PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, VA (KOLD) - For the last three years, a county in Virginia has remained under the radar in the immigration debate even though it has a law almost identical to Arizona's immigration law.
The ordinance in Prince William County was passed in 2007. It initially required police to check the status of detainees they suspected of being undocumented immigrants but one year later it was revised.
Officers now question all criminal suspects about their immigration status once an arrest is made.
In 2008, the University of Virginia conducted a survey to see what effects, if any, the Prince William County law had. It concluded initial fears about racial profiling did not happen.
It also show that schools saw a drop in English as a second language enrollment. There was also a drop in uninsured mothers giving birth and individuals turned over to immigration and customs enforcement.
Memo to Washington press corps: here is the home page of ICE, along with names and pics of top officials. Director John Morton says ICE may not process detainees referred to it by the rambunctious state of Arizona. Prince William County, in Virginia, has a three-year-old immigration law similar to Arizona's.
Your task, if you choose to accept it, is to find out whether Morton, or other top ICE officials, live in Prince William County.
If you find any that do, run with it.
http://www.ice.gov/about/leadership/index.htm
Showing posts with label Virginia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Virginia. Show all posts
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Virginia blocks compulsory health insurance
Virginia is moving towards passing legislation that would make it unlawful to implement federal legislation to compel Virginia residents to buy health insurance, a/k/a, Obamacare. On Monday, February 1st, the Democratic-controlled state senate of Virginia passed a bill that would block the implementation of the individual mandate of Obamacare.
Some have argued that, constitutionally, federal legislation compelling Virginians to buy health insurance is no different than any other economic regulation imposed by Congress. That kind of “that’s the way we’ve always done it” thinking is not only incorrect constitutionally, but may help explain why reckless spending at the federal level has pushed America to the verge of bankruptcy.
It reminds me of an exchange between a reporter and one of the several Democratic committee chairmen in the House that are addressing the health care bill: The reporter asked the chairman “where in the Constitution does it say the federal government can mandate citizens to buy health insurance?”
The chairman snapped back: “Where does it say we can’t?!”
Some have argued that, constitutionally, federal legislation compelling Virginians to buy health insurance is no different than any other economic regulation imposed by Congress. That kind of “that’s the way we’ve always done it” thinking is not only incorrect constitutionally, but may help explain why reckless spending at the federal level has pushed America to the verge of bankruptcy.
It reminds me of an exchange between a reporter and one of the several Democratic committee chairmen in the House that are addressing the health care bill: The reporter asked the chairman “where in the Constitution does it say the federal government can mandate citizens to buy health insurance?”
The chairman snapped back: “Where does it say we can’t?!”
Friday, November 6, 2009
Ralph Reed: Elections were "disaster" for Dems
Tuesday’s election results were a disaster for the White House and the Democratic party. Not only did the Obama coalition of young voters and minorities not return to the polls (African-American turnout fell from 20 to 16 percent of the electorate in Virginia, for example, while the youth vote fell by 50 percent from 2008), but independents abandoned Obama’s favored candidates in droves. Chris Christie carried indies by a 58–30 percent margin in a three-way race, and Bob McDonnell won independents two-to-one.
Perhaps that is why the White House spin machine — personified by David Axelrod and David Plouffe — went into overdrive to suggest that (the) truly salient fact that came out of 2009 was the impending civil war between conservatives and moderates in the Grand Old Party.
This is utter nonsense.
Perhaps that is why the White House spin machine — personified by David Axelrod and David Plouffe — went into overdrive to suggest that (the) truly salient fact that came out of 2009 was the impending civil war between conservatives and moderates in the Grand Old Party.
This is utter nonsense.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Virginia, NJ voters turn thumbs down on Obama
One year after President Obama swept to power on a promise of “hope” and “change,” American voters got an early chance to pass judgment on his administration. If yesterday’s Republican victories in Democratic strongholds like Virginia and New Jersey are any guide, they don’t like what they see.
While results from around the country were still coming in at press time, the outcome of the race in Virginia is proof positive that the sands have shifted beneath the administration’s feet. Last year, Barack Obama became the first Democrat presidential candidate to win the state since Lyndon Johnson in 1964. The Left and their media allies swooned with excitement, and portrayed the 230,000 vote margin of victory as a sure sign that the Republican hold on the state was broken. Democrats were winning the culture wars in what had once been safely Republican territory, it was claimed. Tomes were written performing autopsies on Virginia’s GOP, examining personal rivalries and acrimony, sloppy communication and a demoralized base as reasons for the surprising defeat. Such was the Democrats’ glee that Virginia Republicans were all but added to the registry of endangered species.
A year later, their demise seems greatly exaggerated. Virginia has gone solidly Republican, with the GOP wining the races for governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general, and, according to the early results, winning them by wide margins. This is bad news indeed for the Democrats, as they current hold six of the state’s 11 Congressional seats. A reenergized state-level GOP organization will now have a full year to raise funds, mobilize support, and make a hard push to put the state back firmly in the red column in next year’s midterm elections.
