Trump & Pence in Indiana. GREEN MOUNTAIN PAC.

My friend and colleague, Senator Joe Donnelly's GOP challenger in Indiana is Mike Braun: a far-right former Republican State Representative who poured millions of his own money into his primary campaign.

President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have already made a special visit to Indiana to campaign for Joe's opponent and attack Joe -- and the Koch brothers and other special interest groups have spent more than $7 million in ad buys on top of that.

We need to rush Joe's campaign the support they'll need to fight back and keep Joe's seat blue this fall...

Since he was elected to the Senate in 2012, Joe has been a passionate advocate for affordable health care, fought fiercely on behalf of our nation's veterans, helped lead the charge against the growing opioid epidemic ravaging communities in Indiana, Vermont, and across the country, and done so much more.

We need to keep him in the Senate so he can continue fighting for our Democratic values, but with Politico calling Joe the most vulnerable Democrat this cycle, we can't take his victory for granted.

Indiana is looking more and more like a $100-million Senate race, with the bulk of that money coming from conservative, dark-money groups like the Koch brothers propping up Joe's opponent.

To fight back against their attacks and win, Joe's counting on grassroots support from Democrats across the nation.

Thank you for helping keep Joe's seat blue.

Sincerely,

Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator

PRESIDENT OBAMAS IMMIGRATION SPEECH: COMPARE THIS TO DONALD TRUMPS "IMMIGRATION POLICY." PART 5. THE FINAL CHAPTER.

To Finish up on this Topic, Analysis of President Obamas Speech on Immigration Reform, here are a few more Direct Quotes that can give us the Desired Direction he has in mind to Solve Some of the Problems included in the Controversy.

"First, we’ll build on our progress at the border with additional resources for our law enforcement personnel so that they can stem the flow of illegal crossings, and speed the return of those who do cross over."

COMMENT-  I really don't see how much more can be done through additional resources, if this is just another way of saying 'Spend More Money.'  It would seem that a change in Strategy and Tactics is the real key.  Proper Deployment of Existing Assets would be much more Beneficial.

"Second, I’ll make it easier and faster for high-skilled immigrants, graduates, and entrepreneurs to stay and contribute to our economy, as so many business leaders have proposed."

COMMENT-  In other words, it is Foolish to Treat every Single Illegal Immigrant the same way, when there are those who can make Real and Substantial Contributions to this Country.  Pure Common Sense, and an Excellent Point, that is very hard to Refute.

"Third, we’ll take steps to deal responsibly with the millions of undocumented immigrants who already live in our country..."

"...focusing enforcement resources on actual threats to our security. Felons, not families. Criminals, not children. Gang members, not a mom who’s working hard to provide for her kids. We’ll prioritize, just like law enforcement does every day."

COMMENT-  This is Basically, as I suggested above, using existing Tools already in place more effectively.  Again, not treating every Violation the same way.

FINALLY, THERE IS THIS...

"If you’ve been in America for more than five years; if you have children who are American citizens or legal residents; if you register, pass a criminal background check, and you’re willing to pay your fair share of taxes -- you’ll be able to apply to stay in this country temporarily without fear of deportation. You can come out of the shadows and get right with the law. That’s what this deal is."

COMMENT-  This is the Bottom Line, at least until Opponents try to Destroy what it is trying to Accomplish. Here are The Important Elements:

-  Keeping Families Together is a Priority, if done under the Right Conditions.

-  This includes registering with the Government, to become A TEMPORARY RESIDENT, NOT A CITIZEN.

-  Criminals are TREATED DIFFERENTLY.

-  Registering will mean one more thing;  That Place of Employment will become known, and any Income will become Taxable.  This is no Small Consideration.

If you Disagree with any, or all, of the Presidents Proposals, you should at least understand why.  We are Mostly a Nation of Immigrants...

...AND WE OWE IT TO THE MEMORIES OF OUR ANCESTORS, TO GIVE OTHERS THE SAME CHANCE THEY HAD.

PRESIDENT OBAMAS IMMIGRATION SPEECH: COMPARE THIS TO DONALD TRUMPS "IMMIGRATION POLICY." PART 4.

Let us return to the Presidents Speech on Immigration.

