House OK's hiring illegal migrants on staff, fattens budget 21%

Must be another of those fictitious jobs citizens won't do.................../S 

And a 21% increase? I am all for paying interns but come on.

Must be another of those fictitious jobs citizens won't do.................../S 

Hill Staffers are overwhelmingly white and affluent or from affluence who can afford to make less than their expenses. They are there to make connections.  Having legal residents like DACA people eligible to work on the Hill should not be an issue.

And a 21% increase? I am all for paying interns but come on.

D.C. is one of the most expensive areas to live in. 

Apparently staff pay has been stagnant for ten years while housing expenses alone have "sky rocketed"...

The Impact on Staffers

While salaries for congressional staff have barely changed over the past decade, financial pressures on Hill staffers have grown considerably.  In addition to the National Capital Region’s skyrocketing housing costs , many staffers are seeing more and more of their hard-earned dollars go towards paying off student loan debt to cover rising college tuition.  High childcare costs in the Washington, DC area are an additional financial burden on staffers who are parents of young children.

chamberhill

More to the point.

$3.33 per square foot

In the world, the city ranks as the seventh most expensive city for renters. To pay the average rent of $3.33 per square foot , or $1,398 for a 420-square-foot unit, D.C. renters need an income of at least $57,670.

dc.curbed

affluent or from affluence who can afford to make less than their expenses.

So which is it. They can afford it or they can't?

The fix is long overdue and welcomed.

Overdue yes. And I am sure they work their fingers to the bone..................or is it just like the stereotype GovCo job and "money for nothin'" or practically nothing. They chose the job. Their choice. Can't they find other work and more money outside of DC? Unless they are incompetent in the first place, I am sure they can. I guess some of them would rather be in the "heartbeat" of America than live comfortably. It's all about the "prestige" and it has consequences.

Glad they got a raise but.................................

Glad they got a raise but.................................

Apparently, from the snarky answer, you are not.

You do realize that this benefits both parties equally don't you?

Don't care about parties in this case frankly. And yes I am glad they got a raise.

Hill Staffers are overwhelmingly white and affluent or from affluence who can afford to make less than their expenses. They are there to make connections. 

Mom and Dad gave the politicians a really big check; and now want some payback for their kids.  Think that is going to change with the passing of this bill?

Having legal residents like DACA people eligible to work on the Hill should not be an issue.

Funny I thought the courts ruled against DACA. So how can they be legal? Must be true because the leftist media is whining about it.

nytimes

insidehighered

reuters

D.C. is one of the most expensive areas to live in.  Apparently staff pay has been stagnant for ten years while housing expenses alone have "sky rocketed"...

Not a tax payer problem. Also, that new housing bubble is getting set to burst. Which will become a tax payer problem, again.

Mom and Dad gave the politicians a really big check; and now want some payback for their kids.  Think that is going to change with the passing of this bill?

Probably not but the quality of the increased competition should make it a bit tougher.

Funny I thought the courts ruled against DACA. So how can they be legal? Must be true because the leftist media is whining about it.

In June of last year, SCOTUS upheld DACA.  On July 16 this year, a TX Federal judge kicked it back to the DHS. As noted below

the Dreamers are only protected from deportation and can apply for a temporary visa or green card like anyone else.  If

this law passes the Senate the DACAs will no longer be barred from serving the Senator or Rep of their choice.

Not a tax payer problem. Also, that new housing bubble is getting set to burst. Which will become a tax payer problem, again.

Everything is eventually a taxpayer problem.

Hill Staffers are overwhelmingly white

Ok, but they can’t find people of color who are citizens?

People of color are a lot less likely to be Ronin's imaginary workforce of Rich Kids.

businessinsider

One unusual element of the legislation is the approval of allowing members and House offices to hire "Dreamers," those allowed into the country during the Obama administration under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

What utter bullshit.

The Obama Dreamers have to have entered the US by June of 2007. You know that the Obama Administration didn't start until Jan. 2009 right? 

You know that the Obama Administration didn't start until Jan. 2009 right?

You know that that was the year,2007, set forth in the his edict. You know that RIGHT?

You know that that was the year,2007, set forth in the his edict. You know that RIGHT?

