Parsing Immigration Policy Center for Immigration Studies

This week’s episode of Parsing Immigration Policy features Steve Robinson, editor-in-chief of the Maine Wire, a digital investigative news outlet, who joins our guest host, Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies. The two experts discuss how Chinese criminal organizations have established illegal weed grows using trafficked labor of illegal aliens, and the effect on Maine communities.

Robinson has been investigating this problem for months, since the existence of hundreds of rural Maine properties was revealed in a leaked federal law enforcement memo. Robinson reveals what he has learned about the Chinese drug crime operations in Maine — how they have taken advantage of Maine’s rural sanctuary environment and how they skirt all manner of laws, ordinances, taxes, and regulations, and even steal electricity, to make a profit.

While state lawmakers failed in this year’s session to pass a “Little RICO” law or other measures to nip this activity, at least one small town has implemented a tough ordinance that could put some of the illegal operations out of business.

But Robinson points out why state and federal authorities must also act: “The marijuana is a means to an end, and the end is funding a criminal organization,” and one that potentially represents a significant threat to our national security. As Robinson and Vaughan discuss, not only could these operations diminish opportunities and destroy the quality of life for some Mainers, they also are linked to large-scale money laundering for the Mexican cartels and to the Chinese government.

Host

Jessica Vaughan is the Director of Policy Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Steve Robinson is the Editor-in-chief of the Maine Wire.

Related

Triad Weed: A Maine Wire Investigative Series

Steve Robinson's Twitter Account

Steve Robinson's Author Page at the Maine Wire

Intro Montage

Voices in the opening montage:Sen. Barack Obama at a 2005 press conference.Sen. John McCain in a 2010 election ad.President Lyndon Johnson, upon signing the 1965 Immigration Act.Booker T. Washington, reading in 1908 from his 1895 Atlanta Exposition speech.Laraine Newman as a "Conehead" on SNL in 1977.Hillary Clinton in a 2003 radio interview.Cesar Chavez in a 1974 interview.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking to reporters in 2019.Prof. George Borjas in a 2016 C-SPAN appearance.Sen. Jeff Sessions in 2008 comments on the Senate floor.Charlton Heston in "Planet of the Apes".

In this week’s episode of Parsing Immigration Policy, Todd Bensman, the Center’s senior national security fellow, joins us live from Juarez, Mexico. Bensman takes us into La Linea Cartel territory, where he is investigating the smuggling of dangerous criminals into the United States. 

Reporting from the Mexican side of the border, opposite El Paso, Bensman offers a firsthand account of migrant activity from the area where just two weeks ago hundreds of migrants pushed past Texas law enforcement in a daring charge to reach the Border Patrol, which they know will quickly process and release them. Other migrants – especially on the west side of Juarez, opposite Democratic-run New Mexico – are “runners”, illegal aliens who do not turn themselves in because of criminal histories or warrants.

Bensman witnesses the operation launched by the Mexican president to round up migrants and move them hundreds of miles south. This operation, involving hundreds of officers from across Mexico, utilizes minibuses deployed to key border areas. It forms part of a deal with the Biden administration, where Mexico has demanded $20 billion annually to address the so-called “root causes” of migration in Latin America and the Caribbean, the lifting of sanctions on Cuba and Venezuela, and the granting of amnesty to millions of Mexican illegal immigrants in the U.S.

On the Texan side of the border, Bensman describes a surge in fencing construction, with miles of infrastructure being erected to deter illegal crossings. Texas authorities employ a variety of non-lethal tactics, including the use of pepper balls, to control crowds. However, despite these efforts, vulnerabilities persist, as evidenced by American contractors patching holes in the fence throughout the day, every day.

In his closing commentary, Mark Krikorian, the Center’s executive director and podcast host, highlights the Biden administration once again teasing that it is going to do something dramatic to control the border. Of course, the president has always had the authority to limit who comes into the country, but has chosen not to.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Todd Bensman is the National Security Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

Terrifying report on how ‘pedophiles and killers’ pay smugglers $5,000 to sneak them across the border

Mexican President Blackmails Biden over the Border

Inside ‘Zone 47’: Biden’s Ruthless Mexico Immigration Crackdown Is Working, but Media Won’t Tie Him to It

Biden again teases to do something he always could do – close the border.

Follow

Follow Parsing Immigration Policy on Ricochet, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, a...

