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USA TODAY 6:16 p.m. ET June 26, 2017

Rally outside of the San Francisco office of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency on June 20, 2017.(Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images)

Letter to the editor:

President Trump has brandished his deportation machine by attacking Dreamers who arrived here as children, raiding schools hunting for illegal middle-schoolers and kidnapping parents on their worksites an immigration policy that relies on creating a culture of fear, hate and distrust of anyone perceived to be an immigrant. If we value our neighbors, our young people and our coworkers, we will resist the administration's cruel and racially-biased deportation policies and create a better path toward public safety.

As federal immigration policy becomes more extreme, clarified by acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency Acting Director Thomas Homan saying, You should look over your shoulder and you need to be worried, it will be up to states and local jurisdictions to refuse to submit to Trumps mob rule policies that target, criminalize and scapegoat immigrants and other communities of color. Instead, our immigration policies should assert values of safety and family unity.

Thats why the California Values Act, which is on its way to becoming law, would make our public schools, hospitals, courthouses and libraries safe and available to all California residents, regardless of immigration status.

California could lead the way in showing how values-based immigration policy that allows immigrants to access basic protections and directs law enforcement to do its job not Trump's dirty work will enhance public safety, keep families together and strengthen the economy for all.

Matt Nelson, Presente.org;Oakland

California and Colorado want to thwart Trump on immigration. Bad idea.

Letter to the editor:

The demand for the work that undocumented immigrants provide is not going away and will not abate by punishing employers. We need immigration policy that accepts this reality, allowing immigrants to work legally in a way that jeopardizes neither them nor their employer.

We used to admit the workers who take these jobs as immigrants who could bring their families, work legally and stay in the communities they helped to build. Now the only legal way for these workers to enter the United States is on a temporary guest worker visa, such as an H-2 visa, that resembles indentured servitude.

H-2 visas are owned by employers, not the immigrants themselves, which means these workers cannot legally find work elsewhere in the U.S. once theyre here. The boss holds all the power and can have them deported at any time. Immigrants with H-2 visas typically arrive in debt after agreeing to pay recruiters in their home countries for the opportunity to work here.

Natalie Tsu, Deputy Legal Director of the Immigrant Justice Project, Southern Poverty Law Center; Atlanta

Comments are edited for clarity and grammar:

President Trump, please come down hard on these liberal Democrats ruining my once great state of California. Make California Great Again!Remove all liberals!

Joe Richards

States that try to adjust and enforce immigration laws as they see fit will end up regretting itin the long run. Some undocumented immigrantare coming from badplaces, I'm sure they made those placethat way and they will make whatever state they take over exactly the same.

Marlene Augst

The progressive consistency is in opposing what they consider to be inhumane and unconstitutional actions by local, state and federal government agencies. Thesenew well-meaningbut misguided local ordinances, designed to shield illegals from ICE,do not advance progress towards immigration reform.

Businesses and politicians have an economic incentive to keep immigration reform mired in stalemate. Businesses benefit from cheap, illegal labor, avoid payroll and workman'scompensation cost, as well as depress legal labor costs. Politicians benefit in their fundraising campaigns, by using the specter of undocumented criminals pouring over the border,or (on the flip side) sob stories of families being ripped apart by an unfeeling, uncaring political opponent.

The sad thing isboth of the respective political basesare duped by these simplistic characterizations of undocumented immigrantsand theimmigration policy problem. Then, politicians get reelected and nothing meaningful happens.

Citizens, local and state governments should be pressuring Congress to update our immigration laws and regulations. Demand real solutions, not just more empty rhetoric.

Businesses that routinely hire undocumented immigrants should be exposed and prosecuted. Simply paying the occasional fine should not be the "cost of doing business,"when hiring undocumented immigrants.

Building a wall or having sanctuary cities are not solutions to our broken, outdated immigration system. Here is where progressives and conservatives should be finding common ground.If the they could only stop vilifying each other and start talking to each other.

