Should immigrants expect bold immigration reform laws this year?

Atty. Emmanuel Samonte Tipon

          The lawyer told his client to wear something with red at the immigration interview, cautioning her that it would not be easy. This is the Year of the Dragon, he pointed out. Red is the color of the Year and is a lucky color.  She had married her fiancé who was half her age. When she showed up, she was dressed completely in red, with red shoes, red lipstick, and a ruby necklace. Her lawyer thought she would wear something like Angelina Jolie at the Golden Globes, white with a touch of red above her breast. Her husband wore a black suit and red shirt.

          How did they fare at the interview which was actually their second? The officer interviewed them separately asking the same questions. Their answers did not completely match. In the critical area of intimate relations, their answers did not jibe on when was the last time, leaving the woman irritated, saying it was only yesterday. Maybe it was not unforgettable that was why he forgot, joked the lawyer. So much for the color red.

SYMBOLISM

          According to Zodiac signs, “Dragons symbolize such character traits as dominance and ambition. Dragons prefer to live by their own rules and if left on their own, are usually successful. They’re driven, unafraid of challenges, and willing to take risks. They’re passionate in all they do and they do things in grand fashion. Unfortunately, this passion and enthusiasm can leave Dragons feeling exhausted and interestingly, unfulfilled.”

          So, should immigrants expect bold immigration reform laws – like DREAM Act and amnesty – in the Year of the Dragon? Will the U.S. Congress be “unafraid of challenges and willing to take risks”?  Will it do things with “passion” and “in a grand fashion.”?

          Nobody I talked with believes that, not even illegal immigrant lovers.           Will immigration reform via Congress remain a myth like the dragon?

IMMIGRATION, EXECUTIVE ACTION

          Newt Gingrich, who is seeking the Republican Party nomination for President, suggests legalizing (aka amnesty) certain illegal aliens. He talks as if he favors “open borders” like “open marriage” which his second wife accused him of asking. Gingrich asked rhetorically, “how can we deport 12 million of them?  That is a defeatist attitude. Come to Hawaii and see how fast the dragons (or dragonflies) from Department of Homeland Security are arresting and deporting aliens, even for noncriminal conduct.  An “amnesty” candidate is not going to win.   Look at John McCain.

          Will President Obama do something about immigration reform? The Obama administration acts as if it is speaking from both corners of its mouth.  On the one hand, the Obama administration is talking loudly about exercising “prosecutorial discretion” to give innocent children a chance at being saved from deportation which Republicans call “backdoor amnesty,” and giving a “waiver” for those illegally in the country who have an approved petition by a USC relative, another “backdoor amnesty.” On the other hand, his DHS and Attorney General are deporting hundreds of thousands of aliens, such that he has the highest number of deportees among the Presidents.

COURTS, IMMIGRATION

          How about the courts? Every week I receive a collection of immigration decisions. More and more decisions from the courts are anti-alien, even from the most liberal circuit court of appeals – the 9th Circuit – which covers the southwest where most aliens live, like California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico.

          Fortunately, there is still the Supreme Court that has put a brake on all these illegal deportations.  Remember Judulan, the Filipino who was saved from deportation by the Supreme Court because he challenged the decision of the 9th Circuit which had approved a rule concocted by the Department of Justice that an alien who is being deported and seeks relief under INA Section 212(c) must have committed an offense which has a comparable category in the exclusion statute. And previously, the Supreme Court held that an alien who is not told by his criminal defense lawyer that pleading guilty to an offense would result in deportation has suffered ineffective assistance of counsel and his conviction must be set aside. Those are bold decisions characteristic of the dragon.

(Atty. Tipon has a Master of Laws degree from Yale Law School and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines. He specializes in immigration law and criminal defense. Office: 800 Bethel St., Suite 402, Honolulu, HI 96813. Tel. (808) 225-2645. E-Mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Website: www.ImmigrationServicesUSA.com.. This article is a general overview of the subject matter discussed and is not intended as legal advice. No warranty is made by the writer or publisher as to its completeness or correctness at the time of publication.)

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