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Its been attempted for decades, but the International Fresh Produce Associations BB #:378962 government relations group is cautiously optimistic for a bipartisan solution to the immigration crisis with relations to agriculture.

During a webinar August 15, IFPA Director of Workforce/Labor John Hollay said the main focus of the produce industrys persuasion should be on Republican Senators, so that the total number of votes could reach 60 to pass in the Senate without a filibuster.

The House of Representatives already passed the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, mainly on party lines, and Sens. Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) are working to get enough votes to pass it in their chamber.

Hollay said the legislation would legalize the undocumented agriculture workforce, expand H-2A guest worker visas, and make E-verify mandatory.

He said he knows Republicans are not eager to talk about immigration reform issues ahead of the November mid-term elections, but if it could be framed as border security, it has a better chance.

We believe it improves the border situation with security, Hollay said.

He also said if nothing passes before the election, its possible for something between the election and next Congress, in the lame duck session, especially considering that we dont know which party will control each of the houses in 2023.

One issue that has complicated matters this year is a USDA plan to invest $65 million in a pilot program to strengthen the food supply chain and improve working conditions for farmworkers.

On its face, it looks inoffensive, but USDA is partnering with the United Farm Workers of America, an organization that most of the agriculture industry considers its enemy.

At first I thought it was a joke, Hollay said. [The UFW] trash H-2A. USDA says they want to engage stakeholders, but I havent seen that yet.

Earlier this summer, a group of Republican Senators and Representatives sent a letter to Ag Sec. Tom Vilsack, calling UFW an openly partisan organization with a long history of lobbying for anti-business issues, and calling H-2A modern day slavery.

Hollay said produce industry members need to contact their Senators and Representatives telling them of their labor struggles and urging them to help.

He said immigration reform will be on the agenda for the upcoming Washington Conference, which he expects to be one of the largest ever.

Continued here:
IFPA hopes this is the year for ag immigration reform Produce Blue Book - Produce Blue Book

MILWAUKEE (WKOW) -- Sen. Ron Johnson slammed what he described as an 'open border' policy held by the Biden administration during a roundtable he hosted Tuesday in Milwaukee.

Pointing to record-high border apprehension numbers from the U.S. Border Patrol, Johnson said the number of illegal migrant crossings was a crisis, and a threat to Wisconsin mainly because it increased the likelihood of fentanyl continuing to fuel a rise in overdoses.

Critics have pointed to those very numbers -- a recent average of more than 200,000 monthlyborder encounters -- as proof it's misleading for Johnson and other Republicans to claim the current administration has an 'open border' policy.

"You know, what terminology you use, you can't debate numbers," Johnson responded when asked about the criticism. "I mean, we had the border largely under control. You'll never have a 100-percent secure border, but we had it largely under control. Now, it's completely out of control."

Johnson seeks to make immigration a key issue in the high-profile Senate race this fall. The campaign for Johnson's Democratic opponent, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, declined to comment for this story.

The Democratic Party of Wisconsin pointed to Johnson's vote against a bipartisan immigration bill that passed in 2013 as a sign Johnson was more focused on rhetoric than repairing the country's immigration laws.

Whether its voting against comprehensive immigration reform that would have secured our border and fixed the broken immigration system," party spokesperson Philip Shulman said. "Or protecting big pharmaceutical companies that exploited the opioid epidemic, Ron Johnson isnt serious about keeping our communities safe.

Johnson said Congress should not take up immigration reform until the borders are more secure. His stance was echoed on the panel by Mark Morgan, who served as commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection under the Trump administration, and Brandon Judd, president of the Border Patrol agents union.

"Among the many unfortunate things about what's been happening during this administration is you set back the possibility of immigration reform," Johnson said. "Because the first step in doing so is to secure the border, having a border under reasonable control."

Johnson said while he supports the idea of modernizing the nation's immigration laws, and providing lasting protection to residents who were brought into the U.S. illegally at a young age, known as Dreamers, he would not support legislation on those subjects until stricter border security measures were in place.

Judd said the current issue with security was too many of the migrants caught by patrol agents are under court order to release them, as opposed to deporting them.

"Yes, we still have enforcement on the border," he said. "Yes, agents are still on the border, but what you do with the individuals that cross the border, once they're in our custody, that is the open border policies."

"So, when they cross, and they claim asylum just to be released, we're ultimately rewarding them for violating our laws."

Darryl Morin, president of pro-immigrant group Forward Latino, said the number of migrants waiting in squalor on the Mexican side of the border was proof Johnson and the panelists were disingenuousin arguing illegal immigrants have easy access to the U.S.

Morin argued if Johnson was serious about cutting down on illegal immigration, he'd be a bigger proponent of aid and expanded partnerships with Central American countries like El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.

"Everyone knows what needs to be done," Morin said. "But there are those, such as the senator, who prefer to have inflammatory rhetoric that maybe helps them at the polls, rather than actually getting to the root of the problem."

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Sen. Johnson says immigration reform is off the table until border security improves - WKOW

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Barnes uses area farm visit to discuss immigration reform and other issues - Leader-Telegram

Last week, two columnists from the Washington Post called for high-skilled worker immigration reform as a solution to current labor shortages. It missed the mark. They failed to mention a New York federal courts decision to cut off all new applications under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program issuedjust three days before the Washington Post column.

On August 3, in Batalla v. Mayorkas, U.S. District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis declined to provide relief to more than 80,000 first-time DACA applicants. This unacceptable decision and the fate of DREAMers must at least be considered in the conversation around immigration reform.

We need a permanent solution for DACA holders and DACA-eligible immigrants and their families.

