Thread: LOU DOBBS AND THE ACLU

LOU THURSDAY NITE....

DOBBS: We've been reporting extensively on this broadcast about the extraordinary position the American Civil Liberties Union takes against the federal government's crackdown on illegal immigration. This week the ACLU sued federal officials on behalf of the children of illegal aliens being held at the Hutto Detention Center in Texas.

The ACLU says the detention of illegal alien children is inhumane and un-American. Anthony Romero is executive director of ACLU and he joins us here now.

Anthony, good to have you here.

ANTHONY ROMERO, ACLU EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Good to be here, Lou.

DOBBS: Now, you say it's inhumane.

ROMERO: It is.

DOBBS: Well ...

ROMERO: It's only way to describe it.

DOBBS: Well, I just said you said that. But what I don't quite understand is, who supports you in this?

ROMERO: First, the courts support us. I think the broad level of American public support. When they find out what's going on in Hutto, they'll be shocked.

DOBBS: Let's take a look at some of the video of the detention center and the people in it. If we could put it up here or up there, that's great. This facility is by no means, you know, upper middle class suburb. But as you look at that, Anthony, it doesn't look that bad to me. What do you think?

ROMERO: Well, I think the video is deceiving. Talk about the kids, three to 16 years old who are clients. Some of them locked up in jail cells for 11 to 12 hours a day with no toys in their cells, no writing utensils.

DOBBS: In the cells but we see all sorts of toy and facilities there.

ROMERO: I'm sure this piece of propaganda can be quite dealt with. DOBBS: This is not propaganda. This is taken by a photographer ...

ROMERO: And a court of law will adjudicate it.

DOBBS: I'm just trying to understand.

ROMERO: That's the beautiful part of our American system. We will be able to put forward the facts and the evidence of these students and these kids who have been denied educational services.

DOBBS: Educational services. They are typically in the facility for less than 30 days.

ROMERO: No, absolutely not. Some of our clients are there for almost half a year.

DOBBS: You said some. I said most are there for less than 30 days.

ROMERO: But I think what's important to say even if they're there for a short period of time they're entitled to those educational services. Food, we have complaints that the kids are being inadequately fed. They're running around in prison uniforms.

DOBBS: Those little kids, they have prison uniforms?

ROMERO: They have prison uniforms, you bet.

DOBBS: Really?

ROMERO: Since 1997, there's been an order under an agreement signed with the Justice Department of Flores v. Meese that they're supposed to provide good facilities, adequate food, adequate shelter, adequate education and they have violated every step of the way that very same contempt decree.

DOBBS: How did they get there?

ROMERO: The U.S. government has arrested them.

DOBBS: For what?

ROMERO: The kids or who, the parents?

DOBBS: Well, yeah, the parents.

ROMERO: I think it's important, what's important, Lou ...

DOBBS: We'll find out what you think is important but how about answering my question. How did they get there?

ROMERO: Their parents are refugees. One of our clients from Guyana, one of our clients from Somalia.

DOBBS: And illegal aliens. ROMERO: People who are here, they are here illegally but they have a right to assert a legal proceeding to assert themselves as political- as refugees. That's the American way, Lou.DOBBS: Fine. But the reality is, Congressman John Carter from Texas concerned about what he was hearing about Hutto says, I was concerned about news reports and treatment at the facility. We were among those who reported on it. He went there. He said he believes that the dedicated employees of the facility were providing a humane and safe alternative to catch and release and he thought the facility was just fine.

ROMERO: Well, he's wrong. And a judge ...

DOBBS: As you say, a court will adjudicate.

ROMERO: A court will adjudicate. You present evidence, they get to rebut it and a judge will adjudicate it.

DOBBS: That is the American way.

ROMERO: That is the American way. That's why we're in court, fighting for those issues.

DOBBS: It's one of the reasons that I think we're going to talk about some of the other reasons. For example, taking on Hazleton, Pennsylvania.

ROMERO: That's right. Monday, we'll be in court. You should join me in court in Hazleton, Pennsylvania.

