Mediaboss Marketing

IMATRA, Finland (AP) The construction of barbed-wired fence along Finlands long border with Russia - primarily meant to curb illegal migration - has broken ground near the southeastern town of Imatra less than two weeks after the Nordic country joined NATO as the 31st member of the military alliance.

The Finnish Border Guard on Friday showcased the building of the initial three kilometer (1.8 mile) stretch of the fence to be erected in Pelkola near a crossing point off Imatra, a quiet lakeside town of some 25,000 people.

Finlands 1,340 kilometer (832 mile) border with Russia is the longest of any European Union member.

Construction of the border fence is an initiative by the border guard that was approved by Prime Minister Sanna Marins government amid wide political support last year. The main purpose of the three-meter (10-foot) high steel fence with a barbed-wire extension on top is to prevent illegal immigration from Russia and give reaction time to authorities, Finnish border officials say.

In 2015-2016, Moscow attempted to influence Finland by organizing large numbers of asylum-seekers to northern Finnish crossing points in the Arctic Lapland region. Russian authorities were seen deliberately ushering thousands of asylum-seekers - mostly from Iraq, Afghanistan and other Middle East nations - to those border crossing points.

The move was seen as a show of muscle by Moscow. The issue was settled when Finnish President Sauli Niinist held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The flow of migrants stopped shortly thereafter.

This is a scenario that Finland - a nation 5.5 million people that officially became a NATO member on April 4 - wants to prevent from repeating itself.

Border officials are quick to acknowledge, however, that it was Russias invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24 last year - the main reason for Finlands quick push to join NATO after decades of military nonalignment - that prompted construction of the border fence.

Border barrier fence was no kind of political topic before the war (in Ukraine). And actually, it wasnt a kind of plan of the Finnish border guard, Brig. Gen. Jari Tolppanen, head of the technical division at the Finnish Border Guard, told The Associated Press. All changed after the attack (of Russia against Ukraine).

The pilot section of the fence is scheduled to be completed by this summer, while the barrier will eventually be extended to a maximum of 200 kilometers (124 miles). It will cover areas - in bits and pieces of separate length - mainly in southeastern Finland near the main border crossing points with Russia but it will also have sections up in the Arctic north in Lapland.

In this new situation, we must have much more credible and much more independent border control, Tolppanen said. We need to strengthen our resources. And the fence is necessary in order to manage, for example, large-scale illegal immigration.

Imatra is located a mere seven kilometers (4.4 miles) off the Russian industrial town of Svetogorsk in the Karelia region and is a few hours drive away from Russias second city of St. Petersburg. The town has a long history in dealing with Russians - tourists, day-trippers and permanent residents alike.

Here in Imatra, were not so afraid about Russians because the border has always been there and it has never been open like between European countries, said Antero Lattu, vice chairman of Imatra City Council. He stressed that locals arent afraid of Russians but were happy because of that fence.

Erkki Jouhki, who works as a town planner, agreed but also stressed Finlands military capabilities. NATO membership gives Finland a strong back but we have a very strong army. its very well (armed) ... its a very modern army here because of Russia.

The border fence project is estimated to cost a total of 380 million euros ($422 million) and is scheduled to be completed by 2026.

Finlands long eastern frontier runs mainly through thick forests. In some places the Finnish-Russian border is marked only by wooden posts with low fences meant to stop stray cattle.

___

Jari Tanner in Helsinki contributed to this article.

___

Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Read this article:
NATO member Finland breaks ground on Russia border fence - The Associated Press

Florida governor Ron DeSantiss unofficial motto, outlined in his New York Times bestselling book, is to make America Florida. The GOP primaryand, if DeSantis wins it, the general electionwill be a referendum on Florida. So the media are selling a dishonest narrative that Florida is a repressive and awful stateone where books get banned, the word gay cant be spoken, black history is forbidden in schools, and migrants, LGBTs, and other oppressed groups live in fear for their lives.