A similar story has unfolded in New Jersey, where Republican challenger Christopher Christie has defeated Democratic incumbent Jon Corzine – this even as he was outspent 3-1 by the billionaire governor who sunk some $23 million of his own money into the general election race. As is typical of New Jersey politics, the issue of corruption in the state’s government was a campaign hot-button. Yet polls — including today’s exit polls — showed that most voters are worried about taxes and the economy.
The New Jersey result is particularly ominous for Obama, who campaigned for Corzine this past weekend but failed to sway the vote in his favor – another sign of his rapidly fading star power. After witnessing nine months of massive spending surges in the midst of a recession, and detecting no clear plan of how to pay for any of it, it is no wonder that New Jersey voters worried about their taxes and the struggling economy would fail to be impressed by the president’s appeal.
While results from around the country were still coming in at press time, the outcome of the race in Virginia is proof positive that the sands have shifted beneath the administration’s feet. Last year, Barack Obama became the first Democrat presidential candidate to win the state since Lyndon Johnson in 1964. The Left and their media allies swooned with excitement, and portrayed the 230,000 vote margin of victory as a sure sign that the Republican hold on the state was broken. Democrats were winning the culture wars in what had once been safely Republican territory, it was claimed. Tomes were written performing autopsies on Virginia’s GOP, examining personal rivalries and acrimony, sloppy communication and a demoralized base as reasons for the surprising defeat. Such was the Democrats’ glee that Virginia Republicans were all but added to the registry of endangered species.
A year later, their demise seems greatly exaggerated. Virginia has gone solidly Republican, with the GOP wining the races for governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general, and, according to the early results, winning them by wide margins. This is bad news indeed for the Democrats, as they current hold six of the state’s 11 Congressional seats. A reenergized state-level GOP organization will now have a full year to raise funds, mobilize support, and make a hard push to put the state back firmly in the red column in next year’s midterm elections.
A similar story has unfolded in New Jersey, where Republican challenger Christopher Christie has defeated Democratic incumbent Jon Corzine – this even as he was outspent 3-1 by the billionaire governor who sunk some $23 million of his own money into the general election race. As is typical of New Jersey politics, the issue of corruption in the state’s government was a campaign hot-button. Yet polls — including today’s exit polls — showed that most voters are worried about taxes and the economy.
The New Jersey result is particularly ominous for Obama, who campaigned for Corzine this past weekend but failed to sway the vote in his favor – another sign of his rapidly fading star power. After witnessing nine months of massive spending surges in the midst of a recession, and detecting no clear plan of how to pay for any of it, it is no wonder that New Jersey voters worried about their taxes and the struggling economy would fail to be impressed by the president’s appeal.
In politics, winning anywhere is big, losing is trivial
Heh.
No doubt the RNC response was to insist that they were merely local races signifying nothing about the national mood.
But Rahm was right that time, wasn’t he?
[L]ooking back at First Read’s coverage the day after the 2005 New Jersey and Virginia contests, we had forgotten that Rahm Emanuel — then chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and now White House chief of staff — had called us to argue the very point Republicans are now making: that the two gubernatorial contests say something about the upcoming midterms.
Here’s what we wrote then:
Democratic House campaign committee chair Rahm Emanuel, calling First Read immediately after Kaine’s and Corzine’s victories were announced, argued that it’s clear Democratic voters were already energized earlier in the year when Democrat Paul Hackett nearly won a traditionally GOP-leaning Ohio House district. “I think that’s even more true today.” He also pointed out that the mayors of Detroit, Cleveland, and St. Paul, MN were all losing. “A lot of incumbents are losing to change,” he said (although he neglected to mention that these three mayors are Democrats, though the one from St. Paul endorsed Bush last year).
No doubt the RNC response was to insist that they were merely local races signifying nothing about the national mood.
But Rahm was right that time, wasn’t he?
[L]ooking back at First Read’s coverage the day after the 2005 New Jersey and Virginia contests, we had forgotten that Rahm Emanuel — then chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and now White House chief of staff — had called us to argue the very point Republicans are now making: that the two gubernatorial contests say something about the upcoming midterms.
Here’s what we wrote then:
Democratic House campaign committee chair Rahm Emanuel, calling First Read immediately after Kaine’s and Corzine’s victories were announced, argued that it’s clear Democratic voters were already energized earlier in the year when Democrat Paul Hackett nearly won a traditionally GOP-leaning Ohio House district. “I think that’s even more true today.” He also pointed out that the mayors of Detroit, Cleveland, and St. Paul, MN were all losing. “A lot of incumbents are losing to change,” he said (although he neglected to mention that these three mayors are Democrats, though the one from St. Paul endorsed Bush last year).
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Even free pizza won't rouse Virginia Democrats
This is one Mr. Deeds who apparently isn't going to town. The collapse of the Democratic campaign for governor of Virginia speaks volumes - chapters, anyway - about what the body politic is trying to tell Barack Obama's Democrats.
