IMMIGRATION - The Salt Lake Tribune

Utah’s STEM problem

Sat, 25 May 2013 01:01:04 MDT

Utah’s STEM problem

By matt berry

Updated May 25, 2013 01:01AM MDT

Earlier this year, Republican Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee came out as strong supporters of the Immigration Innovation Act of 2013, a proposal focused specifically on America’s shortage of high-skilled workers in science, technology, engineering and math — the STEM fields. But the immigration debate has changed in Washington, and we need continued engagement and leadership from our state’s U.S. senators to fully address this chronic crisis. As head of a healthcare technology startup based in ...

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Jude: Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio’s office profiled Latinos

Fri, 24 May 2013 20:38:11 MDT

Jude: Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio’s office profiled Latinos

By JACQUES BILLEAUD and WALTER BERRY The Associated Press

Updated May 24, 2013 08:38PM MDT

Phoenix • A federal judge ruled Friday that the office of America’s self-proclaimed toughest sheriff systematically singled out Latinos in its trademark immigration patrols, marking the first finding by a court that the agency racially profiles people. The 142-page decision by U.S. District Judge Murray Snow in Phoenix backs up allegations that Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s critics have made for years that his officers violate the constitutional rights of Latinos in relying on race in the...

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Collins: Somebody did something

Fri, 24 May 2013 01:01:04 MDT

Collins: Somebody did something

By GAIL COLLINS The New York Times

Updated May 24, 2013 01:01AM MDT

Whenever the world of Washington seems hopeless, someone will point out that the Senate Judiciary Committee did a good job on immigration reform. That’s it? Yeah, pretty much. Immigration reform has been the 2013 bipartisan bright spot in the Senate, unless you were really moved by the day they voted to debate gun control before killing all the gun control plans. The committee members cheerfully plowed through 300-odd proposed amendments, while taking turns telling which country their great-gran...

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House immigration group resolves dispute

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:03:18 MDT

House immigration group resolves dispute

By ERICA WERNER The Associated Press

Updated May 23, 2013 11:03PM MDT

Washington • House members writing a bipartisan immigration bill said Thursday they had patched over a dispute that threatened their efforts, even as they and the rest of Congress prepared to return home for a weeklong recess where many could confront voters’ questions on the issue. The eight lawmakers in the House immigration group have struggled for months to come to agreement on a sweeping bill that would have a chance in the GOP-controlled House while satisfying Democrats’ objectives. Talks...

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Senate panel OKs landmark immigration bill with Hatch on board

Wed, 22 May 2013 09:31:35 MDT

Senate panel OKs landmark immigration bill with Hatch on board

By Matt Canham The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 22, 2013 09:31AM MDT

Washington • A Senate panel passed a sweeping immigration reform bill Tuesday evening, which Sen. Orrin Hatch supported after the committee accepted his changes to a visa program for highly skilled workers. The bill offers the largest re-write of the nation’s immigration laws since the 1980s, spending billions of dollars on border security, creating a 13-year path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants and requiring every employer to check the immigration status of workers. Tuesday’s 13-5 vo...

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News roundup: Scandals aside, Obama's approval rating unchanged

Wed, 22 May 2013 07:09:26 MDT

News roundup: Scandals aside, Obama's approval rating unchanged

The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 22, 2013 07:09AM MDT

Obama's approval rating unchanged. Hatch votes for immigration reform. Herbert testifies before Congress. Happy Wednesday. Charlie Cook, one of the best political handicappers in the nation, says Americans aren't changing their approval or disapproval of President Barack Obama because they might be fed up with the Washington cesspool and are more focused on an economic recovery than on the latest scandal du jour. [NJ] Topping the news: Sen. Mike Lee is renting a home from the friend who bought h...

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Immigration bill heads to full Senate

Wed, 22 May 2013 06:10:21 MDT

Immigration bill heads to full Senate

By ERICA WERNER and DAVID ESPO The Associated Press

Updated May 22, 2013 06:10AM MDT

WASHINGTON • A far-reaching bill to remake the nation’s immigration system is headed to the full Senate, where tough battles are brewing on gay marriage, border security and other contentious issues, with the outcome impossible to predict. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the measure 13-5 Tuesday night, setting up an epic showdown on the Senate floor after Congress’ Memorial Day recess. The legislation is one of President Barack Obama’s top domestic priorities — yet it also gives the Repu...

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Dreamers press Senate panel on immigration bill

Tue, 21 May 2013 23:06:59 MDT

Dreamers press Senate panel on immigration bill

By Matt Canham The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 21, 2013 11:06PM MDT

Washington • Itza Hernandez came to the United States as a 4-year-old girl on a vacation with her family. That was 17 years ago. Now she’s a politically engaged woman living in Salt Lake City without legal status, and she’s following every twist and turn of a Senate bill that, if passed, would offer her, her family members and friends an eventual path to citizenship. Through the group United We Dream, Hernandez traveled to Washington, D.C., to observe the Senate Judiciary Committee’s debate on a...

