlyle Group website documents Gold's extensive international experience with infrastructure financing. At Airport Group International, a global airport development company, he was responsible for the Bolivian Airports concession and an Australian investment, operating agreement and financing. At Lehman Brothers, he worked on the Budapest Airport advisory and financing and the MC Cuernavaca Toll Road in Mexico.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57808

TEXAS GOVERNOR CLEARS WAY FOR NAFTA SUPERHIGHWAY

2008-11-19T15:16:00.002-06:00

PREMEDITATED MERGER
Vetoes legislation to delay big transportation corridor
Posted: June 22, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The path has been cleared for the state of Texas to begin building the new Trans-Texas Corridor, a project that is designed to be four football fields wide, along Interstate 35 from Mexico to the Oklahoma border, according to a new report from WND columnist Jerome Corsi, the author of "The Late Great USA."

The way was opened when Texas Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican, vetoed a series of proposals the Texas Legislature assembled to slow down the work on what is considered to be a key link in a continental NAFTA superhighway network.

Perry's latest veto was of a plan to add a number of requirements to the Texas eminent-domain procedures, under which governments can grab and use private property.

But, Corsi reported, Steven Anderson of the Institute for Justice's Castle Coalition, objected. He said Perry's action "left every home, farm, ranch and small-business owner vulnerable to the abuse of eminent domain."
Earlier, Corsi reported, Perry vetoed a plan to impose a two-year moratorium on the TTC project.

As WND previously reported, these measures were approved overwhelmingly by the Texas Legislature.

On learning that Perry had vetoed the eminent-domain legislation, Corridor Watch, a public advocacy group that opposes the TTC project, responded immediately.

"It sure didn't take TxDOT long to shake off the legislative session and resume their headlong rush to use every available loophole, exception and remaining authority to build toll roads and grant toll road concessions just as fast as possible," the organization said.

Corridor Watch also noted that in the 49 bills Perry vetoed June 15 were measures that would have required TxDOT to consider using existing highway routes for future TTC routes and a bill that called on the Texas attorney general to study the impact of international agreements on Texas.
An override of Perry's vetoes is unlikely, since the governor threatened to call a special session of the lawmakers to handle transportation issues if his veto fell by the wayside.

As WND has previously reported, the $180 billion needed to build the 4,000-mile TTC network planned for construction over the next 50 years will be financed by Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte, S.A., a foreign investment consortium based in Spain. Cintra will own the leasing and operating rights on TTC highways for 50 years after their completion is complete.

WND also has reported Perry has received substantial campaign contributions from Cintra and Zachry Construction Company, the San Antonio-based construction firm selected by TxDOT to build out the TTC.
And WND has established that Cintra is represented in the United States by Bracewell and Giuliani, Republican Party presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani's Houston-based law firm.

Just this week, WND reported TxDOT already is moving to apply its four-football-fields-wide NAFTA superhighway plan of building new train-truck-car-pipeline corridors to the states of Oklahoma and Colorado in a design that stretches from the Mexican border at Laredo, Texas, to Denver, Colo.
WND has documented a significant reason for the projects is to connect truck traffic from Mexican ports on the Pacific, such as Lazaro Cardenas, to U.S. roads. Mexican ports are being increasingly used as an alternative to West Coast ports such as Los Angeles and Long Beach as a cheaper, non-union alternative for the import of millions of containers from China.
WND also has reported the Department of Transportation plans to start a Mexican truck demonstration project as early as Aug. 15, despite continuing objections from Congress.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56309

NOW CHENEY CHIMES IN: AIN'T NO SUPERHIGHWAYS

2008-11-19T15:03:00.003-06:00

PREMEDITATED MERGER
VP latest to make official denial, some call it 'gaming semantics'
Posted: July 29, 20075:00 p.m. Eastern
By Jerome R. Corsi© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Despite evidence to the contrary, Vice President Dick Cheney says there is no "secret plan" to create a continent-crossing superhighway to help facilitate a merger of the United States, Mexico and Canada.

"The administration is not engaged in a secret plan to create a 'NAFTA super highway,'" asserts Cheney in a recent letter to a constituent, according to a copy of the message obtained by WND.

The vice president's letter quotes an Aug. 21 statement from the U.S. Department of Transportation that, "The concept of a super highway has been around since the early 1990s, usually in the form of a claim that the U.S. Department of Transportation is going to designate such a highway."
DOT then refutes the claim, stating, "The Department of Transportation has never had the statutory authority to designate a NAFTA super highway and has never sought such authority."

The DOT statement then retracts the absolute nature of that statement, qualifying that, "The Department of Transportation will continue to cooperate with the State transportation departments in the I-35 corridor as they upgrade this vital interstate highway to meet 21st century needs. However, these efforts are the routine activities of a Department that cooperates with all the state transportation departments to improve the Nation's intermodal transportation network."

The DOT statement cited by the vice president seems to model the denial recently fashioned by the North America's SuperCorridor Coalition, Inc., or NASCO, on its website.

There NASCO states, "There a no plans to build a new NAFTA Superhighway – it exists today as I-35."

The coalition continues to distinguish its support for a North American "SuperCorridor" from a "NAFTA Superhighway," asserting that a "SuperCorridor is not 'Super-sized." The website then claims NASCO uses the term "SuperCorridor" to demonstrate "we are more than just a highway coalition."

In a July 21, 2006, internal e-mail obtained by WND under a Missouri Sunshine Law request, Tiffany Melvin, executive director of NASCO, cautions "NASCO friends and members" that, "We have to stay away from 'SuperCorridor' because it is a very bad, hot button right now."

