Pelosi tells Democrats it’s time to take one for the team and vote for health care

Speaker Pelosi asked fellow Democrats to fall on the sword, take one for the team or vote against their values to force a 2,700-page health care legislation bill onto the American citizens that simply doesn’t believe a faltering economy can handle another trillion-dollar entitlement program.

President Obama claimed he heard the voters in his State of the Union speech in January. He promised his administration would pivot to jobs and the economy. In fact, not only has the President failed to live up to his speech, but also his administration plans to focus on the health care topic for the next two to three months.

The recent economic indicators show the country in fact is headed for a double-dip recession. The housing market posted lower than expected sales, the recent positive bounce in unemployment didn’t last, more jobs have disappeared and consumer-spending confidence has dipped again.

Skyrocketing deficits and continued government spending increases have voters on edge. Most understand that they have to live within a budget and cut back when they do not have the money.

The credit card era is over and it’s time to pay the piper. If America doesn’t want to falter to China than it’s time to start thinking about the hard decisions that need to be made in Washington D.C. and belt up for a bumpy ride.

The changes Americans need to make are not easy and there will be a lot of painful cuts that need to be made to ensure our world dominance, but most are ready. If that means pensions need to be trimmed, federal employees salaries need to be more in line with the national average or Social Security needs to be - so be it.

America’s children and grandchildren shouldn’t be saddled with years of reckless spending in the form of unsustainable deficits.

This isn’t the time to trade in values or simply take one for the team, it’s time is for Ms. Pelosi to step aside and let true leaders take the podium and keep the country from the cliff that is on the fast-approaching horizon.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Tea Parties mark their one-year anniversary – rain or shine

One year ago today, concerned citizens throughout America began the arduous task of organizing a movement. The movement would grow like wildfire and be known as the Tea Party. The leaderless grassroots group would focus on big-government spending and infringement of laws threatening American liberty and freedom.

Tea Party members say this will be the first battle of the Second American Revolution. Across America the calls were heard and citizens formed a vast patriot social network. By April, the Tea Party movement included millions of Americans, and on April 15th, 850 tea parties across the nation hosted 1.2 million patriots voicing their defiance of an out-of-control government.

“To date in California we have 173 different Tea Party groups and we are home to the largest coalition in the country – we are even bigger than Texas,” said Dawn Wildman co-founder of the Southern California Tax Revolt Coalition in San Diego. “It’s great to see the rain or the last minute parking charge (formally a free lot on the weekends) didn’t keep the 1,000 Tea Party supporters from our first anniversary.”

The parking charge didn’t sit well with the Tea Party organizers and after the event it was back to work doing what the citizen activists do best – hit the phones.

“I was able to pin this down to the San Diego County Supervisor people. But I also heard that Bill Horn was they’re complaining about us being anti-politician. I guess he hasn't heard that we are Pro-Citizen! And he doesn't understand the distinction,” Wildman said.

Nevertheless, the supervisor in charge of parking was Richard (he was actually really nice and just caught in the middle). The county official who contacted him and insisted on having paid parking was David Hall.

“The slimy thing about this is we’ve had several events at the same location, never had any incidents and were always able to park free in the county lot on the weekends. When the Supervisors got wind of our rally they were threatened by our activism (they should because we hold all officials accountable) and decided to charge $10 to park. Did you see how empty the lot was – their ploy didn’t work,” Wildman said.

Wildman explained the movement is so powerful in California that for the first time there has been no talk of Northern or Southern California. “We are all Californians.”

Of course, it wouldn’t be a rally without a jab or two at California leadership. This time it would be Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Comments made this week on the Fox News channel by Schwarzenegger described the Tea Party movement as nothing more than anger at a slow economy.

“The irony about Schwarzenegger is a similar movement was responsible for recalling disgraced Governor Gray Davis and got Arnold voted into office,” Wildman pointed out.

The line up of speakers in San Diego did not include any politicians, however many candidates were spotted in the crowd. A tax advocate, Richard Rider, touted the movement as a positive sign and explained change finally is on the horizon. “I was skeptical at first, over the years we’ve seen pockets of resistance, but as the year unfolded the movement grew stronger and stronger.”

Rider also noted that the race to take back the country’s economic freedom was not a sprint race, but more like a super marathon – one which would leave a country worth having for those children who want to grow up and be all they can be.

This sentiment was echoed by headline speaker, Roger Hedgecock, a nationally syndicated Conservative talk show host based in San Diego; “The government is now telling you that they know how to better spend your childrens money they haven’t even made yet.” The crowd went nuts.