Early on, he relates a Compromise Bill that Passed the Senate last Year:

"I WORKED WITH CONGRESS ON A COMPREHENSIVE FIX... 68 DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS AND INDEPENDENTS...TO PASS A BIPARTISAN BILL IN THE SENATE...IT WAS A COMPROMISE."

The Bill, According to the President, Would have;  "Doubled the Number of Border Patrol Agents, while giving undocumented immigrants a pathway to citizenship, if they paid a fine, started paying their taxes and went to the back of the line."

Obviously, this didn't pass through the House of Representatives, because House Leadership refused to hold a Vote on the Bill.

The Question becomes simply one of WHY?  If an Elected Official truly believed the Bill was wrong and ineffective, what led to this conclusion?

WAS IT:

-  DOUBLING THE NUMBER OF BORDER PATROL AGENTS.

-  ALLOWING UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS A CHANCE TO EARN CITIZENSHIP BY:  PAYING A FINE, MAKING TAX PAYMENTS, AND WAITING THEIR TURN BEHIND OTHERS ALREADY INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS.

-   A REASON  NOT SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSED BY THE BILL?  

Further, if the House Leadership was convinced that this was Irresponsible, and not supported by most Americans, a Vote would have made their position that much more Powerful.

President Obama goes on to say;  "... I CONTINUE TO BELIEVE THAT THE BEST WAY TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM... WORKING TOGETHER... TO PASS THAT KIND OF COMMON SENSE LAW."

In other Words, The President is saying; I WANT TO COMPROMISE, SO STOP TRYING TO ACT ALONE. REFUSING TO NEGOTIATE IS A STUMBLING BLOCK TOWARDS PROGRESS, AND FINDING LASTING SOLUTIONS TO THIS ISSUE.

With that being said, the Presidents Response to such Tactics is the Following Course of Action, stated in the Body of the Speech;

"BUT UNTIL THAT HAPPENS, THERE ARE ACTIONS I HAVE THE LEGAL AUTHORITY TO TAKE AS PRESIDENT, THE SAME KINDS OF ACTIONS TAKEN BY DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTS BEFORE ME, THAT WILL HELP MAKE OUR IMMIGRATION SYSTEM MORE FAIR AND MORE JUST."

LOOK FOR PART 5.

PRESIDENT OBAMAS IMMIGRATION SPEECH: COMPARE THIS TO DONALD TRUMPS "IMMIGRATION POLICY." PART 3.

Again, this is taken from the Transcript of PRESIDENT OBAMAS speech on Immigration.

"Today we have more agents and technology deployed to secure our southern border than at any time in our history. And over the past six years illegal border crossings have been cut by more than half."

What do we find if these Statements are checked?

Well, referring to the number of Border Patrol Agents, this is what we find:

YEAR                                      2013            2010            2005            2000

TOTAL # OF AGENTS             21,391.         20,558.        11,264.         9,212.

ON STAFF. (U.S.)

# ASSIGNED TO THE              18,611.         17,535.        9,891.           8,580.

SOUTHWEST BORDER

SECTOR. 

We see it is true that the Total # of Agents has increased, both Nationally and in the Southwestern Operations Area.

Here are the APPREHENSION NUMBERS FOR 2011- 2013, FOR THE U.S. BORDER PATROL, FOR INDIVIDUALS ILLEGALLY ENTERING U.S.           

YEAR                                    2013                      2012                    2011 

TOTAL # OF                        420,789.                 364,768.              340,252.

APPREHENSIONS.                                

U.S. (ALL SECTORS.)

# OF APPREHENSIONS      414,397.                 356,873.              327,577.

IN THE SOUTHWEST 

BORDER SECTOR.

We can see that in just 3 years, the TOTAL # OF APPREHENSIONS HAS INCREASED FROM 340,252 TO 420,789.  THE # FOR THE SOUTHWEST SECTOR HAS GONE UP FROM 327,577 TO  414,397.  

THE ABOVE NUMBERS INDICATE AN INCREASE IN TOTAL STAFF, AND IN THE NUMBER OF APPREHENSIONS.  THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE IN THE SOUTHWEST SECTOR.

(SOURCES-  THE U.S. BORDER PATROL, AND THE U.S. DEPT. OF HOMELAND SECURITY.)

LOOK FOR PART 4.