As WND previously reported, Jeffrey Shane, undersecretary of transportation for policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation got into a spirited exchange in January with congressmen after he asserted to a House subcommittee that NAFTA Superhighways were an "urban legend."
In response to questioning by Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, before the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Shane asserted he was "not familiar with any plan at all, related to NAFTA or cross-border traffic."

Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., then questioned aloud whether Shane was just "gaming semantics" when responding to Poe's question.

In June 2006, when first writing about NASCO, WND displayed the original homepage of NASCO, which used to open with a map highlighting the I-35 corridor from Mexico to Canada, arguing the trade group and its members were actively promoting a NAFTA superhighway.

NASCO's original map (above) highlighted the I-35 corridor from Mexico to Canada.

In what appears to be the third major revamping of the NASCO website since WND first began writing articles about NASCO, the Dallas-based trade group carefully removes identifying NASCO with the words behind the acronym, "North America's SuperCorridor Coalition, Inc.," which the original NASCO website once proudly proclaimed.

The current NASCO homepage displays a photo montage of intermodal highway scenes, presumably taken along I-35, but without any map displaying a continental I-35 super corridor linking Mexico and Canada.
NASCO currently relegates the continental I-35 map to an internal webpage that describes the North American Inland Ports Network as a "working group" within NASCO that supports inland member cities who have designated themselves as "inland ports," seeking to warehouse container traffic originating in Mexican ports on the Pacific such as Manzanillo and Lázaro Cárdenas.

The beige and blue continental I-35 map now positioned on an internal page of the NASCO website was originally used as the second NASCO website, in make-over of the original NASCO blue and yellow continental I-35 map that made the continental nature of the I-35 appear graphically more pronounced.

WND has also previously reported that in a speech to NASCO on April 30, 2004, Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta referred to Interstate Highways 35, 29 and 94 – the core highways supported by NASCO as a prime "North American Super Corridor" – Mineta commented to NASCO that the trade group "recognized that the success of the NAFTA relationship depends on mobility – on the movement of people, of products, and of capital across borders."

WND has also reported Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., a GOP presidential candidate, introduced an amendment to H.R. 3074, the Transportation Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2008, prohibiting the use of federal funds for participating in working groups under the Security and Prosperity Partnership, including the creation of NAFTA Superhighways.

On July 24, Hunter's amendment passed 362 to 63, with strong bipartisan support. Later, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3074 by a margin of 268-153. The bill has been sent to the Senate with Hunter's amendment included.

According to Freedom of Information Request documents obtained by WND, Jeffrey Shane has been appointed by the Bush administration to be the U.S. lead bureaucrat on the North American Transportation Working Group under the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America.
On July 23, 1997, the NAFTA Superhighway Coalition was formed to promote continental highway development in association with the Ambassador Bridge.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56912

SATELLITE TRACKING MANDATED FOR MEXICAN TRUCKS

2008-11-19T15:00:00.002-06:00

PREMEDITATED MERGER
Critic: 'This really accomplishes nothing. It's like putting earrings on a pig'
Posted: October 1, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern
By Michael Howe© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Federal officials, bowing to safety concerns over Mexican trucks on U.S. highways, announced last week trucks participating in the ongoing cross-border demonstration project will be required to submit to monitoring by a satellite-based vehicle tracking system – a move one critic dismissed as an "ornament" that "fails to address the real issues of driver safety."

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a statement Thursday saying the tracking plan jointly developed by FMCSA and Mexico's Secretaria de Communicaciones y Transportes applies to both U.S. and Mexican trucks in the program.

"This will give us the ability to monitor every vehicle from Mexico and ensure all companies are following our strict safety requirements, including those governing hours of service and sabotage," said John Hill, FMCSA administrator.

Todd Spencer, executive vice president of the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association, isn't buying FMCSA's claims of enhanced safety.
"This really accomplishes nothing. It's like putting earrings on a pig," he told WND.

"The FMCSA just proceeds with the program, placing more and more ornaments on it, but fails to address the real issues of driver safety."
Spencer pointed to the last line of the FMCSA statement to make his point.
"Vehicles will be tracked by vehicle number and company – no driver information will be collected or tracked," it reads.

"The issues are driver issues. There are no real hours of service regulations in Mexico, there is no effective way of checking driving or criminal records, and the Mexican CDL (commercial driver's license) does not measure up to the U.S. license," said Spencer.

"Tracking trucks and trailers tells us nothing about the drivers. The net effect of this announcement on safety is zero."

The FMCSA initiative comes despite efforts in Congress to completely halt the Mexican truck demonstration program through identical amendments in House and Senate versions of the Transportation and Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill. That bill (HR3074/S1789) is currently awaiting conference committee action but may not go into effect until November or later.

"We think the amendments will remain in the final bill," Barry Piatt, spokesman for Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., sponsor of the Senate amendment, told WND. But, he added, the demonstration program could continue until the bill becomes law.

"The fact that they continue this program despite the wishes of Congress is in line with the arrogant approach they have taken all along. Under the defunding of a pilot program those carriers that are or will be approved will need to stop at that point," said Piatt.

"The FMCSA has maintained all along that they do not have to manage a pilot program. The administration is simply thumbing its nose at the wishes of Congress and those concerned about true safety on American roads," Spencer told WND.

To date, four Mexican carriers have been authorized to operate in the U.S., and 2 U.S. carriers have been authorized to operate in Mexico.

http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57918

TAXPAYERS FOOT BILL FOR MEXICAN TRUCKERS

2008-11-19T14:56:00.004-06:00

PREMEDITATED MERGER
Safety equipment tab starts out at $367,000
Posted: November 7, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern
By Michael Howe© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has announced that U.S. taxpayers will be footing the startup costs of a program to install satellite tracking technology on vehicles taking part in the Mexican Truck Demonstration Program.

