Immigration Head Nominee -Credentials or Crony

The Bush administration is seeking to appoint Julie Myers as head of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. Myers, 36, is a lawyer with little or no experience in immigration & customs issues. Myers also happens to be the niece of Gen. Richard Myers - the guy you see on tv all the time with Don Rumsfeld, giving briefings about Iraq. Uh huh. She is also married to the chief of staff to Michael Chertoff, who is head of Homeland Security. Uh huh.

Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a huge & important agency. It is especially important now, since there have been growing calls for greater border protection & greater crack-down on the illegal invasion from the south. There are complex issues involved. Myers managed a department of 170 employees in the Commerce Dept. ICE has 20,000.

We do not need another FEMA embarrassment, where Bush crony & inexperienced Michael Brown was replaced after allegations he utterly failed to respond correctly to the Katrina hurricane disaster. Immigration is too important an issue to have its head not knowing an H-1 visa from a B-1 visa. We are sure there are plenty of qualified & thoroughly experienced managers out there who could be nominated to the position. But then, how many of them have a General for an uncle?

Bussing to the Border

The Sheriff of El Paso County, Colorado, has come up with a unique way of getting Immigration & Customs Enforcement's attention. Tired of the county paying to house illegals in the county jail & the lack of an ICE office in the area, the Sheriff informed ICE that he would begin bussing illegals to the Mexican border or dropping them off in the streets.

ICE responded by saying that they would be agreeable to opening an office. However, that may take awhile, as Congress must approve of it.

The Sheriff has reason to complain. The county last year spent $1.2 million in incarceration costs. The Federal government reimbursed the county only $180,000. The current daily illegal population in the jail averages 80-100, for crimes & immigration violations. 75% of the illegals are charge with crimes, from misdemeanors up to homicide. ICE is notified each time an illegal is arrested, but they only pick up 5 or 6 a week. The others are released into the streets. Nationwide, ICE has a paltry 19,500 detention spaces for illegals.

The Sheriff had a terrific idea & we think he should still consider bussing to the border. The Federal government is doing nothing to control the illegal situation. Therefore, it is up to citizens to take the initiative, such as The Minutemen Project & those groups who are hounding day laborer areas. We applaud the Sheriff.