Posts

Another Obama DHS Screw Up: 20,000 Green Cards Handed out Like Candy

/0 Comments/in , /by

In the latest instance of the Obama administration’s neglect and indifference toward America’s immigration problem, around 20,000 green cards have been wrongly distributed or contained false information, according to the latest DHS inspector general report.

“[T]he problem was far worse than originally thought,” reads a press release accompanying the 43-page report from the office of the inspector general about the flawed U.S. Customs and Immigrations Services system. The DHS report highlights that at least 19,000 green cards were issued with either incorrect information or sent in duplicate, while the USCIS also received over 200,000 complaints that cards had either been sent to the wrong address or not received at all.

Furthermore, the OIG report found that over 2,400 immigrants who had only been cleared for two-year conditional residence status were inadvertently issued cards that don’t expire for 10 years.

“It appears that thousands of Green Cards have simply gone missing. In the wrong hands, Green Cards may enable terrorists, criminals, and undocumented aliens to remain in the United States,” states Inspector General John Roth in the release. “It is vital that USCIS ensure better tools and procedures are in place to mitigate such risks.”

This comes just a few weeks after the OIG revealed that the DHS had erroneously granted citizenship to at least 1,800 individuals. Almost half of those wrongly permitted to stay indefinitely (858) were from “special interest countries” (countries prone to producing a disproportionate amount of terrorists) and already slated for deportation.

As Daniel Horowitz explained elsewhere at Conservative Review in September:

Remember, many immigrants who would be eligible for citizenship initially came here before the now-defunct Immigration and Naturalization Service was rolled into DHS. They are a part of the 148,000 fingerprint records that were never transferred over into DHS databases, compromising the ability of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to monitor which aliens were ordered deported when approving applications for citizenship.

So long as those finger print records have not been digitized, I.G. Roth says in a separate report regarding the earlier incident, U.S. Customs and Immigration Services “risks making naturalization decision without complete information and, as a result, naturalizing more individuals who may be ineligible for citizenship or who may be trying to obtain U.S. citizenship fraudulently.”

What both of these incidents point to is how the sovereignty of the American people, expressed in our congressionally passed immigration laws, is being skirted and undermined by a federal government agency that has created a de-facto pathway to citizenship for thousands of people, either by malice or sheer negligence.

Compare that with the Department of Justice’s recent decision to prosecute Sherriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Ariz., for simply enforcing federal immigration law with too much zeal in violating an injunction that requires the federal government to address state inquiries on an individual’s immigration status.

The nature of the case is unprecedented, according to the Arizona Republic:

Legal experts say the judge and attorneys have little historical guidance moving forward with the case.

“As rare as it is to have a federal judge refer the head of a law-enforcement agency for prosecution, it is even rarer that the Department of Justice would pick up that gauntlet and move forward with the charge,” said Paul Charlton, a former U.S. attorney for the District of Arizona. “It’s unheard of.”

This is the absurdity of the Obama administration and its immigration system, folks. Thanks to one department in the administration, Sheriff Arpaio could face up to six months in jail for following the will of the American people — manifest in federal law — while another federal agency subverts that will via negligence with seemingly no consequence whatsoever.

But there is hope from all of this madness: It’ll all be over in January … hopefully. (For more from the author of “Another Obama DHS Screw Up: 20,000 Green Cards Handed out Like Candy” please click HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

DHS Election Takeover? Agency Itself Was Hacked

/0 Comments/in , /by

As the Department of Homeland Security contemplates taking possibly unconstitutional power over the U.S. election system due to the threat of hackers, citizens should consider the fact that the agency itself was the victim of a major cyber intrusion that stole sensitive personal information of thousands of its employees, contends a former DHS officer.

That, combined with a politically correct approach to the Islamic-jihad threat that allows dangerous people to enter the country should be enough reason to reject the plan suggested by DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, contends Philip Haney, the co-author with WND News Editor Art Moore of the expose “See Something, Say Nothing: A Homeland Security Officer Exposes the Government’s Submission to Jihad.”

Johnson said last week that DHS is considering whether or not it should declare the U.S. election system a “critical infrastructure” due to potential cyber threats.

The fear, Haney points out, is that the DHS could overrule powers given to local and state governments to mange their own elections under Article 1, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution, not to mention the powers afforded states in the 10th Amendment.

“They certainly don’t have an exemplary record in safeguarding our borders,” Haney told WND. “What gives us confidence they will safeguard our electoral process?” (Read more from “DHS Election Takeover? Agency Itself Was Hacked” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Hundreds of DHS Badges, Guns, Cell Phones Lost or Stolen Since 2012

/1 Comment/in , /by

Photo Credit: Reuters Hundreds of badges, credentials, cell phones and guns belonging to Department of Homeland Security employees have been lost or stolen in recent years — raising serious security concerns about the potential damage these missing items could do in the wrong hands.