Todd Fedoruk

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Readers sound off: California makes its own immigration rules - USA TODAY

Throw a D.A.R.T for cattle health

Any parent knows when their child is sick, because they tell you. But parents can usually tell just by looking at them. Your cattle, however, cant tell you they dont feel well, so you can use the D.A.R.T system, an acronym that literally helps producers to keep in mind likely tell-tale signs of poor animal health, says Barry Whitworth, veterinarian and Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension food animal quality and health specialist.

Those four indicators include the following symptoms to look for, according to the Oklahoma Farm Report:

D stands for Depression

A stands for Appetite (or lack of appetite)

R stands for Respiration.

T stands for Temperature.

Click here for more.

One of the frustrations in running a rural business is higher-cost, slow internet. President Trump hopes to fix that, saying that expanded access to broadband internet service in rural areas will be part of the infrastructure plan he will submit to Congress, reports Southwest Farm Press.

"I will be including a provision in our infrastructure proposal -- $1 trillion proposal, youll be seeing it very shortly -- to promote and foster, enhance broadband access for rural America also," Trump said in remarks last week at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, after touring agricultural facilities on campus. "We will rebuild rural America."

Click here to read more.

Chinas long-awaited return to the U.S. beef market is indeed the buzz of the beef business. And even though the U.S. has a robust export beef trade, it will take time for the U.S. to ramp up the programs and procedures necessary to fulfill the potential that China represents, according to the Oklahoma Farm Report.

On the other side of the world, products not suited for our domestic market may actually be in higher demand and have a higher value in foreign markets. The ability to export these cuts, allows U.S. beef producers to salvage the carcass value that might have been lost if it were sold domestically. This has been the case for the major markets we're already exporting to, like China and South Korea. But it didn't happen overnight, says Oklahoma State Livestock Marketing Economist Peel.

"There's a lot of potential in this market over time. But, I think it will take some time," Peel says. "That's a process that will grow over time as you try to build market share."

Click here to hear and read more. http://www.oklahomafarmreport.com/wire/beefbuzz/2017/06/00644_BeefBuzzDerrellPeelWorldUtilization06162017_121024

Former U.S. Representative Charlie Stenholm teaches a class on agriculture, energy, and food policy at Tarleton State University. This article in Southwest Farm Press includes views and recommendations from that class, which have been respectfully submitted to House and Senate Ag Committees.

Some 43 million foreign born immigrants currently live in the U.S. (9.5 to 11 million are estimated as undocumented). That must change. In our opinion, rounding them up, locking them up, and deporting all of them is not a feasible or desirable option. For most, their only crime was seeking a better place to live and earn a living.

Reform must include a workable plan to encourage most of the undocumented to come forward voluntarily (with their employer or sponsor) to receive legal documents that will allow them to become legal immigrants. They or their sponsor must pay the appropriate fine or other punishment applicable as determined by Congress.Those who have broken other laws or do not come forward should be deported. Changes proposed by the current Administration on H1B visas are an important step in the right direction. A workable immigration policy for the future must have the buy-in of employers and an absolute enforcement mechanism with buy-in of We the People. Only Congress can provide that.

Click here to read more.

Just about everything we do with our cattle comes down to driving them someplace, whether to summer pasture and back, into or out of the corral, up the alley, onto the scale, or through the crowd pen and up the chute. And a really important thing to understand is that if we dont drive our animals properly, were going to have problems (e.g., resistance, runbacks). But if we drive them properly, we should avoid creating unnecessary problems and old problems will often disappear.

From the low-stress livestock handling perspective developed by Bud Williams, all the hoopla of conventional driving is unnecessary and counter-productive. Effective driving is based on communicating with the animals through proper technique so they understand what we want and do it willingno fear or force necessary.

