US arrests 55 illegal workers at Dulles airport

[UpInArms]

http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-06-14T183740Z_01_N14327658_RTRIDST_0_CRIME-ARRESTS.XML

WASHINGTON, June 14 (Reuters) - U.S. immigration officials said on Wednesday they had arrested 55 illegal immigrants who were working at a construction site in the secure area at Dulles International Airport.

Agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement made the arrests early in the morning as the workers were being bussed to the construction site and were attempting to pass through a security checkpoint.

ICE said in a statement that one of the workers had a security badge that grants unescorted access to the tarmac of the Virginia-based airport that serves Washington DC.

"Unauthorized workers employed at sensitive sites and critical infrastructure facilities ... pose serious homeland security threats," said Julie Myers, assistant secretary of homeland security in charge of ICE.

...more...

[partylessinOhio]

1. Well, that is a token drop in the bucket! Don't we have an estimated

60 million illegals here?

[saigon68]

2. This is a joke right?

What about the corporate looters who hired them?

Oh, they are going to the Country Club this afternoon

[RobertSeattle]

3. It's probably a contractor of a contractor

The Primes on big projects hire other contractors who subhire other contractors - it's usally the small'ish contractors who pay the illegal workers under the table, while the Prime's look the other way.

[saigon68]

4. Bottom Line IS----- They will all get away with it

Except the poor man with a shovel, who is working for food to eat.

[RobertSeattle]

8. Yep

I recall driving my a construction project at going home time and this foreman had a wad of cash and was paying the day laborers. I bet the same foreman, then gets into his Pickup truck and listens to Michael (Weiner) Savage rant about Mexicans immigrants!

[LanternWaste]

13. Yup...

Yup... the one's trying to work to put food on the table for their families get busted while the one's doing the real damage get a mulligan and a martini on the ninth hole.

Ya gotta love the way things work... :sarcasm:

[ninkasi]

27. Exactly!

Going after the employers would make more sense, but this administration doesn't want to upset business owners and corporations. I'm tired of the repukes using immigration as a wedge issue. If they want to push a global economy, then they need to make sure workers are paid living wages, no matter what country they live in. Funny, but they don't want any discussion of CEO pay to enter the picture, when they talk about the wage issue. No, it's ok to use immigrants to depress US wages, and it's ok for corporations to outsource jobs, but there is no comparison of how much the big-shots are paid here, vs. CEO pay in other countries.

[saigon68]

31. These corporate criminals Need to be "Brought to Justice"

[ninkasi]

32. Yes, they do

and they have one hell of a lot to answer to than a poor person trying to feed his/her family. Raising wages for all workers, and providing decent, universal health coverage is something that would help, too. The right wing tries to divide us by throwing out issues like "how illegals hurt American workers", just as they did 40 years ago, when the same group claimed that hiring women workers would depress male wages. Or hiring black workers, or any group other than straight, white men...everybody else was a threat. Pathetic, hate-mongering people.

[lyonn]

5. They were just doing jobs that American workers won't do!

Does that story really fly with the average person? Once again the bushcos insult the inteligence of the masses.

[Nihil]

28. Hmmmm

> Once again the bushcos insult the inteligence of the masses.

Not too sure about that ... being that "the masses" are almost certainly
not reading this forum but *are* listening to Fox et al ...

[Booster]

30. I have a nephew and some young friends that would love to get

into construction work, but, of course, they are all overqualified for the jobs.

[Laughing Mirror]

6. "Serious homeland security threats?"

ICE says the workers were from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Bolivia. They were employed by two construction firms involved in work at Dulles.

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0606/336176.html

I'm sure I speak for all of us when I commend Homeland Security on a job well done routing out these dangerous dangerous Central American illegal terrorists at work undermining the airport of our nation's capital. Phew! I feel so much safer now that I know they're safe behind bars. Don't you?

[Blaq Dem]

7. The contractors should be jailed

...and the workers paid large sums of money to return home.

[Bacchus39]

9. how about we just deport them??

and require contractors to employ US citizens?

