1. ATF e-mails to White House
2. AL educators upset over law
3. AZ counter-suit in trouble
4. One bid for NJ detention center
5. ICE raids Univ. of N. VA

1.
Emails to White House didn't mention gun sting
By Richard A. Serrano
Los Angeles Times, July 28, 2011

The ATF's field supervisor on the Southwest border sent a series of emails last year to a top White House national security official detailing the agency's ambitious efforts to stop weapons trafficking into Mexico, but did not mention that a botched sting operation had allowed hundreds of guns to flow to drug cartels.

Over three days in September 2010, William D. Newell, a 20-year veteran who at the time was the special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' field operations in Arizona and New Mexico, briefed Kevin M. O'Reilly, director of North American affairs for the White House national security staff. Newell sent the emails in advance of a meeting between Mexican officials and John Brennan, President Obama's deputy national security advisor.

A White House official confirmed Thursday that Newell had said nothing about the specific tactics used to fight weapons traffickers, which included allowing "straw" purchasers to buy guns without immediately arresting them, in hopes the small-time traffickers would lead authorities to the cartels and reveal smuggling routes into Mexico. The so-called Fast and Furious operation was run out of the ATF's Phoenix field office.

DOCUMENTS: The Fast and Furious paper trail

As soon as Fast and Furious began in November 2009, ATF agents complained about orders to let the guns "walk" — a risky move that failed when the ATF lost track of most of the weapons. By the time of Newell's emails to the White House 10 months later, the ATF was trying to contain the knowledge that hundreds of guns had dropped out of sight and wound up on the streets of Mexico and the U.S.

On Sept. 1, 2010, O'Reilly reached out to Newell, a longtime friend. "We want John Brennan well-prepared to talk GRIT with the Mexicans next Wednesday," he wrote, referring to the Gun Runner Impact Team's efforts against the cartels.

Newell responded the next day. He mentioned a trafficking case — one outside the Fast and Furious program — and noted plans for a news conference to announce arrests.

"Sounds good," O'Reilly replied.

In subsequent emails, Newell told O'Reilly that "we will take action against those folks" who are small-time weapons traffickers. "In reality, we look at 'straw' purchasers as the lowest ring on the firearms trafficking ladder," he said, "but in many investigations we need their cooperation in order to identify the real traffickers and middlemen."

This tactic "adds tremendous leverage to our efforts to get the truth from them so we can work our way up the ladder" to the cartels, he said.

Newell did not mention Fast and Furious, but the goals he outlined to O'Reilly closely matched the intent of the program, which Newell oversaw.

The operation was a secret guarded so carefully that it was kept even from the U.S. Embassy in Mexico, which had complained about a surge of assault weapons. Nearly 200 of the Fast and Furious weapons eventually turned up at crime scenes in Mexico.

The series of emails obtained by The Times are the first indication that the White House was not immediately told of the failures of Fast and Furious, which ultimately lost track of about 1,700 guns.

A White House official said Thursday that Newell's emails were "not in relation to Fast and Furious" but rather to brief the White House about other trafficking cases to prep Brennan. The official asked not to be identified because Congress and the inspector general's office of the Justice Department have ongoing investigations.
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http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-fast-furious-emails...

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2.
Educators Fume Over Reporting Requirement In Immigration Law
By Nick Banaszak
WHNT (AL), July 28, 2011

It won't be long before the school bell rings again, but critics of Alabama's new immigration law are afraid it could clear out some classrooms.

Some educators are fuming over a new provision in the law that requres schools to verify where students were born, and then report that data to state offices in Montgomery.

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Lawmakers who created the law say it's time to tell Alabama taxpayers how much they spend on educating illegal immigrants every year, but the new requirement is getting push back from some superintendents and school board members. Some of those officials claim the task is too cumbersome, and could cause an exodus of Hispanic students from classrooms. That in turn could effect federal funding for many schools.

Supporters of the law called the claims overblown, and said the reporting requirement is a simple task. Federal law requires all students to be educated, regardless of their citizenship status. Alabama's new immigration law will not change that, and is intended to be used as a data-gathering device. But that didn't satisfy one local school board member.
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http://www.whnt.com/news/whnt-educators-fume-over-reporting-requirement-...

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3.
Gov. Jan Brewer's border security countersuit stumbling
By Alia Beard Rau
The Arizona Republic, July 29, 2011

A federal countersuit filed by Gov. Jan Brewer alleging that the federal government is failing to secure the border from an "invasion" appears to be on shaky ground.

The suit, which was filed in connection with the federal suit over Senate Bill 1070, got its first day in court Thursday as attorneys for the state defended it from a U.S. Department of Justice motion to dismiss.

U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton will issue a ruling at a later date, but she made it clear she was leaning toward dismissing at least some of the state's allegations.

Precedent from previous higher-court rulings in similar cases may demand it, she said.

Brewer said she knew the countersuit would be an uphill battle, adding that the Arizona courtroom is only the first stop.

"We'll take it all the way to the (U.S.) Supreme Court," she said. "We didn't ask for this fight. The federal government sued us to prohibit us from enforcing (SB) 1070, and we will continue to fight."