Click here to see two different ways to drive cattle with less stress on you and the cattle

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5 Trending Headlines: Throw a DART for cattle health; PLUS: Immigration reform concerns - Beef Magazine

Immigration groups are increasingly doubtful President Trump will end President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program after the Department of Homeland Security announced last week that recipients of the Obama-era program were safe for the unforeseen future.

Four national organizations representing a variety of immigration stances told the Washington Examiner the White House has been silent on the issue, and has not told even the groups that support Trump how it plans to go forward. That silence, according to two groups who supported Trump's immigration positions as a candidate, indicates the idea of DACA reform is not stalled, but dead.

"If the president had decided to end DACA, it would have happened. I don't know what they are waiting for. He promised to end DACA," said Rosemary Jenks, director of government relations for NumbersUSA. "Once you say something is illegal and unconstitutional, you can't just keep doing it."

New data from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' second fiscal quarter shows 107,524 DACA renewals and 17,275 new applications were approved from January to March, approximately 70 percent of which happened under the Trump administration.

While campaigning last year, Trump promised to "immediately terminate" the 2012 policy that permitted illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. as minors to receive a two-year period of deferred action and work permit. Recipients' approval would last two years and could be renewed if the individual remained in good legal standing.

As a candidate, Trump blasted the "amnesty" program that former President Barack Obama's second term Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson imposed by memo because Congress could not pass comprehensive immigration reform.

Shortly after his inauguration, Trump appeared to be wavering in his commitment to rescinding DACA. He told one news outlet that recipients "shouldn't be worried" because "we're going to take care of everybody."

Then in April, Trump reiterated that compassionate view when he said "we need special heart" to "understand the other side of that equation" as it relates to DACA recipients.

But last Thursday, DHS Secretary John Kelly said DACA would remain in place while its 2014 sister program, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, would end before it had even begun. The Trump administration revoked the parental program, though it was never implemented, because there was "no credible path forward to litigate the currently enjoined policy" due to its current entanglement in the courts.

Last week, a White House official told the New York Times "there has been no final determination made about the DACA program, which the president has stressed needs to be handled with compassion and with heart."

When asked about a timeline for Trump's deciding the fate of DACA, the White House referred the Washington Examiner to a two-month-old interview it conducted with Trump in which he said "we need special heart."

Trump has some choices he could make related to the program. He could direct DHS to immediately stop issuing renewals and new permits, or announce the program will be discontinued at a future date, giving people time to come up with a plan for how to respond.

But Kelly has said the issue should be taken up by Capitol Hill lawmakers because "Congress is the only entity that can provide a long-term solution to this issue."

Other groups agree with Kelly.

"Though I was initially skeptical, it might even make sense to try to trade a real, lawful amnesty for the DACAs in exchange for important immigration changes only Congress can pass specifically, universal E-Verify and cuts in legal immigration. In that case, announcing that renewals would continue until, say, the end of the year could be a powerful motivator for congressional Democrats," writes Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which supports conservative-aligned immigration reforms.

Read more:
Immigration groups: Trump's silence on DACA means it's here to stay - Washington Examiner

President Donald Trump on Wednesday night held a campaign-style rally in Iowa, where he congratulated the Republican winners of Tuesday's special elections in South Carolina and Georgia. Also, he sent his well wishes to Rep. Steve Scalise, who was injured in last week's shooting in Alexandria, Virginia.

In a noteworthy policy-related portion of his comments, Trump announced his intention to pursue legislation that would bar immigrants from being eligible for welfare for at least five years after arriving in the U.S.

It's unclear how Trump's desired legislation would differ from the status quo.

Trump said "the time has come" for "new immigration rules" that would require those seeking admission to the country to be able to support themselves financially. He said he will be "putting in legislation to that effect very shortly."

And he brought up his plans for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

"We are thinking about building a wall as a solar wall," he said. "So it creates energy. And pays for itself. And this way, Mexico will have to pay much less money. And that's good, right? Is that good? You are the first group I've told that to. It makes sense. Let's see. We are working it out. Solar wall panels. Think of it, the higher it goes, the more valuable it is. Pretty good imagination, right? My idea. We have a good shot. That's one of the places where solar really does work. At the tremendous sun and heat. We will see what happens."

