WND EXCLUSIVE

OBAMA IMPLEMENTING AMNESTY THROUGH 10 MEMORANDA

'It's a question of what he thinks he can get away with'

Published: 2 days ago
JEROME R. CORSI

NEW YORK – Earlier this month, WND reported President Obama never actually signed any executive orders directing the Department of Homeland Security to fulfill his announced immigration action effectively granting amnesty to millions of illegal aliens.

WND further reported Obama was implementing the measures outlined in his Nov. 20 speech to the nation through a DHS memorandum signed by Secretary Jeh Johnson Nov. 20 titled, “Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children with Respect to Certain Individuals Who Are the Parents of U.S. Citizens or Permanent Residents.”

Now, WND has discovered that on Nov. 20, Johnson signed a total of 10 memoranda expanding the Obama amnesty beyond the illegal alien parents of minors born in the U.S. to include virtually every illegal alien currently in the U.S.
Moreover, none of the DHS memoranda have been filed in the Federal Register, in apparent violation of federal agency rulemaking authority that demands all rule changes be published in the Federal Register and made available for public comment prior to being implemented.

Commenting on the 10 memoranda signed by Johnson, Jon Feere at the Washington-based Center for Immigration studies noted they “are limited in detail and leave much of the policymaking to executive branch agencies,” causing him to conclude that “much remains unknown about exactly how this scheme will operate.”

Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, agreed.

“We probably won’t know what these memoranda mean until after DHS starts implementing these new rules,” Krikorian said. “None of these memoranda are based in law. The memoranda are really nothing more than a calculation of what the Obama administration thinks it can get away with.”

Krikorian expressed concern that if the memoranda Johnson signed Nov. 20 are not overturned in federal district court, Republicans in Congress do not seem inclined to take any action to prevent the new immigration rules from being enforced.
“If President Obama can get away with redefining immigration laws without any congressional action, then who is to say what changes in immigration law Obama will enact through executive memorandum next?” Krikorian asked.

“Obama appears to be making this all up, so it’s a question of what he thinks he can get away with,” he said. “What’s to stop Obama from issuing more memoranda through a Cabinet secretary and granting more people amnesty next year? Nothing, as far as I can see.”

Tom Fitton, president of Washington-based Judicial Watch, was equally alarmed.

“It’s hard to see under these new rules how Obama would deport any illegal immigrant that manages to get into the country,” Fitton told WND. “Unless you’re a sucker that happens to get caught up at the border and turned away immediately, it is almost certain you won’t be subject to deportation.”

Fitton was doubtful the Obama administration would deport even the illegal-immigrant criminals defined under Johnson’s new rules as “priority” cases for law enforcement.

“There appears always to be an out for anyone facing deportation, even for the most violent and vile facing deportation,” he said. “By a series of memoranda issued by one Cabinet official, Obama is undertaking a whole remaking of the U.S. immigration system.”

Fitton cited the Anti-deficiency Act, which prohibits government from creating an obligation to pay money before funds have been authorized for that purpose and 31 U.S. Code Section 1350 specifies criminal penalties for so doing.

“The Obama administration is reauthorizing funds and repurposing personnel to do things not authorized by the immigration laws,” he said. “That should submit decision-makers in DHS to criminal prosecution, if anyone bothers to investigate.”
Along with the “prosecutorial discretion” memo previously reported by WND, the DHS memoranda Johnson signed Nov. 20 are:

“Subject: Southern Border and Approaches Campaign.”

It commissions three Joint Task Forces, with each assigned to incorporate elements of the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Joint Task Force East is responsible for the southern maritime border and approaches, while Joint Task Force West is responsible for the southern land border and West Coast. Joint Task Force Investigations will focus on investigations in support of the two geographical task forces.
Among the goals for the three Joint Task Forces were to minimize the risk of terrorism; interdict people and goods attempting to enter illegally between ports of entry; dismantle criminal and terrorist organizations and networks; and maximize the number of travelers and value of imported goods that undergo screening before arriving at ports of entry.
The memorandum does not specify how many agents will be assigned to each task force or what funds, if any, were allocated to accomplish the specified border patrol tasks.

“Policies for the Apprehension, Detention, and Removal of Undocumented Immigrants.”

It directs that prosecutorial discretion in immigration cases should apply not only to the decision to issue, serve, file or cancel a Notice to Appear, but also to a broad range of other discretionary enforcement decisions. They include deciding whom to stop, question and arrest, as well as whom to detain or release, and whether to settle, dismiss, appeal or join in a motion on a case, and whether to grant deferred action, parole or a stay of removal instead of pursuing removal.
The highest priority is to use law enforcement arrests on illegal aliens suspected of terrorism or espionage, or who otherwise pose a national security danger, as well as illegal aliens convicted of active participation in a criminal street gang, and illegal aliens convicted of felonies.

“Secure Communities.”

This memo discontinued the “Secure Communities” program that deported illegal aliens in U.S. government detention. The memo charges “the reality is the program has attracted a great deal of criticism, is widely misunderstood, and is embroiled in litigation,” such that “its very name has become a symbol for general hostility toward the enforcement of our immigration laws.”

The memo instructs ICE should only seek to detain illegal immigrants who are “priorities” under the above memo, including terror suspects, gang members and felons.

“Personnel Reform for Immigration and Customs Enforcement Officers.

The memo “recalibrates” the workforce and personal pay structure for officers in ICE’s Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) to provide premium pay. ERO officers are to limit their activities to illegal alien terror suspects, gang members and felons.

“Expansion of the Provisional Waiver Program.”

In 2013, the Obama administration extended a waiver to immigrant visa applicants who are spouses, minor children or parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent relatives. The memo extends the waiver also to include anyone who is a relative of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent relatives. The goal is to allow to stay in the U.S. all illegal immigrants who can prove “family ties” to former illegal immigrants who are now either U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.

“Policies Supporting U.S. High-Skilled Businesses and Workers.”

The memo instructs the USCIS to streamline the process of granting employment-based work visas, or “green cards,” to eliminate the “backlog” created by the “relatively low green-card numerical limits established by Congress in 1990. The memo instructs USCIS to work with the Department of State “to ensure that all immigrant visas authorized by Congress are issued to eligible individuals when there is sufficient demand for such visas.”
The Department of State agrees to simplify its visa bulletin system to facilitate the issuance of green cards that will remain valid even when the employment-qualified immigrants change jobs or employers. The memo also loosened restrictions on other types of work-related visas, including the granting of “national interest waivers” to non-citizens with advanced degrees or exceptional abilities, provided their admission to the United States “is in the national interest.”

“Families of U.S. Armed Forces Members and Enlistees.”

The memo grants “parole-in-place or deferred action” from deportation for spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents seeking to enlist in the U.S. armed forces.

“Directive to Provide Consistency Regarding Advance Parole.”

The memo extends protection to re-enter the country for illegal immigrants granted permission to travel out of the United States.

“Policies to Promote and Increase Access to U.S. Citizenship.”

It instructs the USCIS to explore ways to eliminate any barriers that prevent an estimated 8 million lawful permanent residents in the United States who are eligible to become citizens but have not yet sought to do so. The means specified in the memo include directing the USCIS to begin accepting credit cards as a payment option for the naturalization fee and instructing the USCIS to provide a waiver of the $680 cost of naturalization if the applicant’s income is no greater than 150 percent of the federal poverty limit.

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2014/12/obama-imp...eTHhOEYXX2s.99