The starting point of any conversation about immigration should be the numbers. This week’s episode of the Center for Immigration Studies podcast highlights a recent report co-authored by Steven Camarota, the Center’s director of research, which examines the number and share of the foreign-born in the United States.

The total foreign-born population, encompassing both legal and illegal immigrants, has soared to a record high of 51.4 million as of February 2024, marking a monumental increase of 6.4 million since President Biden assumed office. This increase has driven the foreign-born share to an unprecedented 15.5% of the population, eclipsing historical benchmarks like that seen in 1910 and reaching a level that the Census Bureau had estimated the country would not reach until 2039.
Camarota discusses the impact of policy decisions on immigration trends, noting, “This level of growth over such a short period of time was clearly caused by policy changes.” He emphasizes that “without new policies, there is no reason to believe there will be a slowdown in population growth in the future.”

The implication of these historically high numbers, coupled with the growing share of the immigration population, impacts crucial aspects of American society, including assimilation, linguistic integration, and the economy. Camarota highlights the changing demographics – greater proportion of Latin American immigrants, more illegal immigrants, and a trend towards lower educational attainment.

Camarota is especially concerned about education levels, as education is a key indicator of how people will fare in the modern economy – including factors such as employment potential, salary level, taxes paid, public benefits used, etc.

He also underscores the distinction between the size of the economy (GDP) and its per capita performance, discussing how per capita GDP can be adversely affected despite overall economic expansion from an increase in population.

In his closing commentary, Mark Krikorian, the Center’s executive director and podcast host, draws attention to Biden’s CHNV parole program. In just 14 months, this program has permitted an estimated 386,000 foreign nationals to enter the country who have no legal right to be here and who present special security challenges.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Steven Camarota is the Director of Research at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

The Foreign-Born Share and Number at Record Highs

What is CHNV Parole - and Why Should You Care?

Follow

Follow Parsing Immigration Policy on Ricochet, Apple Podcasts, Youtube, Amazon Music, Spotify, Stitcher, a...

In today’s episode of Parsing Immigration Policy, Elizabeth Jacobs, the Center’s Director of Regulatory Affairs and Policy, does a deep dive into her recent analysis of the new U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) fee schedule, set to take effect on April 1, 2024.

Jacobs discusses how the 2024 fee rule is being leveraged to advance Biden's policy objectives, ignoring the requirement that USCIS fees should be commensurate with the costs of processing specific applications.

As USCIS faces increased demands and backlogs, the implications of these fee adjustments extend beyond revenue generation, influencing immigration policies and pathways far into the future.Key takeaways:Fees for immigration services for employers and entrepreneurs are set disproportionately high to offset new discounts and exemptions for other benefits, including USCIS' growing humanitarian docket. This shift in fee determination from a proportional to an ability-to-pay model is reminiscent of Karl Marx's philosophy of "from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs."The majority of naturalization applicants will receive a significant discount, incentivizing certain voter demographics to become naturalized. USCIS will offer nearly a 50 percent discount to all N-400 (Application for Naturalization) applicants who demonstrate their household income is 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines or less. Depending on size, a household income of as much as $124,800 annually would qualify for this discount. Jacobs estimates that roughly 65 percent of green card holders would qualify for the discount, generating a potential annual loss of revenue of $203 million.The types of immigration benefits subject to a fee waiver are significantly expanded. The rule significantly expanded the benefits that may be exempt from fees altogether – leaving fee-paying applicants and petitioners to cover the costs. USCIS reported forgoing $613 million in revenue in its FY 2016/17 fee review, and an astounding $1.494 billion in its FY 2019/2020 fee review. How much revenue will USCIS forgo as a result of fee waivers?The bottom line? This new fee structure passes significant costs – including the growing costs of the border crisis – to U.S. employers hiring legal foreign workers.

In his closing commentary, Mark Krikorian, the Center’s Executive Director and host of the podcast, criticizes those on both sides of the immigration debate who have used the recent Baltimore bridge tragedy as an excuse to push their policy agendas.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Elizabeth Jacobs is the Director of Regulatory Affairs and Policy at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

DHS Delays Updating USCIS’s Fee Schedule, Exacerbating Agency’s Financial Woes

USCIS’s Fee Rule Inappropriately Transfers Cost of Broken Asylum System to US Employers

52 Congressional Lawmakers Protest USCIS’s Proposed Fee Schedule

Follow

Follow Parsing Immigration Policy on Ricochet, a...