They're learning, painfully, that campaigning without George W. Bush is baffling, frustrating and scary. Worse, it offers a preview of what the congressional campaigning will be like next year. One Obama doorbell ringer, working neighborhoods in Northern Virginia for Creigh Deeds, says even the promise of free pizza can't lure faithful Democrats to a rally.
They're learning, painfully, that campaigning without George W. Bush is baffling, frustrating and scary. Worse, it offers a preview of what the congressional campaigning will be like next year. One Obama doorbell ringer, working neighborhoods in Northern Virginia for Creigh Deeds, says even the promise of free pizza can't lure faithful Democrats to a rally.
Friday, October 23, 2009
White House: What gubernatorial election in Virginia?
Two weeks out from Virginia’s election, the prospects for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds look so bad that the White House has bugged out early from Deeds’ side. The Washington Post reports that the Obama administration has become worried about how a Republican will make them look, and have begun leaking criticisms of the campaign. The leaks intend to pre-empt any analysis that uses Virginia as a measure of how Barack Obama’s power and popularity have weakened since his inauguration:
Sensing that victory in the race for Virginia governor is slipping away, Democrats at the national level are laying the groundwork to blame a loss in a key swing state on a weak candidate who ran a poor campaign that failed to fully embrace President Obama until days before the election.
Senior administration officials have expressed frustration with how Democrat R. Creigh Deeds has handled his campaign for governor, refusing early offers of strategic advice and failing to reach out to several key constituencies that helped Obama win Virginia in 2008, they say.
Sensing that victory in the race for Virginia governor is slipping away, Democrats at the national level are laying the groundwork to blame a loss in a key swing state on a weak candidate who ran a poor campaign that failed to fully embrace President Obama until days before the election.
Senior administration officials have expressed frustration with how Democrat R. Creigh Deeds has handled his campaign for governor, refusing early offers of strategic advice and failing to reach out to several key constituencies that helped Obama win Virginia in 2008, they say.
Monday, October 5, 2009
BET cofounder raises money for GOP gubernatorial candidate in Virginia, mocks Dem opponent
"The billionaire co-founder of the Black Entertainment Television mocked Democrat Creigh Deeds' occasional stuttering at a fundraiser she held for Deeds' Republican opponent in the governor's race, Bob McDonnell.
In a YouTube video, Sheila Johnson says Virginia needs a governor "who can really communicate, and Bob McDonnell can communicate."
Then she tells a small crowd of wealthy donors, "The other people I talk to, especially his op-op-op-o-opponent, di-di-did this all through my interview with him."
After muted laughter among the guests, she adds, "He could not articulate what needed to be done."
Jared Leopold, Creigh Deeds' press secretary, said a YouTube video depicting BET co-founder Sheila Johnson criticizing the candidate on his communication skills was a 'divisive personal attack.'"
"This is a cheap shot and a new low for this race," Leopold told FOX 5 in a statement. "Virginians deserve better than personal attacks like this.
In a YouTube video, Sheila Johnson says Virginia needs a governor "who can really communicate, and Bob McDonnell can communicate."
Then she tells a small crowd of wealthy donors, "The other people I talk to, especially his op-op-op-o-opponent, di-di-did this all through my interview with him."
After muted laughter among the guests, she adds, "He could not articulate what needed to be done."
Jared Leopold, Creigh Deeds' press secretary, said a YouTube video depicting BET co-founder Sheila Johnson criticizing the candidate on his communication skills was a 'divisive personal attack.'"
"This is a cheap shot and a new low for this race," Leopold told FOX 5 in a statement. "Virginians deserve better than personal attacks like this.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Obama's coattails may hang Creigh Deeds
"Not so long ago, Democrats were thrilled by the long length of Barack Obama's coattails. Creigh Deeds would be a lot more thrilled today if he could just step off.
Mr. Deeds is the Democratic state senator running for governor of Virginia, and while he's at it, running away from his commander in chief. It ought to worry Democrats that their top recruit for the year already views their Washington agenda as a liability. It ought to worry Mr. Deeds that there seems no escape.
The Virginian's problem is that he's a little too important to party leaders. The Obama White House isn't half as worried about what Virginia means for next year's elections as it is what Virginia means for this year's health fight. A wipeout in the Old Dominion could send Blue Dogs scampering for cover. If health care isn't done by Nov. 3, it may not get done. Mr. Obama needs Mr. Deeds to win."
Mr. Deeds is the Democratic state senator running for governor of Virginia, and while he's at it, running away from his commander in chief. It ought to worry Democrats that their top recruit for the year already views their Washington agenda as a liability. It ought to worry Mr. Deeds that there seems no escape.
The Virginian's problem is that he's a little too important to party leaders. The Obama White House isn't half as worried about what Virginia means for next year's elections as it is what Virginia means for this year's health fight. A wipeout in the Old Dominion could send Blue Dogs scampering for cover. If health care isn't done by Nov. 3, it may not get done. Mr. Obama needs Mr. Deeds to win."
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