The announcement confirmed the U.S. government would "initially spend approximately $367,000 to outfit all trucks from the United States and Mexico that take part in the program."

According to the administration, "the decision to require the installation of satellite tracking technology on trucks in the program was made after members of Congress expressed a desire to know whether participants are complying with federal safety and trade laws."

A key opponent of the program, and author of the language in the transportation appropriations bill to halt funding of the program, continued to express disappointment Barry Piatt, spokesman for Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., told WND, "It's an indication that they are going forward with the program, despite strong and pretty clear opposition from both chambers of Congress."

Congressman Duncan Hunter's office told WND he agrees. "The tracking technology, while a step in the right direction, does very little to ensure compliance with safety and security standards. The focus must remain on implementing reliable and enforceable standards that ensure Mexican truckers with access to U.S. roadways do not threaten the safety of vehicle motorists or America's security," explained Joe Kasper, spokesman for Hunter, R-Calif.

According to the FMCSA, the technology will help continue to ensure that trucks operating as part of the program are complying with the agency's rigorous safety standards and U.S. trade laws.

The FMCSA intends to use the information gathered from the equipment to ensure trucks comply with hours-of-service laws and rules that govern the trips into and out of the country. The GPS-based technology also will allow real-time tracking of truck location, documenting every international-border and state-line crossing. The equipment does not provide cargo information.

The satellite-based technology will be used to track trucks by vehicle number and company only – no driver information will be collected," the administration statement said.

This, Hunter believes, does not go far enough. Kasper told WND, "Tracking technology, especially when driver data is not being collected, comes nowhere close to achieving this goal. Congressman Hunter continues to support an easily assessable database that includes driver history and background information, as well as stronger inspection requirements and enforcement standards."

At an Oct. 18, 2007, meeting of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters told members that the satellite tracking system would help ensure safety, and that the DOT was working to compromise with Congress to continue the Mexican Truck Demonstration program despite language in the funding bill that would kill it.

Reacting to methods of compromise, Piatt told WND, "The fact that the administration is ignoring the view of Congress makes it less likely, not more likely, that it will look for a compromise on this. Congress has stated clearly that it believes going forward with such a program, without the information needed to assure safety on American roads, is not safe."

He also questioned whether or not there are truly efforts to compromise. "Those rumors have been around, mostly fed by the administration, for some time. As the author of the Senate language, I can tell you their thumbing their nose at Congress – so to speak – is not helping their cause on this issue in Congress."

For some, the fact that the FMCSA will spend just under $400,000 of American taxpayer money to equip all trucks, Mexican or U.S., with satellite tracking equipment raises questions. Kasper said, "I am not familiar with the funding aspect. But one would assume that there would be a shared funding responsibility (between the two countries)."

FMCSA spokeswoman Melissa Delaney was contacted regarding the funding but did not respond to inquiries.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=58546

THE 99-YEAR TAXPAYER BOONDOGGLE

2008-11-19T14:49:00.002-06:00

COMMENTARY BY HENRY LAMB
World Net Daily
Posted: May 19, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern

American roads are the hottest commodity in the international marketplace. State and local governments are falling all over themselves to sell off highways, bridges and all sorts of other revenue-producing infrastructure to international financiers who are eager to snap up structures Americans have already paid for – and for which they continue to pay maintenance costs through endless taxes.

The Chicago Skyway, for example, brought $1.83 billion from a Spanish-Australian partnership. The 157-mile Indiana Tollway brought $3.85 billion from the same partnership. And the state of Texas has recently concluded a deal to sell a Trans-Texas Corridor for $7.2 billion to the same Spanish company that partnered with a Texas construction company.

What's going on here? Why are government officials so eager to sell off our infrastructure? Because it's a win-win deal for everyone – except the people who pay taxes and use the highways. Governments get a pot full of cash up front, and the "public-private" partnerships get a long-term cash cow. The taxpayers and highway users get ______ – well, you fill in the blank.
Actually, these "sales" are long-term leases, which is much worse than an outright sale. The Chicago Skyway deal is for 99 years. The Indiana Tollway is for 75 years. In what condition will these important roads be when they are returned to government? The folks who celebrate the deals today – and spend the billions – will be pushing up daisies by the time a new crop of government officials will have to explain why the roads have crumbled.
The roads that exist today were bought with taxes and tolls. They are maintained with taxes and tolls. Neither taxes nor tolls will be reduced when these roads are sold to public-private partnerships. In fact, taxes are likely to increase, and the tolls are certain to increase. Tolls for commercial use on the Indiana Tollway were scheduled to double during the first three years of the deal. Auto tolls would remain flat for the first three years, and then "catch up" with the commercial rate.

When the taxpayers and highway users get slapped in the budget by these increases and complain to their elected officials, the elected officials can do nothing but say "We're sorry; it's out of our hands for the next 99 years." When the roads begin to crumble and potholes begin to appear, elected officials can do nothing but say, "We're sorry; it's out of our hands for the next 99 years."

When the people of Texas learned about the $7.2 billion deal the state was constructing, they overwhelmed the Legislature and demanded a two-year moratorium during which the consequences of the deal could be studied. The moratorium legislation passed the state House and Senate by a combined vote of 165 to 5 – more than enough to override the governor's threatened veto. But legislators are trying to take the teeth out of the legislation by exempting half the roads in Texas.

The chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee says the public-private partnership project must go forward because the state has not raised gasoline taxes in 16 years, and there's not enough money to build the roads that are desperately needed.

Well, now, he didn't say what portion of the state and federal gasoline taxes were spent on non-highway projects. He didn't say why the gasoline taxes were not increased if a valid need existed. He didn't say why the state could not raise the necessary construction funds the same way the public-private partnership will raise it – by pledging future revenues to pay for the funds borrowed. He didn't say why he is eager to turn public transportation over to a public-private partnership that is not accountable to the voters.