DOBBS: I won't be joining you but I assure you your correspondents will.

ROMERO: We welcome you.

DOBBS: As a matter of fact, they were there today for the pretrial stuff.

ROMERO: We had a briefing this morning with some of your folks.

DOBBS: Yeah.
ou filed lawsuits against communities such as Hazleton, the Hazleton case going to court, as you said.

All those lawsuits with communities that are trying to deal with illegal immigration. What I don't understand is why, if you're going to sue the federal government over the facilities say at Hutto, why aren't you suing the federal government over failure to enforce U.S. immigration law? Why aren't you suing the government for its failure to take responsibility for maintaining, for states, maintaining social and medical and incarceration.

ROMERO: The detention centers, you'll see. San Diego, we'll be suing that detention center. DOBBS: So you're suing the federal government for failing to secure the borders and for not reimbursing states.

ROMERO: The poor conditions in the detention centers that we're going to take on. Let's go back to Hazleton.

DOBBS: Let's go back to this. When are you going to take on the American issue which is -- it says American on your ...
ROMERO: Right, absolutely. Americans who defend your rights and everyone rights.

DOBBS: So why don't you defend the rights of Americans, very specifically, and say enforce our immigration laws, force the federal government to pay for the state and local expenditures to incarcerate illegal aliens, to provide medical services and social services. Can I entice you to do that?

ROMERO: I can do what I can. What I can tell you is sometimes you need clients. It's much harder than just to bring a lawsuit.
DOBBS: If you want a client, represent me.

ROMERO: You want to be my client?

DOBBS: You got it.

ROMERO: You bet. I did Rush Limbaugh, I can do you.

DOBBS: I don't know what that means when you say do ...

ROMERO: I represented Rush Limbaugh in his medical privacy case when we -- Let's go back to Hazleton.

DOBBS: We have to go off the air because we're out of time.

ROMERO: We will have to come back to Hazleton next week and talk to Hazleton. It's much too important.

DOBBS: Are you going to book the show, too? The ACLU has a lot of power.

ROMERO: I have a lot of time.

DOBBS: OK. Good. We're going to prevail on some of that time, maybe next week. But I want you suing the federal government and I'll be your client. Go get them. Thank you. Anthony Romero, ACLU executive director.
ROMERO: My pleasure.

DOBBS: Still ahead. More of your thoughts. Results of the poll. It's worth waiting for. Stay with us. We'll be right back

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) DOBBS: Now, results of tonight's poll. We're going to send this along to the good transportation secretary. Ninety-seven percent of you say you don't believe Mexican trucks should be allowed to transport freight in the United States.

And time now for your thoughts.

Many of you outraged about Bill Gates' comments yesterday, suggesting there should be no limit on the use of foreign labor in this country.

Dan in Toronto said, "Perhaps the reason Mr. Gates can't find skilled engineering talent is the fact that he himself is responsible for sending tons of jobs to India."

Thanks for being with us tonight. Please join us here tomorrow. For all of us, thanks for watching.

Good night from New York. THE SITUATION ROOM begins right now with Suzanne Malveaux sitting in for Wolf Blitzer. Suzanne?

Go Lou! I am impressed with his direct questions and trying to focus the concern on the citizens of this country...not other countries. I think he is a great orator, we need to support his style of bringing information to the masses!!!

I watched as Lou Dobbs wonderfully portrayed the hypocrisy of an organization with "American" in it's name (ACLU) protecting the rights of foreign lawbreakers over the rights of lawbiding,legal,American citizens.

Lou offering to be the principle for a lawsuit by the ACLU against the U.S. government for not enforcing our immigration laws was icing on the cake and appeared to take the Exec. Dir. of the ACLU by surprise.

I don't think I'll be holding my breath while that organization prepares a lawsuit against the government for not protecting the rights of American citizens against foreign invaders though.

I'm glad he called him out. They need to start representing the American citizens and not foreign law breakers.

They better keep their promise or Lou won't let them live that down and neither will the American citizens!