Inventory reports, obtained by the news site Complete Colorado and shared with FoxNews.com, show that over 1,300 badges, 165 firearms and 589 cell phones were lost or stolen over the span of 31 months between 2012 and 2015.

The majority of the credentials belonged to employees of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), while others belonged to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) employees.

The lost or stolen guns also mostly belonged to CBP employees, though others were cited as belonging to TSA and ICE workers. The agencies all fall under DHS.

The missing badges and guns suggest a shocking lack of security from federal law enforcement officers and represent a significant security risk, experts say. (Read more from “Hundreds of DHS Badges, Guns, Cell Phones Lost or Stolen Since 2012” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

DHS Says Sweep of Illegals Has Begun

/3 Comments/in , /by

Moving to belatedly counter another surge of illegal immigrants from Central America, the Department of Homeland Security has launched a series of raids to kick out some of the arrivals, Secretary Jeh Johnson said Monday, defending his move to enraged immigrant rights activists who say the Obama administration is being inhumane.

All told, 121 people were rounded up — a tiny fraction of the more than 110,000 Central American family members that sneaked into the country over the past year and a half, putting strains on the immigration system and on schools and authorities who have to educate and police the newcomers.

Mr. Johnson, who thought he had ended the surge in 2014 only to be stunned by another wave beginning last spring, said in a statement that enforcing the law in this case is the best way to send a message that the U.S. is serious about defending its borders.

He said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement focused the first round of raids on Georgia, Texas and North Carolina. Those they have caught are being prepared for flights back to their home countries.

“I know there are many who loudly condemn our enforcement efforts as far too harsh, while there will be others who say these actions don’t go far enough. I also recognize the reality of the pain that deportations do in fact cause,” he said. “But, we must enforce the law consistent with our priorities. At all times, we endeavor to do this consistent with American values, and basic principles of decency, fairness, and humanity.” (Read more from “DHS Says Sweep of Illegals Has Begun” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Terminal Confusion? DHS Push Could Make Some IDs Invalid for Flying

/1 Comment/in , /by

Millions of air travelers across the U.S. are potentially at risk of finding themselves grounded in the new year thanks to a post-9/11 law that took a decade to finally come into effect.

The REAL ID Act, originally passed in 2005, was meant to tighten standards for government-issued IDs like driver’s licenses — to boot, it banned federal agencies from accepting any IDs that don’t meet the bar.

That means the TSA technically shouldn’t accept driver’s licenses from certain states, once the law is in full effect. While Washington let the rules slide for years, the Department of Homeland Security could start to enforce them in 2016 and is pushing states to comply.

And that has the potential to cause confusion, not to mention headaches at the airport — as many states are still not in full compliance, and different states are operating on different timetables . . .

DHS is enforcing the legislation in stages. Currently, it is only requiring the enhanced IDs for access to federal facilities. Some states have extensions, but those are set to expire next year — in January, June and October, depending on the state. (Read more from “Terminal Confusion? DHS Push Could Make Some IDs Invalid for Flying” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

72 DHS Employees on Terrorist Watch List

/9 Comments/in , /by

At least 72 employees at the Department of Homeland Security are listed on the U.S. terrorist watch list, according to a Democratic lawmaker.

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D., Mass.) disclosed that a congressional investigation recently found that at least 72 people working at DHS also “were on the terrorist watch list.”

“Back in August, we did an investigation—the inspector general did—of the Department of Homeland Security, and they had 72 individuals that were on the terrorist watch list that were actually working at the Department of Homeland Security,” Lynch told Boston Public Radio . . .

Lynch referred to a recent report that found the Transportation Security Administration, which is overseen by DHS, failed to stop 95 percent of those who attempted to bring restricted items past airport security.

“We had staffers go into eight different airports to test the department of homeland security screening process at major airports. They had a 95 percent failure rate,” Lynch said. “We had folks—this was a testing exercise, so we had folks going in there with guns on their ankles, and other weapons on their persons, and there was a 95 percent failure rate.” (Read more from “72 DHS Employees on Terrorist Watch List” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

DHS Is Getting a Wearable Radiation Detector

/1 Comment/in , /by

The easiest way to detect nuclear material is typically when it’s already too late. By the time seismographs, infrasound sensors, and radiation readers pick up on a blast, it’s already happened. Catching a nuclear weapon before it goes off is a lot trickier, which might be why the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is looking at some rather unconventional ideas. The latest: a small, wearable radiation detector. Think of it like a FitBit, only instead of telling its user about calories burned, it lets them know if they’re close to any nuclear weapons.