You KNOW that means they were NOT 'allowed into the country during the Obama Administration' as YOU claimed RIGHT? 

You KNOW that means they were NOT 'allowed into the country during the Obama Administration' as YOU claimed RIGHT? 

Here is the context you so crave.

DACA recipients, by law, were not allowed in this country legally until Obama, through un-Constitutional edict, said they could stay.

Hope that helps. s/

Thanks for the equivocation. 

Being retired/disabled from the military with 20 years of service, the only thing I have to look forward to is a annual 1% COLA (Cost Of Living Allowance) if I'm lucky. God, I feel so privileged! Not.  Last week I had some young snot nosed leftist liberal college kid tell me how ungrateful I was and that the military retirees were so overpaid and overcompensated! It was a pretty hard choice on whether to knock him on his butt or walk away. I decided he was not worth it and just walked away with him taunting as I did so. I have seen my government's thanks for my service and sacrifice, but a 21% increase for interns, what a colossal joke and slap in the face to military retirees!

I have seen my government's thanks for my service and sacrifice, but a 21% increase for interns, what a colossal joke and slap in the face to military retirees!

Ed, you are comparing two different things with no context.

I answered this in comment#1.1. but let's use our military pay for comparison sake.

Was your basic pay ever frozen for 10 years?

Were your BAH, BAS or other alphabet soup of benefits ever frozen for 10 years?

And I can't remember ever, not getting a COLA increase ( and was never impressed )

The current BAH for D.C. exceeds the basic pay for single and married E1 through E4s basically about $2,520.00

The 2010 pay charts ( E1 to E4 ) indicate a wide range from $464.70 to $699.00 depending on marital status and dependents.

So the Military in it's collective "wisdom" recognizes that housing expenses in D.C. has risen anywhere from

360% t0 500% in the last ten years.

All of the STAFFERS for both parties and both Houses are long overdue.

.

Make sense?

And a 21% increase?

Wonder what increase SS recipients will get?  

A little known fact is that SS and Federal retirement are under the category of "Entitlement" funding.  COLA for SS will also be about 1%. 

Yes, because you are entitled to what you have paid into. 

But it is poorly named, given that fact.

A massive porkulus; along with a massive ringing of the dinner bell for illegal immigrants to continue coming to the US. 

House Democrats must be in pig heaven right now!

        "Illegal migrants let in during the Obama era and long promised amnesty by Democrats have been cleared to work for House members as part of a massive budget approved this week on a party-line vote."

That is an insult to citizens

"during the Obama era"

Just for perspective, Obama's administration deported more than the sum of all the presidents of the 20th century.

Not true.

Your link actually proves its true.

Add up the number deported in your own link from Teddy Roosevelt to Bill Clinton (1901 - 2000 aka 20th century) and you get 2,601,020 deported. The same chart shows Obama deported 3,066,457.

What was the figure 2001 through 2008? I'd wager that it would more than make up the 465,437 difference.

Well looky here....................

"By comparison, the Bush administration deported 2 million immigrants between 2001 and 2008"

pewresearch

Pat's statement originated in 2015 with ABC.

How many people have been deported under Obama?

Between 2009 and 2015 his administration has removed more than 2.5 million people through immigration orders, which doesn’t include the number of people who "self-deported" or were turned away and/or returned to their home country at the border by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

How does he compare to other presidents?

In fact, they have deported more than the sum of all the presidents of the 20th century.

President George W. Bush's administration deported just over two million during his time in office; and Obama’s numbers don’t reflect his last year in office, for which data is not yet available.

abcnews.go

The government doesn't use the term deported very often, they prefer "removed" or "returned" at the border.

ICE deports people by immigration orders.

One mind set will always see that as an attempt to be precise while the other thinks it an attempt to obfuscate.

Be that as it may, Obama's numbers are higher.

What was the figure 2001 through 2008?

Is 2001 to 2008 in the 20th century?

Pat's true statement above was "Obama's administration deported more than the sum of all the presidents of the 20th century."

Tex called her a liar. He was wrong, she was right.

You are correct. I misread the time frame. Kind of odd to cherry pick something that pat knew would be true. Thought she was referring to all of Mr. Obama's predecessors. Sorry.

