1. TPS extended for Sudanese
2. Six to use self-deportation
3. Passport card good for I-9s
4. Judge shoots down H-1b lawsuit
5. GOP candidates differ in NH
6. Teenager refuses to leave U.S.
7. SC Latino residents increasing
8. IA still focused on immigration
9. Mexican consulate visits UT
10. Man to reunite with family

1.
Sudanese can stay longer in US, continue working
The Associated Press, August 15, 2008

Washington (AP) -– Immigrants from Sudan granted temporary legal status can stay and continue to work in the U.S. if they reregister with the
Department of Homeland Security, the federal government said Thursday. The government is extending temporary protected status for Sudanese
immigrants through May 2, 2010.
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http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080815/NEWS0...

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2.
6 people have registered for voluntary deportation
The San Diego Union Tribune, August 15, 2008

The federal government's pilot program that gives illegal immigrants up to 90 days to leave the country has received few if any takers in the five cities in which it's being offered, including San Diego.

So far, six people have registered: a Mexican national in San Diego; two Indians and a Guatemalan in Chicago; a Salvadoran in Charlotte, N.C.; and an Estonian national in Phoenix. There were no takers in Santa Ana.

The program began Aug. 5 and continues through Aug. 22. It offers the estimated 457,000 illegal immigrants with outstanding deportation orders and no criminal records a chance to turn themselves in.

In exchange, immigrants will eliminate the risk of sudden arrest and deportation.
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http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20080815-9999-1m15b2briefs.html

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3.
New Passport Card OK for Employment Eligibility Verification
HR.blr.com, August 15, 2008

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services clarified recently that the new U.S. Passport Card may be used in the Employment Eligibility Verification form (I-9) process.

In July, the Departments of State and Homeland Security began producing the new passport card. The new card provides a less expensive and more portable alternative to the traditional passport book and will expedite document processing at United States land and sea ports-of-entry for U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda. The card may not be used to travel by air.

While the new card is more limited in its uses for international travel, it is a valid passport that attests to the U.S. citizenship and identity of the bearer. Accordingly, the card may be used for the Form I-9 process and can also be accepted by employers participating in the E-Verify program.
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http://hr.blr.com/news.aspx?id=78748

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4.
Judge rejects student visa injunction sought by H-1B opponents
Tech workers don't have standing to fight Bush administration visa move
By Patrick Thibodeau
ComputerWorld, August 7, 2008

A U.S. district court judge in New Jersey this week rejected an attempt by H-1B visa opponents to halt the Bush administration's extension of student visas from one year to 29 months -- a move it claimed would give students a better shot at getting an H-1B visa.

The opponents argued that the extension, put in place earlier this year, is a backdoor visa increase and will hurt U.S. workers. But in a ruling on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Faith Hochberg denied a preliminary injunction sought by the Programmers Guild, the Immigration Reform Law Institute and other groups.

The lawsuit was initially filed in May.

Hochberg's ruling focused less on the merits of the case and more on whether H-1B opponents had legal standing to bring it, noting that they could not show they had been directly hurt by the student visa extension. "Instead of alleging concrete injury, plaintiffs assert a generalized grievance with a particular government policy," the judge wrote.

The ruling appears to offer opponents little hope that their lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which approved the visa extension, will succeed.

The judge ordered the two parties to file briefs as to "whether this case should be dismissed for lack of standing." Those briefs are due by Nov. 14.

Although the H-1B opponents can appeal the injunction, no decision on doing that has yet been made. John Miano, founder of the Summit, N.J.-based Programmers Guild, said the extension opponents are now working on a response.

But on the issue of legal standing, Miano believes tech workers do have the standing needed to challenge the Bush administration move. "Should a group of U.S. [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] workers and organizations representing STEM workers have standing to challenge a rule intended to increase the supply of STEM workers in the U.S.?
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http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&...

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5.
Republicans look to find a bit of separation
By Albert McKeon
The Nashua Telegraph (NH), August 15, 2008

Nashua -- With only one Republican able to challenge Democrat Paul Hodes this fall for his 2nd District Congressional seat, those running in a crowded GOP primary field are trying their best to stand out.

Four of those Republicans tried just that from seated positions Thursday evening at a forum in which the candidates articulated not just clear differences but also the nuances of their agreements.

They mostly agreed on the general principle that government must cut spending, look for ways to improve the health-care system and curb illegal immigration. But they sometimes diverged on how to approach those concerns.

For instance, the candidates – former congressional staffer Grant Bosse, state Sen. Robert Clegg, former radio talk show host Jennifer Horn and lawyer Jim Steiner – concurred the government should penalize employers who hire illegal immigrants.

But while Bosse, Horn and Stenier advocated a strong defense that would include a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border, Clegg criticized the measure. He pointed to how other points of entry in the U.S. would be unguarded and that illegal immigrants would still find a way into the country.
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http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080815/NEWS0...

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6.
Belarus bans children's trips
Organizers of U.S. summer visits fear teen's decision to stay in Petaluma may kill entire program
By Paul Payne
The Press Democrat, August 15, 2008

Belarus on Thursday halted youth humanitarian trips to the United States following a furor that unfolded when a teenager visiting Petaluma for the summer refused to go home.

Tanya Kazyra 16-year-old from Borisov, Belarus, wants to stay in Petaluma with the host family she has visited for nine summers.

