Its hard to believe, but my blog has been going for over a year now. I wanted to take some time and see how we have done, making West Virginia/America a better place. I use "we", because without you, the reader, also engaging with your elected representatives, or more thoroughly researching political candidates, not nearly as much could have been accomplished. Of course, our efforts here can only claim a small portion of these victories, but, we did make our voices heard.
WINS
1. The West Virginia Roads bond passed. Hopefully this will bring economic prosperity to our state.
2. The West Virginia Republican party failed in repealing the State income tax. This would have put a burden on the middle class that we would not have been able to survive.
3. President Trumps first travel ban was rejected by the court system. It unconstitutionally favored Christianity over other religions.
4. President Trump has not pulled the USA out of NAFTA, yet.
5. 5 candidates from the 2016 campaign that this website backed, won their election. That's not a lot, but, hey, it was a bad year for centrist candidates. One of those candidates, State Senator Ojeda, was the leading voice in getting Medical Marijuana passed for our state citizens. Couldnt be prouder. Good job sir!
6. UMWA retired coal miners got their health care secured by congress.
7. The Russia Sanctions review act passed. It had to change names but it says, amongst other things: "The President must submit for congressional review certain proposed actions to terminate or waive sanctions with respect to the Russian Federation."
8. General Mattis did become Secretary of Defense (and we all breathed a sigh of relief, just think if Steve Bannon was the Secretary of Defense).
9. Marine Le Pen did lose the Presidential election in France, YEAH SHE DID! TAKE THAT POPULISM! Yes, people from France did read that blog. Yes, I'm taking all the credit on this one. Joking, of course.
LOSSES
1. All but five of the candidates this website backed, lost.
2. Governor Justice refused to remove Stonewall Jacksons statue from the capitol building grounds. The man fought for Virginia against West Virginia. Seems like a no brainer to me.
THE JURY IS STILL OUT
1. UMWA retired coal miner pensions are not secured yet, but its not over yet.
2. I haven't seen a set of gun safety laws that makes the populace safer, but doesn't restrict rights. I'm still hopeful. Maybe during the next West Virgina legislative session.
3. I havent seen any new initiatives in WV to help the environment and protect our citizens from flooding, but maybe there will be something done in the next session.
4. Illegal immigrant Veterans of the US armed forces are still being deported. I just wrote that one, though, so, it deserves more time.
5. I don't know if Senator Tom Cotton from Arkansas still thinks Water boarding isn't torture. He never wrote me back. Though, after google searching Tom Cotton and water boarding, I came up with nothing. So maybe hes just not talking about it anymore, which is also good.
As I've said, we cant take all the credit. We cant take much credit for the wins or the losses. However, if you, like me, made your voices heard by calling or writing to your representatives in congress/state legislatures regarding these issues, you can say that you have made a difference. You tried to make your state/country/world a better place. Thank you.
Monday, November 13, 2017
Saturday, November 11, 2017
BANISHED VETERANS
Happy Veterans day. Veterans Day is an official United States public holiday, observed annually on November 11, that honors military veterans; that is, persons who served in the United States Armed Forces. -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veterans_Day In that respect, I want to discuss our countries deported/Banished Veterans.
If you are unaware, illegal immigrants can join the US armed forces. They can go and fight for our country, for our citizens. When they come home, if they havent already become a citizen, they can then be deported. (See the NPR/PRI/NEWSWEEK/CHICAGO TRIBUNE address below for more stories about indivduals that this has happened to. This story has been told by writers better than myself. I encourage you to read the articles listed below, and then write to your reprsentatives in congress.)This does happen, and it happens more often than perhaps you would think. According to the deported veterans support house in Tijuana Mexico, they have come in contact with 100 deported veterans. That may not seem like a lot, but thats 100 times the US government has committed an egregious error. According to the PRI address below, there are about 11,000 non citizen soldiers/Marines/sailors/airmen serving in the armed forces today. If these illegal immigrant veterans did commit a crime, then they should do the time. IN AMERICA. Veterans should be allowed in to the US. These individuals put their lives on the line for us, I think the USA can do a little paperwork for them.
If you agree with me, that Deported/Banished Veterans should be allowed back in to the United States, that illegal immigrants currently serving in the US armed forces should be helped to become citizens now, then I encourage you to call or write your Representatives/Senators in the US congress, and tell them to support the "Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2017." Its copied and pasted below.
Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2017
https://www.npr.org/2016/01/13/462372040/service-members-not-citizens-meet-the-veterans-who-have-been-deported
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1405
http://www.deportedveteranssupporthouse.org/
https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-06-26/serving-us-military-wont-protect-these-veterans-being-deported
http://www.newsweek.com/daca-trump-immigrants-military-veterans-mexico-philippines-sessions-congress-663023
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-deported-vets-20170604-story.html
If you are unaware, illegal immigrants can join the US armed forces. They can go and fight for our country, for our citizens. When they come home, if they havent already become a citizen, they can then be deported. (See the NPR/PRI/NEWSWEEK/CHICAGO TRIBUNE address below for more stories about indivduals that this has happened to. This story has been told by writers better than myself. I encourage you to read the articles listed below, and then write to your reprsentatives in congress.)This does happen, and it happens more often than perhaps you would think. According to the deported veterans support house in Tijuana Mexico, they have come in contact with 100 deported veterans. That may not seem like a lot, but thats 100 times the US government has committed an egregious error. According to the PRI address below, there are about 11,000 non citizen soldiers/Marines/sailors/airmen serving in the armed forces today. If these illegal immigrant veterans did commit a crime, then they should do the time. IN AMERICA. Veterans should be allowed in to the US. These individuals put their lives on the line for us, I think the USA can do a little paperwork for them.
If you agree with me, that Deported/Banished Veterans should be allowed back in to the United States, that illegal immigrants currently serving in the US armed forces should be helped to become citizens now, then I encourage you to call or write your Representatives/Senators in the US congress, and tell them to support the "Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2017." Its copied and pasted below.
Veterans Visa and Protection Act of 2017
This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to: (1) establish a program to permit eligible deported noncitizen veterans to enter the United States as, and to permit eligible noncitizen veterans in the United States to adjust their status to that of, a noncitizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence; and (2) cancel the removal of eligible noncitizen veterans and allow them to similarly adjust their status.
An "eligible" veteran is a veteran who: (1) was not ordered removed, or removed, from the United States due to a criminal conviction for a crime of violence or for a crime that endangers U.S. national security for which the noncitizen served at least five years' imprisonment; and (2) is not inadmissible to, or deportable from, the United States due to such a conviction. DHS may waive such eligibility requirements for humanitarian purposes, to assure family unity, due to exceptional service in the U.S. Armed Forces, or if such waiver otherwise is in the public interest.
A noncitizen veteran or service member shall not be removed from the United States unless he or she has a criminal conviction for a crime of violence.
A noncitizen who has obtained the status of a noncitizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence under this bill shall be eligible for naturalization through service in the U.S. Armed Forces, except that: (1) the grounds on which the noncitizen was ordered removed from, or rendered inadmissible to or deportable from, the United States shall be disregarded when determining whether the noncitizen is a person of good moral character; and (2) any period of absence from the United States due to the noncitizen having been removed or being inadmissible shall be disregarded when determining if the noncitizen satisfies any requirement relating to continuous residence or physical presence.
A noncitizen who has obtained the status of a noncitizen lawfully admitted for permanent residence under this bill shall be eligible for all military and veterans benefits for which the individual would have been eligible if he or she had never been been removed from, or voluntarily departed, the United States.
DHS shall: (1) identify cases involving service members and veterans at risk of removal from the United States, and (2) annotate all DHS immigration and naturalization records relating to any noncitizen involved and afford an opportunity to track the outcome.
After working on this blog, I sent emails to my representatives in the federal Government. So far, Senator Shelly Moore Capito is the only one to respond. The following is her response.
November 15, 2017
Dear Mr. Vannoy,
Thank you for contacting me regarding Department of Defense (DoD) military policies; it was good to hear from you and I appreciate the opportunity to learn your views on this issue.
As you may know, in November of 2008, Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates authorized the enactment of the Military Accessions Vital to National Interest (MAVNI) program, which allowed non-citizens living in the United States to join the military. Immigrants who participated in MAVNI were provided an expedited path towards obtain U.S. citizenship. The MAVNI program was not renewed for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017, but those who were previously recruited have continued to serve.
The DoD is currently reviewing the program, and is expected to release a decision on the status of the program in the upcoming weeks. Should any relevant legislation come before the full Senate for a vote, I will be sure to keep your views in mind.
Again, thank you for contacting me. I look forward to hearing from you again soon and invite you to visit my website, www.capito.senate.gov
Sincerely,
Shelley Moore Capito
United States Senator
Shelley Moore Capito
United States Senator
The Senator's response leaves much to be desired. She talks about what was tried to help the problem, and how it no longer applies, but it may apply again in the future. She does not however put anything forward herself to try and fix the problem of Veterans who are illegal immigrants getting deported. As mentioned before, there is a bill in the House of Representatives right now that could fix the problem. She could put that bill in the Senate as well. I think our Veterans deserve better treatment than this. Its unfortunate that this was her response, because I know that if one of these Veterans had family who lived in her state, I think she would do more. Senator Capito in the past has helped me personally deal with the VA (I'm a Veteran). I hope she changes her mind and does more.
https://www.npr.org/2016/01/13/462372040/service-members-not-citizens-meet-the-veterans-who-have-been-deported
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1405
http://www.deportedveteranssupporthouse.org/
https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-06-26/serving-us-military-wont-protect-these-veterans-being-deported
http://www.newsweek.com/daca-trump-immigrants-military-veterans-mexico-philippines-sessions-congress-663023
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-deported-vets-20170604-story.html
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