The latest bit of Florida clickbait involves the sacking of a charter school principal, Hope Carrasquilla of Tallahassee Classical School, following parental complaints that sixth-graders were being shown Michelangelos nude statue of David. The BBC and other news outlets presented the story as though Carrasquilla was dismissed solely because the students were shown the statue. Florida Principal Hope Carrasquilla Ousted After Michelangelo David Art Lesson Upset Parents, read the headline in the Washington Post; Is David Porn? See For Yourself, Italians Ask Florida Parents, Politico titled its story.

Tallahassee Classical School follows a curriculum designed by Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian school in Michigan, and has procedures for notifying parents of potentially controversial lessons in advance. According to local news outlets, two parents complained that they werent notified of the lesson involving David, and one called the statue pornographic.

Local news outlet WCTV provided important context that the narrative-chasing media outlets ignored. School board chair Barney Bishop told WCTV that the principal wasnt dismissed solely because of the David incident. And Carrasquilla herself told WCTV that she was informed it wasnt one specific thing that led to her firing. Over time he didnt like the way I did, or didnt do, certain things, Carrasquilla said (emphasis added), referring to Bishop. WCTV also noted that the teacher who presented the David lesson wasnt disciplined. Given these facts, the incident was likely a pretext or the final straw for the firing. And in any case, the incident had nothing to do with DeSantis or any legislation he signed. But that didnt stop many media outlets from linking the story to DeSantiss efforts to protect parental rights in education.

I contacted the BBC to ask why it hadnt reported any of the evidence showing that the decision to fire the principal wasnt strictly because of the statue. A spokesperson replied that the BBC had reviewed its report and concluded that it was accurate.

I recently wrote about a similar incident in which media outlets such as USA Today claimed that DeSantis was responsible for banning or censoring biographies of baseball legends Hank Aaron and Roberto Clemente at public schools in Duval County, Florida. Roxanna Scott, the executive editor and vice president for USA Today Sports, told me, I dont believe a correction is required and I stand by our reporting. . . . Nancy (Armour) didnt write that DeSantis had urged the Aaron and Clemente books in particular to be banned. She wrote about these books being held back as part of a law that DeSantis supported. I pointed out to Scott that the headline of the piece said, Kids Books about Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente Get Censored. I also sent her quotes illustrating that Armour did indeed assert that DeSantis wanted the books banned. But USA Today stood by its story because it fit the narrative that Florida is a repressive place.

Other media outlets, including the AP, have also needlessly sounded alarms over DeSantiss appointment of Manhattan Institute fellow Christopher Rufo and other conservatives to the New College of Floridas Board of Trustees, dubbing it a hostile takeover. The AP story reads like an opinion piece. It has five quotes, all from sources condemning the governors efforts to transform a woke, underperforming college with declining enrollment and an abysmal 13 percent matriculation rate.

Students are concerned, too, writes the APs Jocelyn Gecker. Some fear for their physical safety. . . . They are not wrong to worry. Some students are fleeing, for schools that feel safer.

NBC News and other prominent media outlets have stoked fears about SB1718, a bill proposed by Florida state senator Blaise Ingoglia that includes a provision making it a third-degree felony to transport illegal aliens. DeSantis has been tough on immigration throughout his first term and went on to win Floridas Latino vote by 15 points last November. Various polls, including one from Telemundo last year showing that Hispanic immigrants were the biggest supporters of DeSantiss move to transport illegal aliens to Marthas Vineyard, have shown that Latinos support immigration enforcement measures. But the media seem not to believe it. An NBC News article describes the bill as part of an immigrant crackdown by Gov. DeSantis and Republicans in the statenot an illegal-immigration crackdown, but an immigrant crackdown. Suzanne Gamboa, the author of the piece, claims that the move has religious leaders and groups worried about how they will carry out their pastoral work and live their beliefs.

I contacted Gamboa to ask why she characterized the legislation as an immigrant crackdown rather than an illegal-immigration crackdown. She defended her reporting, claiming that it was justified because some people may have documents such as permission to seek asylum as did many of the people who were flown to Marthas Vineyard and people who were here on legal visas and overstayed, that is not illegal immigration because they immigrated legally. As a former consular officer, I can confirm that the overwhelming majority of visa overstays are foreign nationals who overstayed tourist visas, and those migrants didnt immigrate here; they presented themselves fraudulently as tourists at embassies and consulates abroad. And when they overstay their non-immigrant visas, theyre just as illegal as those who cross the border illegally.