There is another reason for the media hype and popularity of public-private partnership funding. To meet the anticipated construction costs of the NAFTA Super-corridor network, incredible sums of capital must be amassed – rather quickly. Not all cities or states have the expertise or the credit worthiness to structure a multi-billion-dollar financing package. It's much easier to turn to an outfit that has done it before – and damn the consequences that will fall on another generation.

The sale, or long-term lease, of the nation's infrastructure is not just a fix for immediate congestion problems; it is a method of financing a whole new infrastructure designed to allow goods to flow from Chinese-controlled ports in Mexico, throughout the United States, and into Canada.

Proponents of the project know that it will be much easier to get financing from public-private partnerships than from taxpayers who are already over-taxed. Left up to the taxpayers in each state, the international NAFTA Super-corridor network would be in great jeopardy if even one state refused to cooperate.

That's why it is necessary to take the matter out of the hands of taxpayers and let the professional bureaucrats do what they know is best for the poor, uneducated taxpayers, who, in the end, must still pay the bill. The sale of the nation's infrastructure is nothing less than a national tragedy.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55771

RED ALERT - HOUSTON'S LET THOUSANDS OF ILLEGALS OUT BACK ON OUR STREETS

2008-11-19T12:44:00.004-06:00

Friends of ALIPAC,
I am requesting that all ALIPAC volunteers bombard all media and governmental contacts in Texas with the following messages. I have a request in to our Press Director, Jim Palmer, to identify all sources promoting this false information and to send a copy of the following message. Please follow us in on this effort by taking two steps. Craft your own version of these messages and...

1. Contact the Texas media

2. Contact ICE and the TX Governor's office. ---- Attn: Texas media and lawmakers

Over the last week, the uproar over thousands of illegal aliens being released from Texas jails, without being deported is truly a cause for concern. These revelations clearly show that both the state and Federal governments are failing in their basic responsibilities to enforce our existing laws and protect American citizens from criminal illegal aliens. We would like to encourage all Texas lawmakers and members of the media to correct this outrageous situation at once! We also want to ask that you please STOP circulating the misleading information that "immigrants" or foreign born people commit less crimes than American citizens. Nobody is asking if immigrants commit more crimes. This debate is not about law abiding immigrants and it is anti-immigrant to intentionally confuse immigrants with illegal aliens. Yes, legal immigrants commit less crimes because these are people that have both been vetted for criminal backgrounds and have displayed a pattern of law abiding and respectful behavior. Of course legal immigrants commit less crimes. Illegal aliens commit more crimes per capita than American citizens because they have bypassed the required criminal background checks, herald from high crime third world poverty areas that are under gang rule, and displayed a pattern of illegal behavior. About half of our illegal aliens have cut financial deals with drug and human importing violent criminal cartels and gangs to enter the US! The public is not served when the media or lawmakers abuse the truth and legal immigrants by trying to conceal the public safety threat posed by illegal aliens, by masking their crimes with statistics involving LEGAL IMMIGRANTS. The mere fact that one study, which uses the lower crime statistics of our legal immigrants, to mask the higher crime statistics of illegal aliens is being used, illustrates our point that illegal aliens commit more crimes. It is clear that all illegal aliens are criminals, that most engage in a series of crimes including document fraud, identity theft, illegal entry, and taking a job it is illegal for them to have. It is also clear that crimes committed by illegal aliens are almost 100% preventable, as such crimes rarely occurred in the prior history of America, due to a stronger level of immigration enforcement. Any level of crime committed by illegal aliens is unacceptable and to let them out of jail without deportation is an outrage. Please stop circulating misleading information about the crimes of illegal aliens and please stop bashing legal immigrants by comparing them with illegals. We will be sending this notice to every lawmaker and reporter who we see continuing to circulate this misleading propaganda, in an attempt to minimize the political uproar over illegal aliens being released from jail to go back on American streets to rape, steal, and kill. Neither reporters or lawmakers should be making such erroneous statements and you should not be intentionally trying to force the public into anti-immigrant stances through the use of such biased materials. Don't accuse the public of engaging in anti-immigrant behavior, when you are the one engaging in anti-immigrant behavior and trying to confuse the issue between legal immigrants, illegal aliens, and all Hispanics.

William Gheen www.alipac.us Americans for Legal Immigration PAC

INITIAL CONTACTS Houston Chronicle Rick Casey at P.O. Box 4260, Houston, TX 77210, or e-mail him at
rick.casey@chron.com

---- Governor Rick Perry and Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Can you please provide us with the number of Texas residents that are both legal immigrants and US citizens that have been killed, raped, robbed, or murdered by the illegal aliens you failed to deport from Texas jails? We need some idea of the scale of loss Americans have suffered due to your failures to enforce the existing laws of the United States and to accomplish your most basic governmental responsibilities of protecting our citizens and protecting our states from invasion. A list of names of victims would be even better. Perhaps you could send them some letters from Homeland Security and the Texas Governors office apologizing for the deaths, robberies, and rapes they have suffered due to your intentional non-enforcement and under enforcement of our laws? Many of us were outraged back in 2004, when we learned that Federal and state jails were allowing illegal aliens to walk out of prisons after serving time without deportation. Our outrage has continued to this day as we witness several Americans per day being needlessly killed by your imported illegal aliens. With the American body count exceeding 9/11's toll each year, I guess it is to much to ask that you start doing your jobs? While many Texas lawmakers and members of the liberal media race to claim deporting illegal aliens arrested for crimes is somehow anti-immigrant or anti-Hispanic, we want to know what you are going to do to fix this problem immediately. It is not surprising for us to find this level of governmental malfeasance and immigration control anarchy in the home state of President Bush. We sincerely hope that the victims of the illegal aliens you let back on the streets can sue for damages. We sincerely hope that the people responsible for these massive damages can be fired from their positions and preferably prosecuted for their role as accessories to preventable crimes that occurred due to failures to enforce the laws. It is time for Texas to get with the rest of the nation on immigration enforcement before you find yourselves in conditions rivaling your jealous neighbor called Mexico.