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Hatch poised to back immigration bill with changes

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:57:13 MDT

Hatch poised to back immigration bill with changes

By Matt Canham The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 21, 2013 08:57AM MDT

Washington • Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, is poised to support a massive overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws, including a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants. He just wants the Democrats to make some concessions first. Hatch outlined his expectations in an impromptu news conference Monday, saying he’d support the bill when the Judiciary Committee votes later this week if Democrats compromise on temporary visas for high-skilled workers. And he’s willing to back the legislation when...

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Business avarice

Sat, 18 May 2013 01:01:06 MDT

Business avarice

Updated May 18, 2013 01:01AM MDT

If, as some say, a war is being waged against the American working class (evidenced by political union-busting and businesses outsourcing American jobs to countries such as China, India and, ironically, Mexico), then the Senate’s “Gang of Eight” immigration reform proposal seems a serious escalation (”Hatch warns of tech industry clout in immigration debate,” Tribune, May 13). Apparently, giving legal status/residency to illegal immigrants is imperative because they fill jobs Americans won’t do....

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House immigration group reaches a deal

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:47:30 MDT

House immigration group reaches a deal

By ERICA WERNER The Associated Press

Updated May 16, 2013 06:47PM MDT

Washington • A bipartisan group of House members announced a deal Thursday on sweeping immigration legislation, a breakthrough that could boost chances for one of President Barack Obama’s top second-term priorities. It came after months of secretive talks among the four Republican and four Democratic House members had seemed to stall in recent days even as an immigration bill in the Senate moved forward. The House members met for two hours Thursday evening, emerging to announce they had a deal. ...

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Hatch out of touch

Wed, 15 May 2013 01:01:04 MDT

Hatch out of touch

Updated May 15, 2013 01:01AM MDT

Re “Hatch says immigration fix — soon — is crucial” (Tribune, May 2): At a time when we have people losing their homes or are unemployed (high school and recent college graduates, plus middle-age and elderly Americans still need work) — Sen. Orrin Hatch should not propose bringing in more immigrants to compete for jobs with U.S. citizens. It doesn’t matter whether the immigrants he wants to bring in are high-skilled. Proposing to bring in immigrants to compete with unemployed U.S. citizens is e...

Boomers need immigrants

Wed, 15 May 2013 01:01:04 MDT

Boomers need immigrants

By XXXXXX The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 15, 2013 01:01AM MDT

The Senate Judiciary Committee took up comprehensive immigration reform late last week. And, as expected, opponents are already rushing to derail it, arguing that any bill that legalizes the vast majority of undocumented immigrants in the United States will cost billions of dollars and place an unfair burden on taxpayers. Such arguments are merely scare tactics. There’s no doubt that granting citizenship to millions of immigrants 13 years from now, as the Senate bill would, will carry a cost, b...

Hatch warns of tech industry clout in immigration debate

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:34:00 MDT

Hatch warns of tech industry clout in immigration debate

By Matt Canham The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 16, 2013 06:34PM MDT

Washington • Sen. Orrin Hatch warned that tech companies may oppose immigration reform if the Senate Judiciary Committee doesn’t change the bill to make it easier to import highly-trained workers from overseas. The comment came after Sen. Richard Durbin, R-Ill., suggested that Hatch’s amendments would allow companies to pass over American workers in favor of immigrants, who may work for less. Durbin, one of eight senators who crafted the immigration bill, said he found Hatch’s suggested changes...

Hatch leads high-tech push for more in immigration bill

Mon, 13 May 2013 22:33:57 MDT

Hatch leads high-tech push for more in immigration bill

By ERICA WERNER | The Associated Press

Updated May 13, 2013 10:33PM MDT

Washington • High-tech companies looking to bring more skilled workers to the U.S. pushed Monday for more concessions in an immigration bill pending in the Senate. Labor unions said the Silicon Valley had already gotten enough in the legislation and further changes risked chipping away at protections for U.S. workers. The clash is set to play out in a Capitol Hill hearing room this week as the Senate Judiciary Committee resumes consideration of amendments to sweeping legislation remaking the na...

News roundup: White House blames Romney for Benghazi 'politicization'

Mon, 13 May 2013 06:14:57 MDT

News roundup: White House blames Romney for Benghazi 'politicization'

The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 13, 2013 06:14AM MDT

White House, Dems push back in Benghazi probes. 62% of Shurtleff donors tied to controversial industries. Special counsel to investigate Swallow. Happy Monday. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney says it was former presidential candidate Mitt Romney that started the GOP's politicization of the Benghazi terrorist attack and charges Republicans just want to fan the flames instead of look at how things have changed since. [TPM] [Time] -> Meanwhile, continuing the push back, Senate Majority Wh...