Of course, it isnt just the media doing this. In social media posts, interviews, and at a rally in Waco, Texas, Donald Trump has portrayed Florida as a failing state, better off before DeSantis became governor. This despite DeSantiss 19-point reelection win and the fact that Floridas population increased (1.9 percent) from 20212022, more than that of any other state.

The NAACP also got in on the Florida-is-North-Korea act, issuing a travel advisory recommending that blacks not visit or move to the state. The groups Florida chapter claimed the move was in response to the states African-American studies ban. In fact, students in Floridaincluding my sons, in seventh and ninth gradesare required to study black history, and DeSantis signed legislation mandating that they learn about the 1920 Ocoee massacre, in which a white mob killed dozens of black Floridians who exercised their right to vote. DeSantiss only objection has been to a planned Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies curriculum that was, according to the College Board, scrapped even before Florida objected to it. The woke draft curriculum included works from proponents of critical race theory and prison and police abolition, and it had units on black queer studies, the case for reparations, Black feminist literary thought, Black Lives Matter, intersectionality, and other pet progressive causes.

The bottom line: dont believe anything you read about Florida until youve fact-checked it yourself.

Photo by Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

City Journal is a publication of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research (MI), a leading free-market think tank. Are you interested in supporting the magazine? As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, donations in support of MI and City Journal are fully tax-deductible as provided by law (EIN #13-2912529).

See original here:
The Media's War on Florida Heats Up - City Journal

Texas Department of Public Safety arrested and charged a woman with human smuggling after she was found to have two female illegal immigrants in her sedan.

Texas DPS said Lidia Elizabeth Badillo, 38, was pulled over at 8 p.m. on April 12 while driving a gold Chevrolet Malibu on FM-1017 in Jim Hogg County.

Lidia Elizabeth Badillo booking photo

During the stop, the trooper discovered Badillo, who lives in Edinburg, was smuggling two immigrants from El Salvador.

LOUISIANA MEN ARRESTED FOR HUMAN SMUGGLING AFTER TEXAS DPS TROOPERS FIND ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN CAR

In video taken of the traffic stop, Badillo told the trooper she was going out to get drinks. She then started flirting with the trooper, telling him he was handsome.

Badillo told investigators she picked the two women up from a stash house in Mission, Texas.

READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP

The two women were provided fraudulent Texas driver's licenses, Texas DPS said, to get through the Border Patrol checkpoint in Falfurrias, Texas.

HOUSE REPUBLICANS WANT ANSWERS FROM MAYORKAS ON ABUSE OF PAROLE AT THE BORDER AFTER FIERY HEARINGS

Badillo also told the trooper that once she got beyond the checkpoint, she was planning to meet another driver, who was going to drive the two women to Corpus Christi, Texas.

According to Texas DPS, the smuggling method used by Badillo is used to smuggle female immigrants into the U.S., where some of the women are forced into debt bondage and work off the debt through forced labor and sex trafficking.

Texas DPS also said Badillo is a member of LUPE, an organization founded by labor rights activist Csar Chvez and Dolores Huerta.

MAYORKAS AGAIN REFUSES TO CALL BORDER SURGE A CRISIS, SAYS IT WOULD INDICATE WITHDRAWAL FROM OUR MISSION

LUPE, according to the organizations website, aims to build stronger and healthier communities through civic engagement. Some of their objectives include fighting deportation and providing English classes.

Badillo faces two counts of smuggling of people and the two illegal immigrants were referred to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Busts continue daily since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott launched Operation Lone Star in March 2021 in response to the rise illegal immigration.

In May 2022, he issued a disaster declaration that covers 48 counties, most of which are along or near the border, which directed DPS to "use available resources to enforce all applicable federal and state laws to prevent the criminal activity along the border, including criminal trespassing, smuggling and human trafficking."

See the article here:
Texas DPS intercepts human smuggling attempt, driver tries flirting with trooper - Yahoo News

Attorney General Paxton is fighting back against the Biden Administrations lawless open-borders agenda by opposing a new federal rule that would embolden more illegal aliens to enter the country.