I didn't call her a liar.

She made a statement. You said the statement wasn't true. Is that not calling her a liar?

Obama deported 3,066,457.

I see that in DP's post.............Point?

You said the statement wasn't true. Is that not calling her a liar?

Not according to the banter going back and forth the last couple of weeks. At least here at NT

Wow, keep repeating that lie.

politico

The administration appears to have artificially inflated its deportation numbers. It includes voluntary removals in the deportation statistics. But this is not removal because an illegal immigrant is not then subject to penalties for returning to the United States. For example, a single illegal immigrant can show up at the border and be voluntarily returned numerous times in one year — and counted each time as a removal.

Even The Washington Post found the Obama administration used questionable methods to achieve its deportation numbers last year. Just like pulling a rabbit out of a hat, the Obama administration’s record is a trick. In reality, President Barack Obama and his administration are giving amnesty to illegal immigrants through inaction. It’s no wonder that the president recently admitted to Hispanic voters that his administration’s deportation numbers are “deceptive.”

Take away the hocus-pocus, and it is clear the Obama administration is neglecting to enforce immigration laws. The administration has all but abandoned worksite enforcement actions. Over the past two years, worksite enforcement has plummeted 70 percent.

Under this administration, there have been fewer arrests of illegal workers, fewer criminal arrests, fewer indictments and fewer convictions. This means illegal workers continue to take jobs away from unemployed Americans.

Without worksite enforcement, we can’t stop employers from hiring illegal workers. And as long as the jobs magnet exists, millions of illegal immigrants most likely will come to the U.S. and take jobs from lawful workers.

The president and his administration have also decided to grant administrative amnesty to illegal immigrants.

Political appointees at the Department of Homeland Security recently established a working group with the specific purpose of overruling orders of removal for illegal immigrants. The administration’s new deportation policy strikes another blow at the 14 million unemployed U.S. workers. This massive backdoor amnesty to illegal immigrants could allow illegal immigrants to receive work authorization and could put even more U.S. citizens on the unemployment rolls.

washingtontimes

latimes

But the portrait of a steadily increasing number of deportations rests on statistics that conceal almost as much as they disclose. A closer examination shows that immigrants living illegally in most of the continental U.S. are less likely to be deported today than before Obama came to office, according to immigration data.

Expulsions of people who are settled and working in the United States have fallen steadily since his first year in office, and are down more than 40% since 2009.

On the other side of the ledger, the number of people deported at or near the border has gone up — primarily as a result of changing who gets counted in the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s deportation statistics.

The vast majority of those border crossers would not have been treated as formal deportations under most previous administrations. If all removals were tallied, the total sent back to Mexico each year would have been far higher under those previous administrations than it is now.

The shift in who gets tallied helped the administration look tough in its early years but now may be backfiring politically. Immigration advocates plan protests across the country this week around what they say will be the 2 millionth deportation under Obama — a mark expected to be hit in the next few days. And Democratic strategists fret about a decline in Latino voter turnout for this fall’s election.

Until recent years, mostpeople caught illegally crossing the southern border were simply bused back into Mexico in what officials called “voluntary returns,” but which critics derisively termed “catch and release.” Those removals, which during the 1990s reached more 1 million a year, were not counted in Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s deportation statistics.

Now, the vast majority of border crossers who are apprehended get fingerprinted and formally deported. The change began during the George W. Bush administration and accelerated under Obama. The policy stemmed in part from a desire to ensure that people who had crossed into the country illegally would have formal charges on their records.

In the Obama years, all of the increase in deportations has involved people picked up within 100 miles of the border, most of whom have just recently crossed over. In 2013, almost two-thirds of deportations were in that category.

At the same time, the administration largely ended immigration roundups at workplaces and shifted investigators into targeting business owners who illegally hired foreign workers.

“If you are a run-of-the-mill immigrant here illegally, your odds of getting deported are close to zero — it’s just highly unlikely to happen,” John Sandweg, until recently the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said in an interview.

Even when immigration officials want to deport someone who already has settled in the country, doing so is “virtually impossible” because of a lengthy backlog in the immigration courts, Sandweg said. Once people who have no prior removals or convictions are placed in deportation proceedings, actually removing them from the country can take six years or more in some jurisdictions, Sandweg said.