The ban on travel for respite programs for children living in the path of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster will affect about 1,400 young people nationwide, hosting organizations said.

"It's what we feared from the beginning," said Rosey Erickson, president of Petaluma-based Chernobyl Children's Project, which brought 16-year-old Tanya Kazyra and 24 other children to the North Bay in June.

She criticized Manuel and Debra Zapata of Petaluma, who have been sponsoring Kazyra's visits the past nine summers and encouraged her refusal to return to her home in Borisov, Belarus. Kazyra remained at the Zapatas' eastside home Thursday.

"It is what we have tried feverishly to avoid by taking necessary steps to facilitate Tanya's safe and expeditious return to her grandma in Belarus," Erickson said.

Oleg Kravchenko, chargé d'affaires at the Belarus Embassy in Washington, said that barring a guarantee from the United States that a similar incident won't happen again, all such trips are stopped.

"When an agreement is concluded, the trips may be recommended again," Kravchenko said. "For now, all trips are prohibited."

A spokeswoman for the State Department's European affairs bureau confirmed the travel ban. It did not appear the action would have broader diplomatic repercussions, she said.
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http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080815/NEWS/808150349&title=Belar...

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7.
S.C. Hispanic population continues to be fastest-growing in nation
The State (Columbia, SC), August 14, 2008

South Carolina continues to have the country’s fastest-growing Latino populations, despite a slowing economy and a tougher crackdown on illegal immigrants.

According to Census data from 2006-07 released this week, South Carolina ranked first among states in per capita growth, North Carolina was third, with Tennessee between them.

The new arrivals come not only from Mexico, Central and South America, but also New York, New Jersey and California, where U.S. economic problems has taken a greater toll, immigrants and advocates say. Latinos continue to see the Carolinas as having more jobs, cheaper housing and a better climate.

Not that the two states have escaped the economic slowdown, but far more Latinos continue to arrive than leave.

Nearly 14,000 illegal immigrants have been deported this year out of the Atlanta field office, which overseas operations in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina — a 220 percent increase from 2005.

“The fact of the matter is more illegal aliens are being identified, arrested and deported,” said Barbara Gonzalez, an ICE spokeswoman.

William Gheen, president of Americans for Legal Immigration PAC, cited the recent study by the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington-based group that supports tougher immigration enforcement, that said illegal immigrants declined 11 percent from August 2007 to May.
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http://www.thestate.com/breakingbiz/story/490004.html

Editor's Note: The Census Bureau report is available on line at http://www.census.gov/population/www/projections/2008projections.html

The CIS report is available on line at http://cis.org/trends_and_enforcement

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8.
With oil, immigration, and social issues in mind, rural town eyes McCain
By Dante Chinni
The Christian Science Monitor, August 15, 2008

Sioux Center, IA -- In the myth of American politics, rural agricultural towns and their hard-working populations hold a special place as the grounded backbone of the nation.

So what have most people in the country’s soulful center been thinking about Senators John McCain and Barack Obama for the past few months? Not much.

Since the caucus campaign circus left town in January, people in this quite northwestern Iowa town have been going about their lives without paying much attention to the campaign. That’s changing now though, say people here. The attention and focus is returning, and some of the issues here might surprise you.

Energy has taken on special meaning here in corn country, and immigration has grown as a topic. The social conservatism that defines this town and other agricultural burgs like it remains, however. And it will play a big role in November.
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http://www.csmonitor.com/patchworknation/csmstaff/2008/0815/with-oil-imm...

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9.
Mexican Consulate to visit St. George Saturday
By Alyson Van Deusen
The Spectrum (St. George, UT), August 15, 2008

St. George -- The Mexican Consulate will return to St. George to serve Mexican nationals in Southern Utah from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday at the St. George Catholic Church.

Consul staff and volunteers will be able to issue passports and Matricula Consular Cards, or federal identification, during their time in the state's southern region, said Manny Aguilar, a Latino activist and volunteer for Saturday.

Tony Yapias, spokesman for the Mexican Consulate, said they hope to help approximately 400 people on Saturday.

"The Consulate is bringing more people and the goal is to assist 400 Mexican nationals," Yapias wrote in an e-mail to The Spectrum. He said the Consul has pledged to keep coming back to St. George.

The Consul also helped approximately 250 people during a visit to St. George in June.

As of Thursday afternoon, approximately 200 people had called to be seen on Saturday.

"There's always going to be people left out," Aguilar said. "But at least 400 more people will be helped."

Passports help identify who a person is, which can be crucial for Mexicans living in the United States, Yapias said.
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http://www.thespectrum.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080815/NEWS01/80...

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10.
Family Could Be Reunited With Detained Father
The Associated Press, August 15, 2008

Washington, DC (AP) -- A family could soon be reunited with their father who was arrested by immigration agents in July.

Discuss This Story

MAS Freedom, the civic and human rights advocacy entity of the Muslim American Society, found out Thursday evening that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities were ready to reach an agreement for the release of 60-year-old Ziyad Busaileh of Raleigh, according to a press release sent out by MAS Freedom.

Busaileh was detained on July 22 of this year for an expired visa. Busaileh's family said Ziyad’s immigration paperwork included extensions on his visa and work permissions that, as far as they were aware, remained in effect.
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http://www.nbc17.com/midatlantic/ncn/news.apx.-content-articles-NCN-2008...