[IndyJones]

15. Because that would be common sense. We can't be having that.

[Bacchus39]

17. si, se puede!!!!

n/t

[underpants]

10. Wow it's like it is right from the script

ICE Arrests About 2,000 Illegal Immigrants

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2075614

HOUSTON Jun 14, 2006 (AP)— U.S. immigration officers have arrested more than 2,000 illegal immigrants in a nationwide sweep, officials announced Wednesday.

In a blitz that began May 26, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 2,179 illegal immigrant gang members, pedophiles, violent felons and others who had sneaked back in the country after being deported.

About half the immigrants arrested in "Operation Return to Sender" have criminal records, said Julie Myers, assistant secretary for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

[Bacchus39]

11. operation return to sender good one

wow, I didn't realize that the government had a sense of humour.

[shanti]

12. a personal account

from my son, who is unemployed and working day labor at labor ready at the moment....

he was offered day work for a plumber out in the sticks and rode out there with the guy. the temperature was in the 90's and the plumber wanted him to dig trenches. my son had no water (or access to any) and almost passed out in the heat. when he sat down for a short rest, the man started grumbling about the "lazy labor ready people", and that he should have "just gotten some mexicans to do the job" (my son is 24 and white). at lunchtime, my son asked the plumber to bring him back some water when he left, but when he returned, he had a bag full of mcdonalds (for himself) and NO water for my son. when he drove my son back to the labor ready office, he was drinking a beer and driving erratically. to top it off, he refused to pay my son for the full six hours, and only gave him five! he had the gall to ask him if he wanted to work for him the next day!

this is part of the blowback from the "illegal" situation. :grr:

[SoCalDem]

16. Your son needs to call the labor board and report the guy

It's obvious that he's breaking a few laws..at least..

Since your son has no plans to work for him again, he might as well turn the bastard in and let him fell some heat also:)

[shanti]

25. believe me, i did think of this

my son found out the name of his company (he is a licensed contractor). thanks for the reminder - it can be done online;)

:hi:

[EFerrari]

19. No, this is blowback from believing brown people are not human

and don't have the same needs or rights that white people do.

It always comes home.

[Blaq Dem]

23. If you're not rich and republican, you're not considered human

It's not just a color thing. People really should do research the history of labor. "White Man's Burden"... "The Great Chain of Being"...go google it.

[EFerrari]

34. The history of labor is inextricable from the history of race

relations.

[shanti]

26. agreed

you said it better than i could!

[eowyn_of_rohan]

29. I missed the "brown" part

Where did you find it? And also, while we all have the same needs, immigrants who are here illegally do not have the same rights as American citizens, regardless of color. Why can't some of "us" here see past this color thing? BTW, I am REALLY brown. Lots of sun lately.

[EFerrari]

33. Yes, you missed the brown part. And, yes, immigrants legal

or illegal have the same HUMAN rights.

The thing is, you can't discriminate against a group, like say brown people, and then expect yourself or your family not to be affected by the same discrimination at some point.

Karma is an hija de perra.

[eowyn_of_rohan]

35. didn't answer the question

and as usual, always changing the subject instead

[EFerrari]

37. There was no change of subject at all.

Reread shanti's post.

You know, ignoring the challenges of race isn't the same as dealing with them.

[mitchum]

36. Just as you can't increase the labor pool and expect yourself...

or your family not to be affected.
Your turn...

[EFerrari]

38. You might check out what the AFL-CIO stands on this

very point.

I defer to their greater experience and their better ability to evaluate this situation:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=2672052

[IndyJones]

14. Yes, they pose serious security risks when they are in their backyards.

But it's okay to leave San Diego borders open.

And I'd sure like to know what has happened to the employer who hired them and gave the security badges. Probably nothing.

[soothsayer]

18. hey, they're working, so all are eligible for amnesty..!

[EFerrari]

20. And we can't have that!

:eyes:

[zreosumgame]

21. they arrested that many republican congress people?

Oh, i thought they said they did illegal work, my bad...

[lynne]

22. As someone who uses Dulles -

- I'm glad to see anyone who should not be in those secure areas rounded up and hauled out, illegal immigrant or not.

[justice1]

24. How long has the contraction project been going on?