William Gheen www.alipac.us Americans for Legal Immigration PAC
------------ Initial Contacts
Gov. Rick Perry Information and Referral: 1-800-843-5789 Citizen's Opinion Hotline: 1-800-252-9600 Office of the Governor P.O. Box 12428, Austin, Texas 78711 Phone: (512) 463-2000 Fax: (512) 463-1849 Online E-Mail Form http://governor.state.tx.us/contact/ --

http://www.ice.gov/about/dro/contact.htm Nuria T. Prendes, Field Office Director 8101 N. Stemmons Frwy Dallas, TX 75247 Phone: 214-905-5860 Area of Responsibility: North Texas, Oklahoma

Robert E. Jolicoeur, Field Office Director 1545 Hawkins Blvd El Paso, TX 79925 Phone: 915-225-1901 Area of Responsibility: West Texas, New Mexico

Kenneth L. Landgrebe, Field Office Director 126 Northpoint Drive Houston, TX 77060 Phone: 281-774-4968 Area of Responsibility: Southeast Texas

Adrian R. Ramirez, Acting Field Office Director 8940 Fourwinds Drive San Antonio, TX 78239 Phone: 210-967-7055 Area of Responsibility: Central South Texas

HANK GILBERT ON PAVING OVER TEXAS

2008-11-19T12:33:00.003-06:00

AUDIO

On the Issues - Straight Talk with Hank

The Trans-Texas Corridor - Paving over Texas

...I know what a skunk smells like in the barn. And we got a big skunk in the barn. ...

Hank Gilbert

Transcript of Straight Talk with Hank on the Trans-Texas Corridor

The Trans-Texas Corridor is basically a transportation issue and there's are a lot of different aspects to the Trans-Texas Corridor that go far beyond Texas. And go far beyond the United States.

But, you know I grew up in rural Texas where you expected a man to look you in the eye when he talked to you. You expected a man's word to be his bond. And when our governor has made a deal with a Spanish company over major roadways in our state over a 50-year time period. A deal in which this foreign company is going to collect tolls for 50 years. But more importantly, the governor; the foreign company; and the American company that brokered the deal, Zachary Construction; will not release the full contents of the contract to the general public. Something don't smell right. And I know what a skunk smells like in the barn. And we got a big skunk in the barn. So obviously, there's issues they don't want us to know, which automatically makes it bad.

The worst thing, from an agricultural standpoint is this first proposed highway, TTC-35. It is supposed to ease congestion on IH-35, from Laredo to the Oklahoma border north of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. It is going to take, under it's proposed route, or recommended route, going to consume over 100,000 acres of prime farmland.

For the people that don't understand the different types of soils we have in the state of Texas. The best growing soil we have period, bar none, is blackland soil. And it's basically riverbed soil that's come through river basins. Very rich soil. A 100,000 acres of this we're going to lose in the state of Texas. This is where we predominantly grow a lot of our grains in the state: corn and milo. Where we grow a lot of cotton. And in some areas it's good grassland. In the beef cattle industry, when a calf comes off the cow and before it goes into the feedlot, they graze these cattle on grass for months to develop a larger frame. Consequently they can add more muscle to that frame when they get them in the feedlot. We're going to take a lot of that grassland out of production, which hampers our overall beef market.
The biggest thing about the TTC-35? Actually there's a couple of things other than taking the land out of production. Taking that land out of production is going to relate to millions of dollars of lost revenue in the agricultural industry. It's going to relate to millions of dollars of lost revenue in our state's economy. It's going to relate to thousands of agricultural jobs lost in our state.

Agriculture is the second largest industry in the state. Agriculture puts over $80 billion a year into the state's economy. The Trans-Texas Corridor is going to take a big chunk of that money out of it.

And when you take land off the tax roll, for a statewide project, everybody in the state pays higher property taxes because of it. It doesn't matter if you live in Bellaire. If you live in El Paso. If you live in Pearsall, Texas. You're going to pay higher taxes because of this land being taken off the tax roll. So it's bad.

A question I have posed to TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation) in these meetings deals with their 4,000 page study. Of course they are not answering questions in these hearings, and they let you know that right off the bat. This is just a time for you to express your opinion, they will not field questions. They have a 4,000 page study. Four thousand pages sounds like a lot. Well, you pick up a box of paper. An entire case of paper is 5,000 pages. The Bible was a lot less pages and is a lot more informative. Four thousand pages of documentation. Millions of dollars spent on researching this project through environmental impact studies. And they used absolutely none of the environmental study. Its effects on wildlife. Its effects on the environment itself. Its effects on creeks and streams. Its effects on the total ecosystem. The entire data they used to develop this route was transportation patterns, regardless of environment.
That I have a problem with. Every Texas should have a problem with this approach.I question how much, how many millions of dollars? How many pages of documents? And how many thousands of man-hours did they spend in researching, expanding our existing roadways. Land they already own easement to. That they already own the rights to. And that we have plenty. There's more easement ground associated with our interstate highways than there is actually ground under pavement. So they can more than expand them, a 100% of what they are, that wasn't even considered in this project.

So there's a lot that we don't know about it.

