1. Napolitano nomination dubbed 'pragmatic'
2. FBI pressed illegals to spy on terrorists
3. Analysis: Senate may hand Obama 'victories'
4. Questions remain over SC regulations
5. NY co. board seeks to 'rebuild trust'
6. GA co. to cooperate with Feds.
7. UT meat plant workers 'unafraid'

1.
Homeland Security pick is 'pragmatic'
By Greg Gordon
McClatchy Newspapers, December 2, 2008

Washington, DC -- Few people have been closer to the center of the debate over illegal immigration than Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, the top Democrat in a conservative state with little sympathy for illegal immigrants.

While taking a law-and-order posture on immigration enforcement, Ms. Napolitano has opposed the construction of a 700-mile wall along the Mexican border and stressed that policing immigration is a federal responsibility.

Now, as President-elect Barack Obama's nominee to head the Department of Homeland Security, she won't be able to pass that buck anymore. It will be her task to enforce the nation's immigration laws, and her selection might be a signal that Mr. Obama wants to chart a moderate course on a volatile issue.

Ms. Napolitano's job will be among the toughest in Washington for other reasons, too. She must guide an octopus-like collection of two dozen federal agencies charged with protecting Americans from terrorism and natural disasters.

Her selection drew high praise yesterday from key Democratic lawmakers and Republicans such as the current homeland security chief, Michael Chertoff, and her home-state senator, John McCain. They said that as a border governor, former U.S. attorney and state attorney general, she has the right mix of managerial skills, law enforcement experience and understanding of the heated immigration issue to handle the challenges ahead.

In introducing her, Mr. Obama said Ms. Napolitano "has spent her career protecting people" and "knows firsthand the need to have a partner in Washington that works well with state and local governments."
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http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics/AP/story/795121.html

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2.
Fort Dix informant says he was scared
By Troy Graham
The Philadelphia Inquirer, December 2, 2008

In 2006, Besnik Bakalli was jailed on an immigration charge and facing deportation when the FBI asked him to help with an investigation.

At the behest of the agents, Bakalli befriended Dritan, Eljvir and Shain Duka, who, like him, spoke Albanian as their first language.

Bakalli said yesterday that the FBI agents did not tell him why they were interested in the Dukas.

But Bakalli said he started to piece it together during a fishing trip he took with the Dukas and their friend Mohamad Shnewer.

While riding in a minivan, Shnewer showed Bakalli videos on his laptop that depicted attacks on U.S. soldiers and vehicles. The Dukas were "laughing . . . having a good time," Bakalli said.

"I was scared," he said. "I never saw these videos before, and I thought, who are these people? Why am I here?"

Eventually, Bakalli learned that the Dukas, Shnewer, and other foreign-born Muslim men were under investigation for plotting an attack on Fort Dix, inspired by radical Islamic dogma.

Bakalli, 31, from Albania, became one of two paid FBI informants to infiltrate the group. The other informant, Mahmoud Omar, befriended Shnewer, a fellow Arabic speaker.

Omar, an Egyptian illegal immigrant with a federal bank-fraud conviction on his record, spent 13 days testifying in the case now unfolding in federal court in Camden.

Defense attorneys vigorously attacked Omar's credibility, and they likely will do the same with Bakalli, who has had several minor run-ins with the law in the United States.

More serious, the defense says, is that Bakalli returned to Albania in 2000 and shot a man who had been feuding with his sister.

Bakalli, also an illegal immigrant, said he agreed to help the FBI because "I was hoping I would stay here." Prosecutors have acknowledged that Bakalli and his family will receive consideration in their immigration cases.

"I can have a better life here," Bakalli said yesterday.
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http://www.philly.com/philly/news/homepage/20081202_Fort_Dix_informant_s...

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3.
Senate Could Give New President Early Legislative Victories
By Paul Kane
The Washington Post, December 1, 2008

As Senate Democrats prepare for next year's agenda, they are likely to have a working filibuster-proof majority on a variety of legislative issues that could provide early victories for President-elect Barack Obama.

Though they are two votes short of their quest for 60 votes -- with two races still undecided -- Democrats say that regular support from a few Republican moderates will allow them to pass bills that were halted in the current Congress by GOP parliamentary roadblocks. These include health-care programs, immigration revisions and presidential nominations.
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Civil rights: After the failure of sweeping immigration overhaul, Democrats scaled back their effort to focus on the DREAM Act. The legislation would have halted deportation efforts of children who are here illegally, giving them citizenship opportunities if they entered the country before age 16 and have lived here for five years.

That bill was blocked after receiving 52 votes, but four supporters were not present. For the 111th Congress, seven Democrats will replace Republicans who voted against the bill. Barring a push for broader immigration restructuring by Obama, Senate aides said this smaller measure should have enough support to pass.
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/30/AR200811...

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4.
Immigration and hiring;
There still are questions about the new rules that take effect on Jan. 1
By Noelle Phillips
The State (Columbia), December 1, 2008

Jan. 1 will be an important day for South Carolina businesses as the state's new immigration law kicks in.