Huban Gowadia, Director of the DHS’s Domestic Nuclear Detection office, last Thursday blogged that the Department has awarded a multimillion dollar contract to develop such a device. The DHS is calling it the “Human Portable Tripwire.” She writes:

The award is for small, wearable radiation detector devices that passively monitor the environment and alert the user when nuclear or other radioactive material is present. Known as the Human Portable Tripwire (HPT), this device has the capability to identify the source of radiation and allow personnel to take appropriate action. The technology can also locate the source of the detected radiation and includes communication features that allow the user to easily seek additional technical assistance from experts if needed. These devices are a critical tool for personnel who operate in the maritime environment, at land and sea ports of entry, and within the United States.

(Read more from “DHS Is Getting a Wearable Radiation Detector” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

Leaked DHS Memo Shows Obama Might Circumvent DAPA Injunction

/3 Comments/in , /by

A newly leaked internal DHS memorandum produced for an off-the-record agency conclave reveals that the Obama administration is actively planning to circumvent a federal court injunction that suspended part of last November’s deferral-based amnesty initiative. The document, apparently prepared as follow-up from a DHS “Regulations Retreat” last summer, appears sure to re-ignite concerns in Congress as well as federal judges in the Fifth Circuit. The Administration has already been criticized from the bench for handing out work permits to hundreds of thousands of deferred action beneficiaries, in direct violation of a district court’s order. With the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals deciding any day now whether to deny the Administration’s request to reverse that injunction, this public leak has come at a critical juncture for U.S. enforcement policy.

Last June, four months after Texas federal judge Andrew Hanen’s order to freeze President’s DAPA and Expanded DACA programs—disclosure: the Immigration Reform Law Institute has filed briefs in these cases—DHS’s immigration policy makers apparently held a “Regulations Retreat” to discuss “different options” for “open market Employment Authorization Document (EAD) regulatory changes.” EAD is the statutory term for work permits. From a memo recording these discussions, we now know that the Obama DHS has, rather than pausing to allow the courts to assess the constitutionality of its enforcement nullification initiatives, been gearing up to roll out one or more of four plans drawn up at the meeting, each one designed to provide EADs to millions of nonimmigrants, including those lawfully present and visa overstayers, crippling the actual employment-based visa system on the federal statute-book.

The internal memo reveals four options of varying expansiveness, with option 1 providing EADs to “all individuals living in the United States”, including illegal aliens, visa-overstayers, and H-1B guest-workers, while option 4 provides EADs only to those on certain unexpired non-immigrant visas. Giving EADs to any of the covered individuals, however, is in direct violation of Congress’s Immigration & Nationality Act and works to dramatically subvert our carefully wrought visa system. (Read more from “Leaked DHS Memo Shows Obama Might Circumvent DAPA Injunction” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

DHS Ordered to Explain Secret Plan to Shut Down Phone Service

/1 Comment/in , /by

phone serviceThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is questioning the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to keep secret its plan to shut down mobile phone service during “critical emergencies.” The court originally sided with the federal government that the plan should not be disclosed under a Freedom of Information Act request, but has since revisited the ruling and has ordered the DHS to explain the secrecy.

According to Ars Technica, the Department of Homeland Security plan, known as Standing Operating Procedure 303, was created after mobile phones were used to detonate explosives in London.

Court documents explain that SOP 303 is a “unified voluntary process for the orderly shut-down and restoration of wireless devices during critical emergencies such as the threat of radio-activated improvised explosive devices” . . .

As noted by The Blaze, outside groups have been requesting information about SOP 303 for years. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) became particularly interested in SOP 303 in 2011, when officials attempted to stop a protest by shutting down cellular phone service near a San Francisco subway station. Likewise, Bay Area Rapid Transit shut down a portion of its train service during the same period. Following that incident, the Electronic Privacy Information Center filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking the federal government to disclose the federal document that granted the DHS the authority to enact SOP 303. The government agreed to the request, but redacted much of the document. (Read more from “DHS Ordered to Explain Secret Plan to Shut Down Phone Service” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.

After 70% of Illegal Alien Families Fail to Show for Hearings, Feds Plan to Track Them with GPS

/5 Comments/in , , /by

Ankle BraceletThe Department of Homeland Security will reportedly track more illegal immigrants with GPS devices because a whopping 70% of illegal immigrants who traveled to America as a family unit failed to show up to their immigration hearings.

This summer, illegal immigrants from Central America flooded across the border, believing that “notices to appear” that illegal immigrants receive after being released were “permisos” to remain indefinitely in America. . .

According to an Associated Press report, as a result, “Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier this month launched a program to give GPS devices to some parents caught crossing the Mexican border illegally with their children in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley.” The program will reportedly track 250 “heads of households” with GPS ankle bracelets.

Read more about tracking illegal alien families with GPS HERE.