Now I understand why the ACLU’s Executive Director support illegal immigrants and not American citizens against illegal immigration.

Anthony D. Romero, Executive Director
Anthony D. Romero is the Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union, the nation’s premier defender of liberty and individual freedom. He took the helm of the 86-year-old organization just four days before the September 11, 2001 attacks. Shortly after, the ACLU launched its national Safe and Free campaign to protect basic freedoms during a time of crisis. Under Romero’s leadership, the ACLU gained court victories on the Patriot Act and filed landmark litigation on the torture and abuse of detainees in U.S. custody. Most recently, the ACLU successfully challenged the Bush administration’s illegal spying program.

Romero, an attorney with a history of public-interest activism, has presided over the most successful membership growth in the ACLU’s history and more than doubled the budget and national staff of the organization since he began his tenure. This unprecedented growth has allowed the ACLU to expand its litigation, lobbying and public education efforts, including new initiatives focused on racial justice, religious freedom, privacy, reproductive freedom and lesbian and gay rights.
Romero is the ACLU’s sixth executive director, and the first Latino and openly gay man to serve in that capacity. In 2005, Romero was named one of Time Magazine’s 25 Most Influential Hispanics in America, and has received dozens of public service awards and an honorary doctorate from the City University of New York School of Law.

Born in New York City to parents who hailed from Puerto Rico, Romero was the first in his family to graduate from high school. He is a graduate of Stanford University Law School and Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public Policy and International Affairs. He is a member of the New York Bar Association and has sat on numerous nonprofit boards.

Judicial Watch may be the way Lou Dobbs should go, and against Homeland Security instead of the Federal Government. I do not think he will get any help from ACLU

Our Litigation

JW's Director of Litigation, Paul Orfanedes
Judicial Watch has filed more than 150 lawsuits against corrupt public officials, achieving numerous victories on behalf of the American people. This is what separates Judicial Watch from other watchdog organizations. Judicial Watch is willing to take action, to use the civil court system in order to achieve justice.

Thanks, in part, to its aggressive litigation, Judicial Watch was recently named one of the top ten most effective government watchdog organizations by The Hill newspaper.

The following links to summaries, updates, and relevant documents pertaining to Judicial Watch’s current litigation.

Current Cases

Illegal Immigration
· Judicial Watch, Inc. v. Chicago Police Department - Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit on January 4, 2007 over a Cook County, Illinois Board of Commissioners over a FOIA Request pertaining to a resolution under consideration to create a sanctuary policy.
· GARCIA v. CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH - Judicial Watch is suing the city of Laguna Beach over a government-subsidized day laborer center that does not verify workers' eligibility to work in the United States.
· STURGEON v. BRATTON - LA Special Order 40
· KARUNAKARAM v. TOWN OF HERNDON – On August 17, 2005, The Herndon Town Council ignored the rule of law and voted to establish a "Day Laborer Site” on public property, a taxpayer-funded zone where illegal aliens can congregate in hopes that someone will offer jobs despite their illegal presence. Judicial Watch filed this lawsuit on behalf of a group of Herndon residents against the Town of Herndon.· JUDICIAL WATCH v. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY - FOIA:Border Surveys
Terrorism
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY - Saudi Flights
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. FBI - 9/11/01 videotapes
· JOHN DOE v. AL BARAKA INVESTMENT AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, et. al. - Judicial Watch has filed a lawsuit against over 100 Saudi Arabian and other entities for their financial and conspiratorial support for the attacks on America.