The countersuit, filed in February, alleges that the federal government has failed to gain "operational control" of the border, is not enforcing federal immigration law, has not adequately reimbursed Arizona for more than $760 million in costs for the state to incarcerate illegal immigrants and tried to pre-empt the state from protecting its citizens by filing a lawsuit to halt the enactment of SB 1070.

What state is requesting

The state is asking the court to require the federal government to finish building 700 miles of fence along the U.S. border with Mexico, provide enough federal immigration officers in Arizona to respond to local law-enforcement needs, change the way the federal government reimburses states for incarcerating criminal illegal immigrants and allow Arizona to enforce federal immigration laws.

About half a dozen other states have pursued similar, and unsuccessful, legal efforts over the past two decades.

In 1994, Arizona was one of seven states that sought reimbursement for the costs of incarcerating and providing other services to illegal immigrants. Later that year, President Bill Clinton signed a bill that ordered the U.S. attorney general to reimburse states for prison costs or transfer inmates to federal prisons.

In 1996, California Gov. Pete Wilson filed suit, arguing that Clinton and the federal government had failed to live up to the provisions of the law. The suit was dismissed.

In 2006, Colorado voters passed Referendum K, which ordered that state's attorney general to file a broader claim against the federal government, saying it failed to enforce immigration laws. That suit was thrown out by a federal judge in 2007.

Court proceedings

Thursday's hourlong court hearing focused primarily on two issues: whether Bolton should overturn prior court precedent and whether she has the authority to tell the federal government how to spend its money.

Department of Justice attorney Varu Chilakamarri argued that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled more than a decade ago in both the Arizona and California lawsuits that the same arguments Arizona is again making now have no legal standing.

The state's attorney, Mike Tryon, said that a lot has changed since those Appeals Court rulings, including the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and the federal lawsuit challenging SB 1070. Although he called the earlier precedents "problematic," he said "circumstances in the law have changed dramatically."

Bolton indicated she was leading toward Chilakamarri's argument, saying she is "bound by" precedents set by higher courts.

With the state's allegation that the federal government is not properly reimbursing the state for incarceration, Tryon said the state isn't asking for money, but for recognition that the formula is unfair.

"The state of Arizona is forced to pay these costs incurred because the federal government has not achieved operational control (of the border)," Tryon said. "All we're seeking is a declaration of the rights of Arizona."

Chilakamarri argued that the U.S. attorney general has the discretion to determine the formula.

Bolton said there's no argument the federal government owes Arizona "many, many millions of dollars" in incarceration costs. But she questioned her authority to do something about it.

"Do I have the power to tell Congress to appropriate money?" Bolton asked. "If I did, there would be a long list of priorities."
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http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2011/07/29/20110...

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4.
Company With Political Ties Is Sole Bidder on Jail Contract
By Sam Dolnick
The New York Times, July 28, 2011

Officials in Essex County, N.J., announced Thursday that only one company had bid on a contract to run a 450-bed immigration detention center that federal officials would like to turn into a model for such facilities across the country.

The sole bidder was an affiliate of Community Education Centers, whose executives have close political ties to Gov. Chris Christie and the Essex County executive, Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr.

The New York Times reported on Thursday that the county had appeared to favor Community Education in the process of issuing the contract, though its record in housing immigrant detainees was troubled.

The county had told the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency that the company was likely to get the contract, and that other bidders had not been actively sought, as they often are for government contracts.

The Essex County contract is likely to be worth $8 million to $10 million annually. County officials said the contracting process was fair and open to any company. Mr. Christie’s office said the governor had played no role in the process.

The county’s counsel had said he expected as many as 30 companies to express interest in bidding. But some advocacy groups for immigrants had criticized the contracting process, saying it was heavily tilted toward Community Education.

And on Thursday, the deadline for bidding, the county said only the Community Education affiliate had submitted a bid.
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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/29/nyregion/essex-county-nj-gets-one-bid-...

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5.
ICE raid targets University of Northern Virginia
By Justin Jouvenal
The Washington Post, July 29, 2011

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided the Annandale offices of the University of Northern Virginia on Thursday and notified the school it may lose its authorization to admit foreign students.

An ICE spokeswoman declined to discuss the details of the raid, saying it was part of an ongoing investigation of UNVA, an unaccredited, for-profit school which caters to a largely foreign student body.

“ICE Student and Visitor Exchange Program issued a notice of intent to withdraw UNVA authorization to admit foreign students,” said Cori W. Bassett, an ICE spokeswoman.

No one was arrested. School officials could not be reached for comment, but the university’s founder Daniel Ho told the Chronicle of Higher Education that agents took away boxes of paperwork and computer. “We have nothing to hide,” he told the Chronicle.

UNVA now has 30 days to show it is conforming with federal rules for administering student visas. The school can still hold classes, but will be blocked from accepting new international students. The school has 2,300 students enrolled and 90 percent are from India, Bassett said.
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post_now/post/ice-raid-targets-unive...