The law became effective July 1, but sections that affect businesses' hiring practices begin phasing in during the new year.

State government officials, employment lawyers and business groups have been hosting seminars to help companies prepare, but questions remain about how the new law will work.

For example, the law says businesses will be fined if they "knowingly and intentionally" hired illegal immigrants.

However, employment attorneys say it's unclear how that will be proven.

Also, the S.C. Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation has not finalized its audit procedures or the appeals process for those who are found in violation.

And, there are questions about how the law will be enforced.

The Legislature did not include funding in the bill for additional staff at LLR to oversee the new immigration policy, agency spokesman Jim Knight said.

Legislators told LLR they would include funding during the next budget cycle that starts in July.
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http://www.thestate.com/business/story/607484.html

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5.
Suffolk County: Call to rebuild police trust
By Reid J. Epstein
Newsday (NY), December 2, 2008

Suffolk's Hispanic Advisory Board announced several initiatives yesterday to rebuild trust between police and Hispanic communities following the Nov. 8 killing of Marcelo Lucero, though an official said County Executive Steve Levy would not commit funding to the endeavor.

Mel Guadalupe, Levy's minority affairs director, said he hoped to receive "corporate support" for the board's efforts to distribute fliers promoting the Suffolk Police Department policy of not asking a crime victim's immigration status and teaching officers basic Spanish phrases.

Guadalupe and Alexander Gutierrez, the board's chairman, said they did not believe a lack of funding would hinder the group's efforts. Levy spokesman Dan Aug said he didn't expect the program to cost money, but said Levy would commit any resources deemed necessary.

But Legis. Ricardo Montano (D-Central Islip) said there is "not a lot of substance" to the advisory board's proposals, adding the county should devote more resources to the all-volunteer board with a $5,000 annual budget.

"The reality is there's a role for government in this and the government should be supporting it," said Montano, who is often critical of Levy on immigration issues. "It's been this government that has put the perception out there that people should be fearful of going to the police, and they have to correct that."

Gutierrez said the board is considering educational curriculum for county school districts and community groups. He said the group is looking to launch a "student congress" that would help deliver a message of "acceptance of cultural diversity."

"Looking at what happened with Marcelo Lucero," Gutierrez said, "we took it upon ourselves to write something up and present it to the county executive. This way we can have his assistance in implementing that to the community."
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http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/longisland/ny-pohisp025949146de...

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6.
Gwinnett to join feds on deportation
By Mary Lou Pickel
The Atlanta Journal Constitution, December 2, 2008

For about eight months, Gwinnett County has been waiting for the federal government to forge a partnership to deport illegal immigrants from the county jail.

Sheriff Butch Conway applied in March to join a program with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. But even if ICE were to approve the program before the end of the year, Gwinnett would not be able to train its deputies in immigration procedures until March at the earliest, said Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Stacey Bourbonnais. That’s when a training session for the program is available.

Such partnerships with ICE have become increasingly popular in the past two years, and now 63 law enforcement agencies nationwide have them.

The training prepares deputies to screen foreign-born inmates, determine who is in the country illegally and start deportation paperwork. Cobb County currently runs such a program and this year has transferred 2,746 inmates to federal agents for deportation. Cobb County has one ICE agent assigned to its jail to oversee the work of nine sheriff’s deputies, a Cobb County sheriff’s spokesman said.

The Gwinnett jail is expected to book a total of 13,081 foreign-born inmates in 2008, according to Bourbonnais. If Gwinnett joins the program, its number of deportations could be 4,000 to 6,000 a year —- double that of Cobb County.

The wait time for ICE to approve a program varies, although a year is not uncommon, said Jessica Vaughan, a senior policy analyst for the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington think tank that favors controls on immigration. “It’s very frustrating for those jurisdictions that have applied,” she said.

It takes time to determine where to initiate such local agreements, said Barbara Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for ICE.

“We have to determine if the resources are enough to create a sustainable program,” she said.

Those resources include ICE personnel, facilities and bed space, she said.
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http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2008/12/02/evgwinice.html

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7.
Swift meatpacking plant workers 'not afraid anymore'
By Jennifer W. Sanchez
The Salt Lake Tribune, December 2, 2008

Lodan, UT -- Before the immigration raid at then-Swift & Co.'s meatpacking plant in Hyrum, some supervisors knew that some of their workers were undocumented immigrants.

And some workers claim that certain managers used to work their Latino employees harder because they knew many of them wouldn't defend themselves.

There were Latinos who didn't speak English well, or who were scared to bring any attention to their undocumented co-workers, the workers said.

But since the 2006 raid, many Latinos and others have taken charge of their own fates, said Juan Mejia, who has worked at the plant for 13 years.

"They're not afraid anymore," he said. "They've learned their rights."

And just last month, more than two-thirds of workers voted to unionize and join the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).

Juan Morelos, who has worked at the plant for more than two years, said he supported the union because changes need to be made to benefit the workers.
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http://www.tribtowns.com/comments/read_comments.asp?ref=11115530&sec=New...