Obama Illegal Alien Crime Policy Reversed

The New York Analysis of Policy and Government examines President Trump’s reversal of his predecessors’ policy on crime committed by illegal aliens.

There has been an extraordinary reversal of policy by the Department of Justice on the issue of criminal immigration enforcement.

The Trump Administration’s rejection of Obama-era practices has its roots in a 2015 letter to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, Secretary of State John Kerry, and Attorney General Loretta Lynch. The communication came from then-Senator and chair of the Subcommittee on Immigration the National Interest, now Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, along with Senator Charles Grassley, the Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The letter noted:

“According to information provided by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), up to 121 homicides in the U.S. could have been avoided between Fiscal Year 2010 and FY 2014 had this [Obama] administration removed from our borders aliens with criminal convictions instead of releasing them back into society where they could commit more crimes. This disturbing fact follows ICE’s admission that of the 36,007 criminal aliens released into ICE custody in FY 2013, 1,000 have been re-convicted of additional crimes in the short time since their release…”

On April 12, 2017, Attorney General Sessions, speaking in Nogales, Arizona announced a dramatic change from the Obama-era practices regarding criminal aliens.

“…transnational gangs … flood our country with drugs and leave death and violence in their wake …MS-13 and the cartels…turn cities and suburbs into warzones…rape and kill innocent citizens…Depravity and violence are their calling cards, including brutal machete attacks and beheadings…Under the President’s leadership and through his Executive Orders, we will secure this border and bring the full weight of both the immigration courts and federal criminal enforcement to combat this attack on our national security and sovereignty. The President has made this a priority — and already we are seeing the results. From January to February of this year, illegal crossings dropped by 40 percent, which was unprecedented. Then, last month, we saw a 72 percent drop compared to the month before the President was inaugurated. That’s the lowest monthly figure for at least 17 years…I am issuing a document to all federal prosecutors that mandates the prioritization of such enforcement.

“Starting today, federal prosecutors are now required to consider for prosecution all of the following offenses:

The transportation or harboring of aliens.
Further, where an alien has unlawfully entered the country, which is a misdemeanor, that alien will now be charged with a felony if they unlawfully enter or attempt enter a second time and certain aggravating circumstances are present.
Also, aliens that illegally re-enter the country after prior removal will be referred for felony prosecution — and a priority will be given to such offenses, especially where indicators of gang affiliation, a risk to public safety or criminal history are present.
Where possible, prosecutors are directed to charge criminal aliens with document fraud and aggravated identity theft — the latter carrying a two-year mandatory minimum sentence.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly: I have directed that all 94 U.S. Attorneys Offices make the prosecution of assault on a federal law enforcement officer… a top priority. If someone dares to assault one of our folks in the line of duty, they will do federal time for it.

Ed Connor, a professor of neuroscience at the Mind/Brain Institute at Johns Hopkins, who oversaw a study the by the use of viagra prescription . viagra is more than what it is about a Canadian pharmacy online that has made it so popular. For daily use: Take this cialis cheap fast pill regularly gets superb reviews from patients reporting continual success during intercourse. viagra buy usa Failure to do so will generate ineffectiveness of the workouts accomplished. Pancreatic gland produces digestive enzymes; very powerful substances, which can split learningworksca.org viagra 25 mg up fat, carbs and proteins from foods on the tiny particles that can go through intestinal wall for assimilation.
“To ensure that these priorities are implemented each U.S. Attorney’s Office…will designate an Assistant United States Attorney as the Border Security Coordinator for their District… I am also pleased to announce a series of reforms regarding immigration judges to reduce the significant backlogs in our immigration courts…we will now be detaining all adults who are apprehended at the border. To support this mission, we have already surged 25 immigration judges to detention centers along the border…In addition, we will put 50 more immigration judges on the bench this year and 75 next year…”