Without even acknowledging Batalla, the Post op-ed invited us to consider how immigration fits into rebuilding the industrial heartland.It suggested immigration reform for high-skilled workers as a solution to address labor demands in the economy, focusing on the U.S. manufacturing industrys high-skilled STEM worker shortage in the semiconductor computer chips industry.

Millions of immigrants here now, including DACA holders and now foreclosed DACA applicants, have been denied the right to permanently live and work in the United States. Many of these individuals have had to survive and fight through a decade of political battles and wavering court decisions, causing constant insecurity in the DACA program and their lives.

Issued by the Obama administration in 2012 in response to the DREAMers movement, DACA has been one of the only federal programs to have expanded access to work permits for undocumented immigrants. Most of these people were brought to the U.S. as children and have met certain educational and other requirements.

Calls for short-term labor-based immigration distract from the actual work that must be done to find a permanent solution for millions of immigrants who are here now, who are already making significant, consistent contributions, and who are worthy of recognition irrespective of the latest economic trends.

As advocates like my colleagues at the Capital Area Immigrants Rights (CAIR) Coalition know, framing immigration reform as an economic solution is a trap. It is also a primary reason we have an unjust system and have not been able to enact immigration reform for over 35 years.

From the Chinese laborers building railroads in the 1800s to the Bracero program of the 1940s and 50s, history shows that reforming immigration for labor demands both tokenizes and dehumanizes immigrants. Moreover, these economic calls for immigration reform are rooted in racism. Appeals for reform to invite high-skilled immigrant workers perpetuate this trap. While tech workers today may be working on computer chips instead of railroads, the same flawed reasoning applies.

Putting high-skilled immigrant workers on a pedestal also keeps us stuck in good-versus-bad, worthy-versus-unworthy immigrant narratives. Such distinctions hurt all immigrants.

The participation of Americas immigrant community should not depend on shifting labor cycles. DACA holders are a prime example. The contributions led by DACA holders are not tied to short-term labor trends.

Immigrants are the backbone of the U.S. economy, and they deserve, at minimum, recognition for their fundamental human right to work.

Lets stop shoehorning immigration debates into economic trends. In a country built largely by and very much running off the hard work of immigrants, there is no need to justify their role in the economy. Their contributions are inherent and deeply woven into the fabric and foundation of our country.

***

Adina Appelbaum is director of the Immigration Impact Lab at Capital Area Immigrants Rights Coalition. Twitter: @abappelbaum

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With Labor Shortages, Why Are We Ignoring DREAMers, Other Immigrants Here Now? (OPINION) - Latino Rebels - Latino Rebels

New York City has been named the "worst" sanctuary city in the U.S. by a hawkish immigration group, just as the Big Apples mayor continues to feud with the governor of Texas over the busing of migrants into the city.

The Immigration Reform Law Institute, the legal arm of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), published its list of "worst" sanctuary jurisdictions on Tuesday, and put New York City at the top.

"Sanctuary" jurisdictions are those that bar local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration agencies. Such cities and states will typically also move to abolish any distinction between legal and illegal immigration.

IRLI says that New York has "doubled down" on its sanctuary policies to go from second in the rankings in 2019 to top spot. It cited New York City Councils passing of legislation granting noncitizens the right to vote in local elections, the banning of the use of "illegal alien" and the release of thousands of criminal illegal immigrants back onto its streets.

ANOTHER BUSLOAD OF MIGRANTS FROM TEXAS ARRIVES IN NEW YORK CITY

The Empire State Building towers above other office buildings on March 4, 2021, in New York City. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Behind New York City in the rankings was Los Angeles in second place, followed by Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Minneapolis and Seattle. Behind them were Wake County in North Carolina, Middlesex County in New Jersey and Portland, Oregon.

"These communities have earned their places on this list because of incredibly poor leadership at the city, county and state levels," Dale Wilcox, IRLIs executive director and general counsel, said in a statement. "Data overwhelmingly shows that sanctuary policies lead to more crime, fear and death. The leaders of these communities should not escape accountability for the damage they have caused. Their residents deserve much more."

Former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting director Tom Homan, also an IRLI senior fellow, says that sanctuary policies only provide sanctuary to criminals.

MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AT SOUTHERN BORDER SMASH NUMBERS SENT TO NYC, DC

Story continues

"Immigrant communities dont want criminals in their neighborhoods either. Victims and witnesses of crime dont want the offender back in their communities to seek revenge," he said. "All communities deserve protection from criminals but sanctuary policies put immigrant communities at greater risk of crime."

Supporters of sanctuary cities say they allow illegal immigrants to get the services they need without fear, and encourage them to cooperate with law enforcement on other matters without fearing deportation. Opponents say it allows for the release of criminals onto the streets who would otherwise be removed from the country.

The ranking comes as Mayor Eric Adams, who has backed New York Citys sanctuary city status, has called for federal help after Texas has started busing a few thousand migrants to the citys Port Authority. Adams recently said that 4,000 migrants have entered the citys homeless system in recent months.

"We just need help. We need help," Adams said in a press conference last week, calling for federal aid including from FEMA.

Hes also blasted Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on multiple occasions:

"He is an anti-American governor that is really going against everything we stand for," he said about Abbott Thursday. "And I am going to do everything feasible to make sure the people of Texas realize how harmful he is to us globally."

Abbott has pointed to New York Citys sanctuary status as a reason for why the migrants are being sent there and has noted that the numbers are a fraction of the massive numbers encountered at the border.

"If the mayors of Americas most populous city and the nations capital are complaining about a few thousand migrants, imagine what these small border communities with more limited resources face on the frontlines," Abbott said in a recent piece for Fox News Opinion.

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NYC named 'worst' sanctuary city amid battle with Texas on migrant busing - Yahoo News