In an Indiana-led comment letter sent to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Attorney General Merrick Garland, Attorney General Paxton criticized the rule, which would worsen the crisis-level border crossings and related costs imposed on the American people as a result of the Biden Administrations immigration policies.

The rule falsely claims that it will deter illegal border crossings by creating a rebuttable presumption of asylum ineligibility for certain noncitizens, but in reality it is yet another open-borders policy designed to increase the number of aliens entering the country and further enhance their ease in doing so. For example, the rule creates numerous exceptions to the presumption regarding asylum eligibility, allowing illegal aliens who use the CBP One app to schedule their illegal entry into the United States.

The rule relies on creating allegedly lawful, safe, and orderly pathways for illegal aliens to travel to and enter the United States, but this does nothing to mitigate the damage occurring due to the ever-growing presence of millions of illegal aliens. The letter emphasizes that rather than taking steps to massively expand the number of illegal aliens coming into the country, the Biden Administration should instead focus on taking pragmatic steps that would be far more effective at stopping illegal border crossings.

The letter states: The Biden Administrations unlawful parole policies should be withdrawn, the Proposed Rules rebuttable presumption should either be substantially expanded or abandoned, and the Department should focus on zealously enforcing the commands of our nations immigration laws, including by fully reinstating recent policies that successfully deterred unlawful border crossings: the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), safe-third country agreements and other related tools, and also by increasing their detention capacity to be able to fulfill Congresss command that aliens awaiting adjudication of their asylum claims must be detained.

To read the full letter, click here.

See the original post here:
Paxton Slams New Biden Rule that Exacerbates Crisis at the ... - Texas Attorney General (.gov)

1 hour ago

Image source, Getty Images

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made curbing illegal migration one of his main priorities

A group of Conservative MPs say they have reached a deal with Rishi Sunak's government to toughen up new rules for removing migrants.

A source close to the MPs said the Illegal Migration Bill would be changed to allow the home secretary to ignore European judges in certain situations.

Conservative MP Danny Kruger, who was among those leading the calls, said he was "grateful to the prime minister and the home secretary for their work".

Downing Street has declined to comment.

The legislation, set out last month by Home Secretary Suella Braverman, would prevent anyone entering the UK illegally from claiming asylum.

It is central to Mr Sunak's pledge to stop small boats crossing the English Channel, but has provoked outrage among charities and opposition parties, who say it breaches international law.

Some Conservative MPs, however, believe it does not go far enough and tabled a series of changes to the bill.

Last month, some of those MPs withdrew their proposals in Parliament after immigration minister Robert Jenrick said he would engage with those who have concerns.

Now Tory MPs say the government will make changes to the bill, which is due to go through its final parliamentary stages next week.

A source close to the MPs said ministers had agreed to change the bill to give the home secretary powers to ignore injunctions from judges at the European Court of Human Rights - known as Rule 39 orders - under certain conditions.

The Strasbourg-based court, unpopular with the Tory right, blocked the removal of migrants to Rwanda last year, pending legal challenges.

The source suggested a second amendment will also require British judges to decide a deportation would cause "serious and irreversible harm" in order to stop it.

Mr Kruger said the British public "are fed up with London lawyers and Strasbourg judges getting in the way of a sensible migration policy".

He said he was "hopeful that the government will be able to deliver the prompt removals to Rwanda and other safe countries". This was needed, he said, "to stop the boats and lay the foundation of a fair and humane asylum system".

More than 45,000 people entered the UK via Channel crossings last year, up from about 300 in 2018.

Under the new bill, people removed from the UK would be blocked from returning or seeking British citizenship in future. Migrants will not get bail or be able to seek judicial review for the first 28 days of detention.

It will also place a legal duty on the home secretary to detain and remove those arriving in the UK illegally, to Rwanda or a "safe" third country - this will take legal precedence over someone's right to claim asylum.

In a letter to MPs following publication of the bill, Ms Braverman conceded there is a "more (than) 50% chance" the bill is incompatible with international law.

It is expected to come up against opposition in the House of Lords, and subsequently expected to face a wave of legal challenges, whilst opposition parties have dismissed it as unworkable.

More:
Migration bill: Tories say Rishi Sunak will toughen deportation powers - BBC