FOIA Lawsuits
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR ROD R. BLAGOJEVICH - JW FOIA lawsuit against the Office of Governor Rod Blagojevich (D-IL), to obtain federal grand jury subpoenas served on the governor.
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. SECRET SERVICE - FOIA: Abramoff White House Visits
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY - Complaint filed after DOA's failure to respond to a FOIA request in regards to contracts awarded to Kellog, Brown and Root to restart Iraq's oil production.
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE - JW FOIA lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice to obtain records about the Terrorist Surveillance Program
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE - Judicial Watch filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests with the Department of Commerce in 1994, to obtain information about how the Commerce Department chooses participants on its overseas trade missions and its illegal campaign finance activity. This inquiry is what uncovered the current fundraising scandals, as Judicial Watch found that the Commerce Department and the White House were at the center of the illegal activity.
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION - Judicial Watch fights in court to gain access to abortion pill documents from the Clinton administration.
Whistleblower Protection
· JOHN VINCENT v. FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION - Defendants, acting under color of federal authority, have and are continuing to deprive Plaintiff of his First Amendment rights by refusing to grant him permission to publish written answers to questions posed to him by Ms. Judith Miller of The New York Times and/or by failing to specify any particular portion of the answers that allegedly are objectionable so as to allow Plaintiff to revise the answers to address Defendants’ alleged concerns.
· ROBERT G. WRIGHT, JR. v. FBI - The FBI has denied prepublication to Special Agent (SA) Wright's manuscript that details the FBI's own failure to take the threat of terrorism seriously and their efforts to thwart SA Wright's attempts to launch more comprehensive investigations into terrorists. The FBI has also retaliated against SA Wright by unlawfully releasing Privacy Act-protected documents.
· HAFIZ v. ABC, INC. - Defamation and Libel Lawsuit by Muslim FBI Agent.
Other Litigation
· STURGEON v LOS ANGELES COUNTY, ET AL. - In 1998, the state of California took over funding of all state trial court operations, including responsibility for payment of salaries and benefits to trial court judges. Los Angeles County, home to one of the largest trial court systems in the United States, continues to pay "local judicial benefits" to its judges to supplement the compensation and benefits they received from the state.
· JOSE J. BASULTO v. THE REPUBLIC OF CUBA and FIDEL CASTRO RUZ - This action arises out of an act of terrorism by the Defendants and their agents on February 24, 1996, in which two Cuban Air Force fighter planes ("MiGs"), intentionally shot down two unarmed, civilian planes of Hermanos al Rescate [or “Brothers To The Rescue” (BTTR) in English] in international airspace in an unprovoked aerial ambush, killing four BTTR aviators.
· ALEXANDER et al. v. FBI, et. al. - Judicial Watch is representing the plaintiffs in a class-action suit filed by White House employees of the Bush and Reagan administrations whose FBI files were wrongly accessed by the Clinton White House. The White House and FBI are being sued under the federal Privacy Act, while the individual defendants B Bernard Nussbaum, Craig Livingstone, Anthony Marceca and Hillary Clinton are being sued for common-law tort of invasion of privacy.
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE - Civil Action 97-2416. In October of 1997, Judicial Watch filed a fourth lawsuit against Commerce, this time seeking all documents produced by Commerce to the Justice Department, Congress, or any grand jury impaneled in any judicial district of the United States.
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE - Civil Action 97-0289. In November 1996, Judicial Watch filed a third lawsuit against Commerce, this time for information on all trade missions not covered by our earlier requests. Once again, the Commerce Department turned over some documents, but withheld others it claimed were privileged. All three of Judicial Watch's cases against the Commerce Department deal with issues of how participants on trade missions were selected and how illegal fundraising was conducted by the Clinton Administration.
· JUDICIAL WATCH v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE - Civil Action 96-2747. In October, 1996, Judicial Watch filed another lawsuit against Commerce, for additional information on its trade missions to Indonesia and on the activities of John Huang, Melinda Yee, the Lippo Group, and others involved in the campaign finance scandal.
Click here to view JW archived cases.

http://www.judicialwatch.org/litigation.shtml

Foreign Civil Liberties Union

I saw when they were "investigating" the Minutemen. A representative said they had heard that the Minutemen where "'surprising," migrants, and "convincing them to stay until BP arrived." They thought this was a violation of law!! Never mind that the "migrants" themselves were in violation of law!!!! Needless to say that the traitors in the FCLU has caught the Minutmen doing ANYTHING illegal. Just completely wasting their time.....What treasonous losers!