Deportations of people apprehended in the interior of the U.S., which the immigration agency defines as more than 100 miles from the border, dropped from 237,941 in Obama’s first year to 133,551 in 2013, according to immigration data. Four out of five of those deportees came to the attention of immigration authorities after criminal convictions.

Many of those convictions are related to crossing the border — the other big consequence of the change in the way border removals are handled.

A growing number of people caught trying to cross the border now have a formal deportation order on their records. Entering the country without legal authorization is not a crime. But once a person has been deported, he can be prosecuted if he reenters the country.

The policy of deporting border crossers and then prosecuting people who reenter has increased the number of immigrants charged in federal court. In 1992, immigration offenses accounted for 5% of federal convictions. In the subsequent two decades, the share of immigration cases on the federal docket increased sixfold, according to a study by the Pew Research Center .

washingtontimes

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson acknowledged Tuesday that his department’s deportation numbers are now mostly made up of illegal immigrants caught at the border, not just those from the interior, which means they can’t be compared one-to-one with deportations under President Bush or other prior administrations.

The administration has argued it is tougher on illegal immigration than previous presidents, and immigrant-rights groups have excoriated President Obama, calling him the “deporter-in-chief” for having kicked out nearly 2 million immigrants during his five-year tenure.

But Republican critics have argued those deportation numbers are artificially inflated because more than half of those being deported were new arrivals, caught at the border by the U.S. Border Patrol. Previous administrations primarily counted only those caught in the interior of the U.S. by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“Under the Obama administration, more than half of those removals that were attributed to ICE are actually a result of Border Patrol arrests that wouldn’t have been counted in prior administrations,” said Rep. John Culberson, Texas Republican.

“Correct,” Mr. Johnson confirmed.

That would mean that in a one-to-one comparison with the final years of the Bush administration, deportations of those same people under Mr. Obama had actually fallen, according to immigration analysts who have studied the data.

Goebbels would be proud of today's Democrats lie a ton and keep repeating it. Sooner or later it will become the truth.

Nah, Goebbels would laugh at everyone.

Democrats lie a ton and keep repeating it. Sooner or later it will become the truth.

The very definition of  a sweeping generalization and a partisan untruth, lol.

Like abortion statistics, everyone has an opinion.

Even your CATO Institute agrees that different Administrations counted differently,

but they recognize the 3 million number of Obama

While lamenting the poor job Trump did by comparison.

This article is from 09/16/2019 and recognizes that there was no way for Trump to catch Obama.

cato

Complain about methodologies if you must but the fair consensus is already in.

While the Obama administration deported 1.18 million people in his first three
years, the number of deportations has been a little under 800,000 so far under
Trump, according to the Post.
The Obama administration also deported 409,849 people in 2012 alone, while
the Trump administration has yet to deport more than 260,000 people in a year,
the Post reported. docs.house

Another perspective is the sheer numbers of those that did not get caught getting into the country. It is estimated to be at least 30 to 40% higher than the number actually caught and allegedly deported. 

That anybody here illegally is allowed to work for a member of Congress is an insult to Citizens and a security risk.  How did they pass a background test?   

How did they pass a background test?   

The law is being changed to allow Congress to hire green cards and peeps with temporary visas.  Full stop, period.

The background checks come later, IF a Senator or Rep wants someone on a temp visa or green card...

I thought this sounded funny. So basically the outrage about this is a big nothing.

And if they are employed anywhere for any reason,

they get to pay into Social Security and Medicare and are eligible for benefits

which was mentioned in the SCOTUS decision many more times than Congress

and that eligibility compounds an already complex issue.

I thought this sounded funny. So basically the outrage about this is a big nothing.

Considering the FACT that Trump gave his daughter and son in law WH level security clearance that neither of them qualified for, YES!

They are Citizens Of the USA

They are Citizens Of the USA

So what?

They FAILED a background check.

Dreamers PASS a background check. 

Excuse me - they are ILLEGAL ALIENS - period.

Excuse me - they are ILLEGAL ALIENS - period.

