1. ICE nets 11,000 gangsters
2. Obama targets Latino voters
3. Palin supports 'pathway'
4. PA city appeals decision

1.
Arrests of immigrants up in 2008
By Liz Mineo
The Daily News (Framingham, MA), October 25, 2008

Newly released figures from Immigration and Customs Enforcement show that Boston had a higher number of foreigners arrested for their ties to gangs than Houston, the same as Washington D.C. and a few less than Newark.

According to the figures, between February 2005 and September 2008, ICE agents arrested 464 people in Boston; 247 in Houston; 464 in Washington D.C. and 494 in Newark.

The arrests were part of ICE's Operation Community Shield, which began in 2005 to target violent transnational street gangs and their members, most of whom are foreigners with criminal histories and are here illegally.

In 2008, the arrests were greater in numbers than in previous years, said Paula Grenier, ICE spokeswoman. Between 2005 and 2007, Boston had 302 arrests, or on average 100 each year. But in 2008, the number grew to 162 arrested, an increase of slightly more than 50 percent.

The new arrests highlights the fact that ICE has been tightening its grip in areas where gang activity is on the rise.

Nationwide, the operation netted a total of 11,106 street gang members and associates. Of them, more than 4,000 had violent criminal histories. Most hailed from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras and belonged to gangs such as Mara Salvatrucha(MS-13), Mexican mafia, Surenos(SUR-13), 18th Street and Latin Kings.
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Both immigrant advocates and those who favor restrictions on immigration have praised ICE's action as a good way to get rid of criminals, but supporters worry the raids often target illegal immigrants.

"Sometimes, they end up getting people who are not criminals," said Laura Medrano, a Latino community leader in Framingham. "ICE has to go after criminals and deport them."

On the other side, Jessica Vaughan, a senior policy analyst with the Center for Immigration Studies, a group that supports limits on immigration, feels the same way.

Vaughan, who lives in Franklin, recently co-authored a report with Jon Feere for the center on ICE's Operation Community Shield.

"Some people claim ICE is using the operation as an excuse to round up illegal aliens who otherwise are law-abiding citizens," she said. "But that's not the case. They're removing a significant menace to the community."
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http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x1395943513/Arrests-of-immigrants...

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2.
Obama Woos Latinos, Attacks McCain on Immigration (Update1)
By Kim Chipman and Hans Nichols
Bloomberg, October 26, 2008

Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama, working to win over Latino voters in New Mexico, attacked Republican rival John McCain's record and argued that his rival can't be trusted to overhaul U.S. immigration laws.

``Senator McCain used to buck his party by fighting for immigration reform and I admired him for it, Obama said last night at a rally in Albuquerque. ``But when he was running for his party's nomination, he changed his tune. How can you trust him to make sure we finally solve this problem instead of using it as a wedge issue?''

McCain and Obama, with less than two weeks until Election Day, are ramping up their attacks and pushing to woo key voters, including Latinos.

McCain also stumped in New Mexico yesterday, touting his experience as a senator from neighboring Arizona and claiming a better grasp of Latino issues than his opponent. McCain, who continues to trail Obama in national and some key swing state polls, said today he's confident he will close the gap.

``We're doing fine,'' McCain said today on NBC's ``Meet the Press'' program. ``We have closed in the last week. We'll continue to close next week. We're going to be up very late on election night.''

A Rasmussen Reports national tracking poll shows Obama leading McCain 52 percent to 44 percent while other surveys, such as one conducted by Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby, show McCain only a few points behind.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aW8_E.DQSXBg&refer=home

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3.
Palin finally speaks on immigration, supports path to citizenship
By Stephen Dinan
The Washington Times Blogs, October 26 2008

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin says she supports John McCain's position on immigration, including a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.

It's the first time she's addressed the issue in depth, and her views are likely to shape her chances of leading the Republican Party should McCain fail to win the White House nect month.

She said she agrees with McCain, who fought most of his party in trying to legalize most illegal immigrants.

"John McCain has been so clear with his policy and it makes a lot of sense too. We secure our borders first. But then with a comprehensive approach we must deal humanely with those who are here, and we must allow the steps to be taken to protect the families of those who are here, maybe as illegal immigrants today," she told Univision's "Al Punto" Sunday political talk show in an interview aired this weekend.
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http://washingtontimes.com/weblogs/dinan/2008/Oct/26/palin-finally-speak...

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4.
Illegal immigration act appeal due in federal court Thursday
A federal appeal for a 2006 case that put Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta in the spotlight will be held five days before he faces U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski in their race for Congress.
By Kent Jackson
The Republican Herald (Pottsville, PA), October 27, 2008

A federal appeal for a 2006 case that put Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta in the spotlight will be held five days before he faces U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski in their race for Congress.

Two years ago, Barletta gained national attention by supporting Hazleton’s Illegal Immigration Relief Act. The law never took effect, and a federal judge in Scranton overturned it last summer.

The U.S. Circuit Court in Philadelphia plans to hear an appeal in the case at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

During the appeal, three judges selected by computer will listen to arguments and ask questions of attorneys representing the city and the law’s opponents, led by the American Civil Liberties Union. Each side will have 30 minutes to present a case, and the judges aren’t expected to decide the appeal for months.

Still, the hearing might revive an issue that initially attracted voters to Barletta.

“It will allow Mayor Barletta to demonstrate yet again that he has been fighting for the people of Hazleton and by extension for the people of the district,” political science Professor Thomas Baldino of Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, said. “Where there has been a lapse on the part of the federal government to take steps to remediate the problem, he took the initiative, passed the ordinance in Hazleton. It is his strongest issue.”

In their stances on immigration, little separates Barletta, a Republican, from Kanjorski, a Democrat, who represented the 11th District in Congress for 24 years.

Both favor strong enforcement of the nation’s borders and sanctions for hiring illegal immigrants. They oppose amnesty for people who are in the country illegally.

Immigration, barely mentioned in the presidential campaign, factors significantly in the Kanjorski-Barletta race.
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http://www.republicanherald.com/articles/2008/10/27/news/local_news/pr_r...