The report concludes tomorrow

Quick Analysis

Ukraine’s Frozen Conflict

As we approach winter in the northern hemisphere, the war in Ukraine is beginning to resemble a “frozen conflict” from many perspectives. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently told the media he hopes the war will end faster once President-elect Trump takes over in January. Opinions in Moscow, however, differ from that of the Ukrainian leader. Russian President Vladimir Putin argues that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) needs to exclude Ukraine from joining in “exchange” for peace. If it does not, he says, then no end to the war is in sight. So far there is no Christmas solution. Several NATO countries, according to Vladimir Socor of the Jamestown Foundation, are tentatively considering “coalitions-of-the-willing” to provide security for Ukraine outside of the formal NATO framework. There is, however, no collective mechanism today under which such an arrangement is viable. According to the NATO Charter, while Ukraine is a NATO partner country, it may not join as a full member since it has not fulfilled the requirements for membership. That has not stopped NATO and allies from continuing “to provide Ukraine with unprecedented levels of support, helping to uphold its fundamental right to self-defence,” according to the organization. Socor says that keeping Ukraine out of NATO will not advance peace with Russia. Waiting for a peace settlement, he suggests, would only serve to encourage Moscow to continue the war indefinitely. Although the Biden Administration officially withdrew its support for Ukrainian membership in 2021, NATO maintains an “open door” policy toward membership-seeking countries. The current White House position led the way for European states to oppose Ukraine’s membership saying that a decision should be delayed until “conditions are met.” Biden pushed for changing “open door” to a “bridge” metaphor. It is not intended as an across-the-board NATO policy and has been implemented in the past on a case-by-case basis, says Socor. “The alliance’s open-door policy was not fully insulated from Russia’s non-statutory blocking power, and NATO-aspirant countries’ path toward membership was not always irreversible.” Russia has successfully blocked states like Georgia from joining, first in 2008 and again after the war in Ukraine began in 2014. Russia recognizes the value add of Ukraine to NATO is enormous and that Kyiv has a better case than some other nations. Putin’s invasion was, in part, intended to foreclose that option. By 2021, Moscow was pushing hard to maximize its war objectives, which included further annexations of Ukrainian territory. A main goal for Putin was, and is, to ensure there is no Ukraine left to join NATO. As President-elect Trump prepares to assume office in January, he is faced with the historical challenges presented by the war. Post-conflict security guarantees were the center of several proposals made during the 2023 military stalemate. The incoming Trump Administration has yet to outline how it intends to handle the Russia-Ukraine war. Analysts in Washington believe that the new Administration will expect its European allies to guarantee the majority of Ukraine’s security needs. As we approach 2025, several European nations have acknowledged that they do not view Ukraine as eligible for NATO membership as it would draw the organization into the middle of the conflict. Others want to wait until the war is over or pending a “peace” settlement before considering Ukrainian membership. Socor reports that some “influential voices” are suggesting that “Kyiv should join NATO after “freezing” the war along a stable armistice line, de facto accepting Ukraine’s partition, with NATO security guarantees applying de jure to the government-controlled territory only.” This would mean starting accession talks soon with the actual talks to commence only after a ceasefire is in place. Trump arrives in Washington at a time when Putin’s hybrid strategies of war in Ukraine have eviscerated commonly-held differences between war and peace. “Absent a political consensus in NATO over Ukrainian membership, certain European allies, including France’s President Emmanuel Macron, are holding informal consultations about post-conflict security guarantees to Kyiv by NATO members outside of NATO’s framework,” according to the Jamestown Foundation. The Biden Administration downplayed the discussions on possible forms of military assistance and defense industry cooperation by sending only an Assistant Secretary of State. For a European peace to hold the Trump Administration would need to formally extend the United States’ nuclear deterrence to Ukraine. Options under discussion in Europe include a “coalition of the resolute” to deploy forces to Ukraine as part of a possible armistice package, deterring further Russian attacks, says Secor. European officials are also debating, without any agreement, whether its military forces could perform non-combat logistical roles to free Ukrainian forces to fight. None of the possible courses of action has moved forward as all eyes are waiting on the incoming Trump Administration for clues about its intended level of support for a NATO framework and other non-NATO proposals. Daria Novak served in the U.S. State Dept.