Since they haven't been found guilty of ANYTHING, NO they are NOT. 

That is an insult to citizens

Why? 

Employment on the hill isn't PIE charger...

Because that should be reserved for Citizens only.  Citizens are the people this country is supposed to be run to benefit     

Is it not within the rational realm of thinking that these 'illegals' may well return home carrying with them a fuller understanding of what makes a great nation and spread the freedom 'virus'?

Return home is what they should do and I would rather they tell the people there to not go to the US

Because that should be reserved for Citizens only. 

But it isn't. Currently, those in the process of Naturalization can and do work at the Capitol. 

Citizens are the people this country is supposed to be run to benefit     

And?

How does employing non-citizens preclude that charger?

You know that over 5% of OUR military are non-citizens RIGHT? 

Those granted amnesty under DACA are not illegal.

Last I knew they were children brought illegally by their illegal parents at a young age so, yes they are.

No, they were given amnesty by the government of the United States of America so they are not!

No they were given "amnesty" through the DACA Executive order which has been found to be illegal. DACA is still being, or is due to be,  debated in SCOTUS.

On Friday, a federal judge ruled the program unlawful, finding that President Barack Obama exceeded his authority when he created DACA in 2012."

nytimes

Not amnesty, only protection from deportation.  They can apply for temporary visas like anyone else seeking a green card for employment.

On July 16, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas declared the DACA policy “illegal” and vacated the June 15, 2012, memorandum issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that created DACA. It remanded the memorandum to DHS for further consideration. uscis

DACA is still being, or is due to be,  debated in SCOTUS.

I believe the ball is in the court of DHS.

The Supremes found against the Trump Admin last June sending the matter back to DHS

Supreme Court Rules For DREAMers, Against Trump

In a major rebuke to President Trump, the U.S. Supreme Court has blocked the administration's plan to dismantle an Obama-era program that has protected 700,000 so-called DREAMers from deportation. The vote was 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing the opinion .

Under the Obama program, qualified individuals brought to the U.S. as children were given temporary legal status if they graduated from high school or were honorably discharged from the military, and if they passed a background check. Just months after taking office, Trump moved to revoke the program, only to be blocked by lower courts — and now the Supreme Court.

npr

Only time that a EO was ever given the same weight as a US Law. The five Justices should be ashamed of themselves. EO/EA's are not laws. Any president can undo a previous administration's EO/EA.

According to the Justices 5-4 decision.  "Because I said so" wasn't the described way for Mr Trump

or the then DHS Secretary Nielsen to go about a law suit that lost at every lower court level

and they never amended their position for any court.  I believe if you read the SCOTUS decision, they agree that

rescinding DACA was within the Administration's rights. 

What they had issue with was DHS refusal to explain the original decisions made during the Obama years

and the legal reasoning for ending DACA,  The Trump Admin insisted on blaming Obama, accepting no responsibilty

for what would be a highly charged political move that was within their right to do so,

using the Supreme Court as the bully.

John Roberts was having none of that and stated quite clearly what Trump needed to do to end DACA.

Trump apparently refused because DACA is still here as a major issue.

Wrong - SCOTUS stated, very specifically, that it was CONGRESS'S job - not POTUS's.

I invite you to read the opinion at

apps.npr

I believe it's at the top of page 13 that Neilsen states her support of Duke's view that Congress should be the corrective participant.

You can proof read this and tell us where Roberts mentions Congress anywhere else other than page 26

again quoting Duke, I do not see it.

The final two paragraphs of the decision (page 29 of the opinion, which is page 34 of the NPR )

state that for all of the omission by former DHS secretaries Duke & Neilsen the case is remanded to DHS for further consideration.

No mention of Congress.

Sorry

DACA folks have not been granted amnesty.

"the pro-Trump protest occurred"

I guess that's closer than pro-Trump picnic.

I get tired of watching Congress ignore their own laws. The idea that the federal government is hiring people who entered or are present in the country without permission is beyond bizarre. Is there another country in the world that does that?

To apply, they must be on a temporary visa or green card.  DACA kids are eligible for either.

Oh please.  Your precious ex POTUS is well known for bringing in out of country workers so that he can pay them pennies on the dollar.