by Yunita Ong | Mar 19, 2015 | Immigration
By Yunita Ong WASHINGTON – When Laura Drain moved from Mexico City to Atlanta to be a Hewlett-Packard engineer 15 years ago, she was single and her maiden name, Ramirez, created tensions with her co-workers. “People called me different and the pronunciation of...
by Astrid Goh | Mar 18, 2015 | Immigration
WASHINGTON—When Kenfe Bellay fled from the Ethiopian Red Terror in the late 1970s, he never thought he’d one day own a successful café. The cozy joint on H Street Northeast was established by Bellay and his wife, Yalemzwed Desta, in 2006. Money did not come easy...
by Yunita Ong | Mar 11, 2015 | Immigration, Living
WASHINGTON – The White House on Wednesday hosted its annual celebration of Norwuz, the first day of the New Year on the Persian calendar and the start of spring. With President Barack Obama on the road, first lady Michelle Obama addressed the guests, who...
by Yunita Ong | Mar 4, 2015 | Immigration
WASHINGTON — In the cacophony of debate about immigration, farmers across the nation often shun a completely legal guest-worker visa program. Charging that it’s bureaucratic and insensitive to the industry’s needs, farmers and their advocates for years have been...
by Yunita Ong | Feb 25, 2015 | Immigration, Politics
WASHINGTON – It could be up to the U.S. House to save the Department of Homeland Security from a partial shutdown, after the Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a motion to proceed to a funding bill, breaking a two-month political stalemate. The Senate...
by Yunita Ong | Feb 24, 2015 | Immigration, National Security, Politics
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, working to avoid an impasse with Democrats, announced Tuesday that a vote on a “clean” Department of Homeland Security funding bill could happen on Friday. McConnell’s move could break a two-month-old political...
by William Hicks | Feb 23, 2015 | Immigration, National Security
By William Hicks WASHINGTON—With a Friday deadline approaching, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson urged Congress on Monday to reach a consensus bill before funding for the agency expires. The agency’s responsibilities include border security,...
by Medha Imam | Feb 23, 2015 | Immigration, National Security, Politics
By Medha Imam WASHINGTON –President Barack Obama urged the nation’s governors Monday to support his efforts to secure funding for the Department of Homeland Security. As part of his remarks at the White House, Obama warned the governors of the “direct impact” a...
by Yunita Ong | Feb 4, 2015 | Immigration
WASHINGTON – House Republicans and Democrats butted heads on Wednesday over a GOP attempt to make electronic verification of the immigration status of new hires mandatory under federal law. Currently, five states require all businesses to use E-Verify, but the...
by Yunita Ong | Feb 3, 2015 | Immigration, Topics
WASHINGTON – Senate Democrats blocked a bill Tuesday that would have overturned President Barack Obama’s order loosening immigration restrictions, a move that leave the Department of Homeland Security funding in question. Three GOP senators, including Majority Leader...
by Yunita Ong | Jan 14, 2015 | Immigration
WASHINGTON – Although House Republicans on Wednesday blocked President Barack Obama’s recent executive action on immigration, the White House quickly fired back with another veto threat. The GOP-controlled House adopted an amendment, 237-190, to overturn the...
by Yunita Ong | Jan 13, 2015 | Immigration
WASHINGTON – House Democrats on Tuesday announced a national tour to encourage undocumented immigrants to sign up for benefits created by President Barack Obama’s November executive order. The move represents another attack on ongoing Republican efforts to shut down...
