Elkhart County immigrant advocates blast U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly for vote on immigrati

Elkhart County immigrant advocates blast U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly for vote on immigration measure

Donnelly has criticized President Obama’s executive orders on immigration as overreach, which has raised the ire of some who work with immigrants

Posted 1 hr ago
Tim Vandenack

GOSHEN — U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly is coming under fire from three Elkhart County immigration attorneys for his vote on a measure last week aimed at preventing implementation of immigration reforms that President Obama announced last year.

The Feb. 27 vote on Senate Bill 534, the Immigration Rule of Law Act, ultimately failed. Still, that the Democratic senator voted for it shows he “stands on the wrong side of history,” said the Monday, March 2, statement from the National Immigrant Justice Center, which has offices in Goshen and Chicago.

S.B. 534 would have stopped the flow of funds to carry out implementation of a series of executive orders announced by Obama last November related to immigration. The orders — focus of intense and continued criticism from many Republican lawmakers and others and stalled, for now, by a lawsuit — would allow the undocumented immigrant parents of U.S. citizens to apply for permission to legally stay and work in the United States. They would also expand a program that lets certain undocumented immigrants brought here by their parents apply for permission to remain.

Rocio Arevalo of Goshen-based La Casa Inc., which offers immigration services, said in the NIJC statement that Donnelly’s vote “sends the wrong message to immigrants in Indiana and serves only to spread confusion and fear.”

Lisa Koop, a lawyer at the NIJC office in Goshen, said she’s met hundreds of undocumented immigrants wanting to legalize their status since Obama announced his executive actions. “Eliminating this opportunity would be a loss for all Hoosiers,” she said.

Rose Rivera of the Center for Legal Justice in Elkhart alluded to the roots in the local community of many would potentially benefit from Obama’s changes. “It is hard to understand why Sen. Donnelly is interested in excluding those who are already part of our community,” she said in the statement.

Even if S.B. 534 failed, Donnelly isn’t backtracking in his opposition to Obama’s executive actions, viewed by him and other critics as executive overreach.

“Regarding President Obama’s executive actions, I said in November that I did not think he should have acted unilaterally to make such significant policy changes to our immigration system. I also expressed concern about the impact his actions may have had on the potential for bipartisan immigration reform,” Donnelly said in a Feb. 27 statement.

Donnelly voted for a wide-ranging Senate immigration reform measure approved by the body in 2013, lauded by many immigrant advocates. House lawmakers didn’t follow up, and Donnelly faulted them for inaction.

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The Feb. 27 vote on Senate Bill 534, the Immigration Rule of Law Act, ultimately failed. Still, that the Democratic senator voted for it shows he “stands on the wrong side of history,” said the Monday, March 2, statement from the National Immigrant Justice Center, which has offices in Goshen and Chicago.

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Uh no, Senator Donnelly stands on the right side of law, laws that protect American citizens, American workers, American voters, American borders, and American sovereignty. These laws also protect our government treasuries and the peace of mind and domestic tranquility of the American People.

Senator Joe Donnelly did the right thing. You are doing the wrong thing. You are exploiting the well-being of our nation to line your own law pockets representing illegal aliens, all the while hiding behind your phony 501 C 3 tax fraud "charity". And in 2017 if not before, we're going to pass the FairTax and shut you and your phony charity down.

Mr. Arevalo. I advocate for aliens being exposed to adequate fear that they self deport, not less fear. I can spread more fear if government won't. I find it difficult to like anyone who advocates for law breakers, that shoot drivers at stop signs! I abhor politicians who will not stop that for once and all! I abhor political parties who offer candidates who are guilty jof aiding and abetting aliens! Voters are incapable of instilling any fear in those parties or even those parties candidates! That tells me loud and clear that politicians are more afraid of aliens than voters, and poses the question, how many aliens are here that with the resources of our military why are politicians afraid?