This Issue: New Yorkers to face travel restrictions and other roadblocks as a result of new state pro-illegal-alien law

Fri, Feb 7^th

The Department of Homeland Security took unprecedented steps this week to protect national security in light of New York state's recently enacted 'Green Light' law. The law, which was passed last summer and went into effect in December, allows illegal aliens to obtain a New York driver's license and cuts off data sharing between the Department of Motor Vehicles and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection.

The New York law puts the interests of illegal aliens ahead of all Americans. Unfortunately, state lawmakers in the Empire State and Gov. Andrew Cuomo fail to realize that ICE and CBP do more within the Department of Homeland Security than simply conduct interior enforcement and border security. These two agencies play a major role in DHS' overall effort to keep the homeland safe.

On Wednesday, DHS Acting Secretary Chad Wolf sent a letter to New York's DMV headquarters, notifying the agency, and the state, that it will:

Immediately suspend New Yorkers' ability to enroll or re-enroll in the Trusted Travelers Programs, including Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, and FAST. This will prevent New Yorkers from traveling by air to Mexico and Canada using only a driver's license and possibly subject them to secondary inspection at all ports of entry.
Require mandatory verification of documents before exporting New York titled vehicles to other states since the law hinders the ability of DHS to validate documents.

You can read the letter DHS sent to NY officials here.

The DHS action is a strong move to protect national security and public safety in light of policies that prioritize the interests of illegal aliens over citizens and legal immigrants and will hopefully force other states looking to pass similar laws to rethink the consequences that passing such a law would have on its citizens. Several states, including Washington and Virginia, are looking into passing similar laws.

ACTION REINFORCES TRUMP'S SOTU MESSAGE

The DHS action comes on the heels of Pres. Trump's State of the Union address where he made it clear that his Administration will not jeopardize public safety in the face of sanctuary policies.

The United States of America should be a sanctuary for law-abiding Americans, not criminal aliens.

-- Pres. Trump, State of the Union, Feb. 4, 2020

Pres. Trump also highlighted the recent case where a criminal alien was released by New York City officials despite an ICE detainer and later killed a 92-year old woman.

The killer had been previously arrested for assault, but under New York's sanctuary policies, he was set free. If the city had honored ICE's detainer request, his victim would still be alive today.

-- Pres. Trump

To see where Pres. Trump and all the 2020 Presidential hopefuls stand on the issue of sanctuary policies and other enticements for illegal immigration, see the ratings in the right-hand column.

Chris Chmielenski
NumbersUSA Deputy Director

During Tuesday's State of the Union address, Pres. Trump urged Congress to pass the Justice for Victims of Sanctuary Cities Act, introduced by Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) in the House and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) in the Senate. This NumbersUSA-endorsed bill would allow the families of victims of crimes committed by criminal aliens take legal actions against the lawmakers who implemented sanctuary policies.

We've posted new actions on your Action Board, urging your Members of Congress to support this legislation.

Action Board

With the Presidential caucus and primary season officially underway, let's take a look at where the most popular presidential candidates for 2020 stand on opposing enticements for illegal immigration, including sanctuary policies.

These are the ratings currently assigned by the Grading Team on NumbersUSA's "WORKER PROTECTION IMMIGRATION GRADE CARDS":

OPPOSE ENTICEMENTS FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION?

Trump -- STRONG YES
Biden -- STRONG NO
Bloomberg -- No Position

Buttigieg -- STRONG NO
Klobuchar -- Leans NO

Sanders -- STRONG NO
Warren -- Mostly NO
Yang -- Leans NO

To review the specific statements and actions that earned those ratings, click on the candidate's photo on the Presidential Candidate Grade Card.

NumbersUSA Study: Population Growth and Sprawl in Oregon

Eric Ruark

Fri, Feb 7^th

NumbersUSA has released our latest sprawl study, this one for the state of Oregon. Like previous reports, it measures the extent of sprawl using data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Deloitte Top Participant in H-1B Foreign Worker Program -- By Far

Fri, Feb 7^th

Deloitte's use of skilled foreign workers under the H-1B program, which is largely associated with technology companies, is far greater than any other applicant, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis of fiscal year 2019 Department of Labor data.

More than 1,500 aliens with ICE detainers released from the Orange County Jail in 2019, many re-offended

Thu, Feb 6^th

According to data recently released from the Orange County Sheriff's Department, in the two years since the implementation of California's State Bill 54 (SB54), the sheriff's department has rearrested more than 400 of those they released on whom ICE had active detainers.

Trump Appeals to Voters with America First Immigration Stance During SOTU

CHRIS CHMIELENSKI

Wed, Feb 5^th

During his third State of the Union address, Pres. Trump focused his immigration remarks on policies that protect Americans workers and national sovereignty. It was a message reminiscent of 2016 when, as a candidate, he consistently appealed to voters by calling for immigration policies that put Americans first.

DHS blocks New Yorkers from enrolling in Trusted Traveler Programs over sanctuary law

Thu, Feb 6^th

DHS will no longer let New Yorkers enroll in several programs intended to expedite international travel, in response to a recently-enacted state "sanctuary" law which limits DHS' access to state driver's license records.