From what they are telling us at these meetings, our legislature I thought, I haven't researched it to make sure, but I thought I remember our legislature last year passing legislation doing away with "eminent domain" because of the case in New Jersey. However, this legislation, that was adopted by our House and Senate, actually was co-authored by my opponent in the senate, calls for eminent domain if they cannot agree to an appraised value with the landowner.

They'll send out an appraiser, a contractor for the state, which by the way my opponent is in the land appraisal business also. They'll send out a contractor for the state. And if you and that appraiser cannot work out an agreement - they can take your land through eminent domain by this legislation.

There's some waterline issues. There's big water transmission lines within this corridor. The state, when they take that land they also get the rights to that land. And what bothers me is that Water District "C," which is basically the Dallas-Fort Worth area, owns 67% of the state's water rights. And we're going to bed with Mexico on this corridor. What's going to happen to our water through East Texas and Central Texas. Is it going to be sold or bargained to the highest bidder - in Water District "C" or into Mexico? This is the best kept secret of this corridor that they are not talking about whatsoever. And one that really concerns me from an agricultural standpoint.

HANK GILBERT ON NAFTA

2008-11-19T12:26:00.003-06:00

AUDIO OF TRANSCRIPT

On the Issues - Straight Talk with Hank

NAFTA and its impact on Texas Agriculture

...TTC is the NAFTA super-highway from Mexico all the way to Canada. And if that is allowed to happen we will kill our entire vegetable industry in the United States.

Every vegetable you eat will come from Mexico or Central America. . ...

Transcript of Straight Talk with Hank on NAFTA

You know, NAFTA was a federal treaty that our government entered into with Mexico and Canada. It, just like the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC), was done without the input of the people. We didn't get to vote on it. We didn't get to vote on the TTC.

I have a couple of problems with NAFTA.

What NAFTA ultimately did, or has done, is practically killed the fruit and vegetable market in the state of Texas. By the time our farmers are putting the seed in the ground to plant those vegetables, we're receiving those very same vegetables across the border from Central America and Mexico. They're hitting our grocery markets at the very same time our farmers are putting the seeds in the ground. So NAFTA has taken away any and all early markets away from our farmers. Which is where they used to make their money.

One example I use all the time is watermelons because people traditionally in East Texas can't wait until the first watermelons get to the grocery store. Well, when our farmers are putting the watermelon seed in the ground in the early spring, we're getting watermelons out of Central America. If you'll take notice in the grocery store, those first melons will sell for five or six bucks a piece. I mean, pretty good money for a melon. By the time our Texas melons hit the market, they're worth 99 cents a piece in the grocery market. And that, at best, in a good year, is break- even cost for the farmer. And consequently, we've lost the biggest majority of our vegetable market in Texas.

This relates a lot to TTC because TTC is basically known as the NAFTA super-highway. It's supposed to reach from Mexico all the way to Canada. And if that is allowed to happen we will kill our entire vegetable industry in the United States. Every vegetable you eat will come from Mexico or Central America. Or other Latin producing countries closer to the equator.
We had an agreement prior to NAFTA with Mexican authorities where we could move live cattle back and forth across the border. Because of BSE [Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy a.k.a. Mad Cow Disease], Mexico has restricted movement of live cattle into or through their country for going on 26 months now. Canada is the same way. We can't move live cattle into Canada.

There are American ranchers who have live cattle in Canada and can't get them out because of the BSE. However, we're still allowing Mexico to bring live cattle into the United States. Over 150,000 head a month.
Those types of things have made NAFTA a killer to Texas agriculture. The NCNB, the National Cattleman's Beef Board, junior board, met with Texas Agricultural Commissioner Susan Combs in February.

Their main issue was that they wanted progress made in opening up the borders to Mexico for live cattle exports. Susan Combs looked them dead in the eye.

I know this because two of the board members at the meeting told me this. She looked at them perplexed and told them as far as she knew the border was open to exports. And they assured her that it wasn't.

And then half-hearteningly, jokingly, because I've had the opportunity to hear Ms. Combs a couple of different times, and she really thinks she is kind of humorous. But she looks across the desk at them and kind of half-jokingly says, "Well look at it this way guys, at least they can't send cattle over here either." So they presented the documents to her where 1.395 million head came across in '05. And 150,000 head came across in January '06.

So there again lies the problem when you have a career politician running an office that really matters. It means something.

I intend to try and work out, negotiate with the Mexican government, to see what we can do.

Back in the days when John C. White and Jim Hightower were Commissioners problems like that never got to their office. Because they had staff in place along the border that could work out things across the border with their counterparts and it never even made it to Austin.

And I want to build that relationship back with Mexico.

Incoming! Mexican airplanes on radar

2008-11-19T11:53:00.001-06:00

Posted: June 13, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern
Jerome Corsi, World Net Daily