Campaign season is in full swing as the 2024 presidential election looms less than eight months away. According to a recent Gallup poll, immigration is considered the biggest issue facing the country, with a majority of Americans expressing disapproval of the president’s handling of the issue. 

In today’s episode of Parsing Immigration Policy, host Mark Krikorian, the Center’s executive director, dives into the politics of the immigration issue alongside journalist and author Mickey Kaus. As one of the earliest political bloggers and a democrat, Kaus brings a unique perspective to the conversation. The two men, each representing differing political viewpoints, engage in a thoughtful discussion on President Biden’s immigration policy choices.

Will public opinion force Biden to adjust his stance on immigration and shift to the middle as the election approaches? Krikorian and Kaus explore the immigration goals of those on the left and examine potential strategies for achieving them.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Mickey Kaus is a political journalist.

Related

Kausfiles on Substack 

Mickey Kaus on X 

Follow

Follow Parsing Immigration Policy on Ricochet, Apple Podcasts, Youtube, Amazon Music, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts.

Intro Montage

Voices in the opening montage:Sen. Barack Obama at a 2005 press conference.Sen. John McCain in a 2010 election ad.President Lyndon Johnson, upon signing the 1965 Immigration Act.Booker T. Washington, reading in 1908 from his 1895 Atlanta Exposition speech.Laraine Newman as a "Conehead" on SNL in 1977.Hillary Clinton in a 2003 radio interview.Cesar Chavez in a 1974 interview.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking to reporters in 2019.Prof. George Borjas in a 2016 C-SPAN appearance.Sen. Jeff Sessions in 2008 comments on the Senate floor.Charlton Heston in "Planet of the Apes".

Since September 2023, the Center for Immigration Studies has been on the forefront of reporting on the Biden administration direct-flight and parole program that has authorized the arrival of more than 320,000 inadmissible aliens through the CBP One app. The program allows migrants to take commercial passenger flights from foreign countries straight to their American cities of choice, without having to go to the southern land border. The program has largely operated under the radar until the Center filed a FOIA request, followed by litigation. The lawsuits continue – the Center is presently suing to have the administration release the names of the foreign airports and the receiving airports in the U.S.

Todd Bensman, the Center’s national security fellow and author of the reporting on the flights, joins host Mark Krikorian on this episode of Parsing Immigration Policy to discuss misconceptions surrounding the program, clarifying that the government authorizes the inadmissible aliens to enter the country, but does not buy the tickets, and that while it is secretive, in that the administration has tried to minimize public and congressional attention to it, it is not a secret program.

Last week some U.S. media outlets challenged characterizations of the CIS report by former President Trump and X owner Elon Musk along with various social media influencers – but not the factual bases of CIS reporting.

Bensman also discusses the Center making the news again when 23 lawmakers from the House of Representatives cited the CIS reporting in a letter demanding an end to the secretive Biden government program as well as the names of the airports.

U.S. cities are staggering under the burden of accommodating hundreds of thousands of needy immigrants. However, because of the stealth nature of this parole program, local officials are likely unaware that instead of attributing their challenges solely to Texas Governor Abbott, they should be directing their concerns to the White House. The Center remains steadfast in its commitment to ensure transparency and accountability and to provide state and local communities with information on this legally dubious parole program.

In his closing commentary, Krikorian highlights a further disturbing aspect of this direct-flight parole program. Aliens wanting to take advantage of it must first secure a sponsor in the United States. As Nayla Rush, a senior researcher at the Center, explains in her timely blog, Parolees Paroling In More Parolees, those sponsors need not be U.S. citizens or aliens with green cards – earlier parolees, or recipients of Temporary Protected Status, or even foreign students are permitted to serve as sponsors. In other words, the Biden administration’s parole programs enable aliens allowed in temporarily and without formal legal status to effectively decide who receives the privilege of residing and working in the United States.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Todd Bensman is a National Security Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

Government Admission: Biden Parole Flights Create Security ‘Vulnerabilities’ at US Airports

Fact Checking the Fact Check: CIS Reporting Stands

Lawmakers Cite CIS in Demanding End to Secretive Immigration Flights

a...