The president also commented on Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross' presence at the rally, noting that he wants rich people, not "poor" people, in positions of power on economic issues in his administration. In January, Forbes reported that Ross, an asset investor, is worth $2.5 billion.

"These are people that are great, brilliant business minds," Trump said. "That's what we need. That's what we have to have, so the world doesn't take advantage ... We can't have the world taking advantage of us anymore. And I love all people - rich or poor - but in those particular positions, I just don't want a poor person. Does that make sense? ... If you insist, I'll do it, but I like it better this way."

He kicked off the rally, at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, saying, "It is great to be back in the incredible, beautiful state of Iowa. It's always terrific to be able to leave that Washington swamp and spend time with the truly hard working people we call American patriots, truly amazing people."

Trump added that Handel will target "tax cuts, reducing crime, securing that Second Amendment, and that looks like it's in great shape with Judge [Neil] Gorsuch," Trump's appointee to the Supreme Court.

According to the Georgia secretary of state, Handel beat Democrat Jon Ossoff, 52.13 percent to 47.87 percent. In South Carolina's 5th Congressional District, Norman got 51 percent of the vote, defeating Democrat Archie Parnell, who had roughly 48 percent.

At the rally, Trump said of Scalise, "I would like to take this moment to send out thoughts to our courageous friend Steve Scalise and everyone recovering from the assault."

He continued, "So to Steve, we say ... we're praying for you, we're pulling for you. You have our full support ... and our gratitude tonight goes out as well to the Capitol Police.

Trump called for unity, and he reminded supporters to be wary of the mainstream media, which his administration "will never be intimidated by," in its efforts to "make America great again."

After a number of criticisms of the press, he reminded the crowd of his administration's many accomplishments, saying of prior administrations, "Very few have done what we've done."

He noted the 38 bills that have been enacted since he took office, later changing the number to 39, and said that while "some of them are really big," the most significant ones, such as on health care reform and the "largest tax cut in the history of the United States of America," are yet to come.

The successes Trump highlighted at the rally included toughening law enforcement, stepping out of the Paris Climate Agreement, appointing Gorsuch and working alongside China.

In closing, he again criticized the media and emphasized how significant his accomplishments have been, given the "phony witch hunts" conducted against him.

He repeated his call for increased bipartisanship in Congress, saying, "It would be great if the Republicans and the Democrats could come together," adding that Democrats "need to be positive" and "can't continue to be obstructionist."

Trump touted his accomplishments in Saudi Arabia, then thanked the citizens of Iowa for their continued support and exited the arena.

Before the rally, Trump visited Kirkwood Community College to get briefed on agricultural technology being developed there. Among the machines he saw was a combine simulator, a virtual way to practice using a combine. Afterward, he told reporters that he "just learned more about farming than I ever thought I'd learn."

ABC News' Jordyn Phelps contributed to this report.

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Trump talks immigration reform, border wall at Iowa rally - WLS-TV

On the campaign trail, Republicans, led by President Donald Trump, ran on a platform of tougher immigration laws. Next week the U.S. House of Representatives will take up two measures that will address aspects of immigration reform, according to Politico.

One of the pieces of legislation is Kate's Law, which increase penalties for individuals who attempt to reenter the United States after having been deported.

Kate Steinle was killed last year in San Francisco by a person who been deported multiple times and continually returned to the U.S. As Politico notes, Trump mentioned Steinle's death often while campaigning.

The other piece of legislation to be considered addresses sanctuary cities. This legislation would lead to stricter penalties for localities that do not work with federal officials on enforcing national immigration laws.

Politico reports that the law, written by Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), would require municipalities to comply with federal officers to keep immigrants imprisoned in order to be held until they can be picked up for deportation.

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House to address immigration reform next week - Independent Journal Review