With the U.S. Department of Transportation pushing ahead to start the Mexican truck demonstration project as early as July 15, Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters met with her Mexican and Canadian transportation counterparts in Tucson, Ariz., April 27 to participate in the first "North American Transportation Trilateral."
A major goal of the Bush administration is to open the United States to Mexican and Canadian airplanes as well as Mexican trucks.
The April 27 North American Transportation Trilateral also made clear U.S. transportation infrastructure is being reconfigured to meet the increasing demands of globalization and world trade.
Meeting with Mexico's Secretary of Commerce and Transportation Luis Téllez and Canada's Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communications Lawrence Cannon, the ministerial meeting was dedicated to defining under the Security and Prosperity Partnership a North American transportation system designed to meet the continental needs of "free trade" agreements, including NAFTA, and the World Trade Organization.
Peters opened the meeting by commenting, "This is an historic meeting – the first time North America's transportation ministers have ever come together for trilateral talks."
In a meeting that went virtually unreported in the United States mainstream media, Peters commented that the 2005 air services agreement between the United States and Mexico and the Open Skies accord signed with Canada in March lift restrictions on continental travel to provide for "free and open trans-border air travel."
The trilateral transportation ministers are pushing for a North American Open Skies agreement within the next 10 years that would supplement the Open Skies agreement the Bush administration finalized with the European Union in March.
Over the next decade, the Bush administration open skies policy envisions that "Air Canada could be competing with U.S. carriers on the New York-Paris route and Aeromexico might be launching flights between Los Angeles and Toronto," said a State Department release.
That the meeting was not limited to NAFTA was made clear by Peters' comments about West Coast ports, noting, "We have similar opportunities today to set the framework so ports up and down the West Coast of North America have the flexibility to handle the growing volumes of trade with Asia."
In the Ministerial Declaration posted on the Canadian government's Transport Canada website, the trilateral ministers affirmed their commitment "to developing coordinated, compatible and interconnected national transportation systems" designed to meet "the future of our shared transportation interests in an increasingly globalized world."
The Ministerial Declaration's highlighted goal to "advance seamless air transport systems in North America" is supported by the "2005 Report to Leaders" on the Department of Commerce-maintained SPP government website.
This report notes that since the a North America Wide Area Augmentation agreement was signed with Mexico and Canada in 2004, five WAAS stations were targeted to be built in Canada and Mexico in 2005. The SPP "2006 Report to Leaders" posted on the White House website documented that the five WAAS stations were built in Canada and Mexico as planned.
The U.S. Department of Transportation defines WAAS as "an extremely accurate navigation system for aviation, providing precise navigation and landing guidance to equipped aircraft in any weather." WAAS provides coverage to the entire United States, "overcoming obstacles to ground-based systems, such as mountainous terrain."
According to DOT, WAAS uses a network of precisely located ground reference stations across the U.S. with locations in Canada and Mexico to monitor GPS satellite signals.
The Ministerial Declaration also addressed what are being characterized as "NAFTA superhighways," noting, "We believe that actions to facilitate commerce across our borders in all modes of transport, especially in road transport, will improve supply chain and logistics processes and provide for continued North American competitiveness."
In this regard, the declaration called for "adequate transportation infrastructure and efficient transportation services within and between our countries."
The vision for a North American transportation system suited for world trade was articulated in the May 2005 Council on Foreign Relations report entitled, "Building a North American Community."
The CFR task force report made no secret of its intention to "establish a seamless North American market for trade." The task force recommended completely "open skies and open highways" in North American with North American transportation firms, including trucking companies and airlines, having unlimited access to each other's territories.
As the report explained, a Canadian trucker should be able to haul freight not just to and from Canada, but from Chicago to Los Angeles as well. So, too, the report argued, an American airline should be able to carry passengers between Mexico City and Monterrey, even if the flight included no destination in the United States.
American University professor Robert A. Pastor, one of the co-chairs of the CFR task force producing the "Building a North American Community" report, has repeatedly called for "an integrated continental plan for transportation and infrastructure" as part of his stated goal of creating a "North American Community."
The first "North American Transportation Trilateral" held on April 27 in Tucson appears to have gone a long way toward realizing the North American continental transportation vision first articulated by the CFR and Pastor.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56146

KANSAS CITY CUSTOMS PORT CONSIDERED MEXICAN SOIL?

2008-11-19T11:50:00.001-06:00

THE NEW WORLD DISORDER
WND investigation finds new evidence U.S. facility to be on foreign territory
Posted: July 5, 20061:00 a.m. Eastern
By Jerome R. Corsi© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

A Mexican customs facility planned for Kansas City's inland port may have to be considered the sovereign soil of Mexico as part of an effort to lure officials in that country into cooperating with the Missouri development project.
Despite adamant denials by Kansas City Area Development Council officials, WND has obtained e-mails and other documents from top executives with the KCSmartPort project that suggest such a facility would by necessity be considered Mexican territory – despite its presence in the heartland of the U.S.
The documents were obtained with the assistance of Joyce Mucci, the founder of the Mid-America Immigration Reform Coalition, under the provisions of the Missouri Sunshine Law from the City of Kansas City, Mo., and from the Missouri Department of Economic Development.
The documents reveal a two-year campaign initiated in 2004 and managed by top SmartPort officials to win Mexico's agreement to establish the Mexican customs facility within the Kansas City "inland port." Kansas City SmartPort launched a concerted effort to advance the idea, holding numerous meetings with Mexican government officials in Mexico and in Washington to push the Mexican port idea in concert. The effort involved Missouri elected officials, including members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.
The documents make clear that Mexico demanded Kansas City pay all costs.
To date, the Kansas City Council has voted a $2.5 million loan to KC SmartPort to build the Mexican customs facility in the West Bottoms near Kemper Arena on city-owned land east of Liberty Street and mostly south of Interstate 670.
"Kansas City, Mo., is leasing the site to Kansas City SmartPort," Tasha Hammes of the development council wrote to WND last month. "It will NOT be leased to any Mexican government agency or to be sovereign territory of Mexico."
Yet, an e-mail written June 21, 2004, by Chris Gutierrez, the president of the KC SmartPort, stated that the Mexican customs office space "would need to be designated as Mexican sovereign territory and meet certain requirements."
Even more recently, an e-mail dated March 10 of this year was sent by Gutierrez to a long list of recipients that left no doubt that KC SmartPort has not yet received federal government approval to move forward with the Mexican customs facility. Gutierrez informed the e-mail recipients that the processing a critical form, designated "C-175," needs approval by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection before the form is passed to the State Department for final approval. The processing and approval of the C-175 application is holding up the final approval of the Mexican customs facility.
In the same memo, Gutierrez reported on a recent meeting in Washington: "Both sides (U.S. and Mexican officials) met several weeks ago and the 'document' or as the U.S. refers to it the 'C-175' is near completion. This document is the basis for the procedural, regulatory, jurisdictional, etc. for the project. It defines what will happen and how and what laws, etc. allow this to happen. Both sides have put a lot of effort into this document."
Gutierrez appeared concerned that the intensive lobbying done by KC SmartPort could be a wasted effort if the final U.S. government approvals were not completed before Mexico elected a new president this week.
"The process for the document is for U.S. Customs to present the document to the acting Commissioner and officials with the Dept of Homeland Security," he wrote. "This will happen in March. The document will then be reviewed by the U.S. State Dept who has been consulted on the document all along so they are aware of it. State will make the recommendation on the diplomatic status of the Mexican officials and the documents fit with existing agreements, accords or treaties. Mexico will wait for this recommendation and then get the sign off of their Foreign Ministry (Secretary [Luis Ernesto] Derbez and Under Secretary [Geronimo] Gutierrez are well versed on the project and support it). The hope of both sides is that this will be completed before the Mexican presidential elections in July."
Gutierrez's March 10 e-mail ended by expressing a hope that discussion of the Mexican customs facility issue could be kept from the public, obviously concerned that press scrutiny might end up producing an adverse public reaction that could destroy the project. Gutierrez specifically proposes a low-profile strategy designed to keep the KC SmartPort and the Mexican customs facility out of public view.
"The one negative that was conveyed to us was the problems and pressure the media attention has created for both sides," he wrote. "They want us to stop promoting the facility to the press. We let them know that we have never issued a proactive press release on this and that the media attention started when Commissioner (Robert) Bonner was in KC and met with Rick Alm. The official direction moving forward is that we can respond to the media with a standard response that I will send out on Monday and refer all other inquiries to U.S. Customs. I will get the name from them to refer media calls."
Robert C. Bonner is the commissioner of CBP within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Rick Alm is a reporter for the Kansas City Star.
On May 16, Bonner addressed the Chamber of Commerce in Kansas City, saying the Mexican customs facility idea "could be enormously important to Kansas City and the surrounding area, and would – or should – facilitate trade for U.S. exporters by expediting the border clearance process for U.S. goods and products exported to Mexico." Bonner added that "If the Kansas City SmartPort is implemented, Kansas City could become a major new trade link between the U.S. and Mexico."
Among those copied on Gutierrez's e-mail of March 10, 2006, was George D. Blackwood, the president of NASCO (North America's Super Corridor Coalition, Inc.). Blackwood is an attorney with Blackwood, Langworthy & Tyson in Kansas City. He also served as the former chairman of the North American International Trade Corridor Partnership, which he helped found in 1998 when he was serving as mayor pro tem of Kansas City. NASCO supports the Kansas City SmartPort's initiative to establish a Mexican customs facility as part of the NASCO SuperCorridor project.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=50918

NAFTA SUPERHIGHWAY EXTENDS NORTH

2008-11-19T11:43:00.002-06:00

PREMEDITATED MERGER

Plan under way in Texas will extend to Oklahoma, Colorado
Posted: June 21, 20071:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A NAFTA superhighway plan under way in Texas will be extended to Oklahoma and Colorado, stretching the four-lane, train-truck-car-pipeline corridor from the Mexican border at Laredo, Texas, to Denver, reports WND columnist Jerome Corsi, whose new investigative book, "The Late Great USA: The Coming Merger with Mexico and Canada," has just been released.
As WND has reported, the Federal Highway Administration is promoting public-private partnership projects to expand superhighway projects, consistent with extending the Trans-Texas Corridor network north.
The plan is for the states of Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado to apply the TTC toll road concept first developed by the Texas DOT to largely rural areas along the Ports-to-Plains Corridor.
To advance this plan, the Ports-to-Plains Trade Corridor Coalition – sponsored by the consulates of Mexico and Canada along with the Texas and Colorado transportation departments – is co-sponsoring a "Great Plains 2007" international conference Sept. 19-21 at the Adam's Mark Hotel in Denver.
The brochure recommends the conference be attended by real estate developers, transportation planners, highway services business executives, as well as state, local, county and municipal public officials and international trade professionals.
An April Texas DOT study on the Ports-to-Plains Trade Corridor Coalition website documents the tie between the two groups.
The study says the Ports-to-Plains Corridor offers an opportunity to apply the Trans-Texas Corridor technology to NAFTA superhighway development in rural settings. It concludes by recommending new highway construction be undertaken parallel to the existing Ports-to-Plains Trade Corridor route in order to apply the superhighway design north through Oklahoma into Colorado.
As WND previously reported, the $180 billion needed to build the 4,000 mile Trans-Texas Corridor network over the next 50 years will be financed by Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte, S.A., a foreign investment consortium based in Spain. Cintra will own the leasing and operating rights on TTC highways for 50 years after construction is complete.
A press release on the Texas DOT website confirms the agency is looking for a public-private-partnership to help finance the construction of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor.
WND also has reported Texas Gov. Rick Perry has received substantial campaign contributions from Cintra and Zachry Construction Company, the San Antonio-based construction firm selected by the Texas DOT to build the TTC.
The homepage of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor Coalition website proclaims, "Together, the communities along the Ports-to-Plains Trade Corridor are becoming the Gateway to trade throughout the nation and with Mexico and Canada."
The homepage also links the Ports-to-Plains Trade Corridor to the millions of containers from China that are planned to enter North America through Mexican ports, commenting, "The Trade Corridor will allow for the development of less congested ports of entry along the Texas/Mexican border."

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=56287