Other notable jabs included, “every seat is the people’s seat” and “We the People intend to restore a free market economy that is the envy of the world.”

Another San Diego Tea Party organizer, Leslie Eastman had this to say about the attendee diversity question the main stream media tends to focus on. “Quick — someone call the MSNBC diversity police. I have just shown more racial diversity in two pictures (in the slide show) than MSNBC has on its whole lineup.

Before and after the rally, citizens were encouraged to sign petitions on the three core issues. They were also informed about Icaucus, “Independence Caucus” via a full group table and speech given by Stephanie Jahn. This group puts potential candidates through a thorough background check before endorsements are made. Chuck DeVore, who is running for Senate in California against Barbara Boxer has already been endorsed by Icaucus.

Those in power can expect to be held accountable in the upcoming elections. The Tea Party movement is supporting like-minded candidates and encourages friends and neighbors to get involved with the political process; every race can expect to be the center of attention, local, state and national.

“We intend to take the country back to America's founding principles. We've let the country drift too far, and as citizens we have an obligation to return the nation to the sort of governance imagined by our Founding Fathers,” says the Tea Party Patriots.

Judging by the turn out and determination career politicians have a real fight on their hands.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Congressman Rangel must now wrangle with his future in politics

It has been reported by the Associated Press that the ethics investigation panel has decided Charles Rangel (D-N.Y) and his staff broke the rules when they knowingly accepted Caribbean vacations on behalf of large corporations.

It is a violation of the House rules to accept extravagant trips on behalf of any businesses while serving in the U.S. Congress. Members of the Congressional Black Caucus say Rangel had been exonerated on four of the trips, however he was guilty of other island vacations.

Rangel, who is an establishment lawmaker, could face the loss of control in the powerful Ways and Means Committee that oversees Medicare and Social Security benefits as well as tax issues.

It is worth pointing put that the House and Means Committee must rewrite the expiring of former President Bush’s tax laws that the committee is expected to tackle – much of it is complicated legislation to craft.

This ethics decision comes as another blow to established Democrats who have suffered a variety of setbacks from passing health care legislation to retiring stalwart leaders. Rangel who has served in the Congress for 34 years could lose his powerful chairmanship.

The good news is the ethics committee decided not to levy formal charges against Rangel that could have led to censure, however the committee is still mulling over other suspect fundraiser and finance activities Rangel is accused of mishandling.

Others contend the beltway insider could decide to retire rather than face a tough midterm election that would be marred with ethical mud slinging as a way to escape further committee investigation.


Rangel did answer a few questions about the ethics committee ruling, but he remained defiant. “So I now have to deal with my lawyer as to what the hell do they (ethics members) mean when something's 'imputed?' Does it mean that no matter what a staff member does, that if a member doesn't know it a member can be charged and admonished publicly for it?”


In the end Rangel decided to leave the public flogging to his constituents; “I think right now I have to let the general community make its own judgment.”


The ethics committee will issue their report to the public sometime on Friday.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner
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Boxer flip flops on Pay-Go and votes for unfunded stimulus 2.0

A few short days ago Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) voted for pay-as-you go legislation – in which she referred to as a way to “help us maintain fiscal discipline while we continue the hard work of rebuilding America’s economy,” and she broke her promise to her Californian constituents by voting for the new $15 billion stimulus bill disguised as a 'jobs bill.'

This was the first test legislators faced on their new pay-as-you-go rule and they quickly moved to break the promise of paying for all new bills by cutting other programs or raising taxes.


Last month Boxer and her Democrat friends voted for the PAYGO legislation in order to provide political cover for another vote to raise the national debt ceiling by $1.9 trillion to a record $14.3 trillion. This ballooning debt measure was needed after the Democrats maxed-out the government’s credit card in order to pay out $787 billion for the overrated stimulus package.


“It’s inexplicable that Senator Boxer voted to waive the same law that she applauded the President for reinstating just four weeks earlier. This hypocrisy highlights why Barbara Boxer is facing the toughest re-election battle of her career,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokeswoman Amber Marchand. “Voters are tired of the out-of-control spending from the Democrat-controlled Congress and they are looking for real change in Washington this November.”


Boxer said on MSNBC that she “believed in PAYGO. If I want to spend something then I’ve got to cut something or figure out a way top for it.”


Boxer who is a longtime cosponsor of PAYGO legislation said PAYGO helps maintain fiscal discipline.
“U.S. Senator Boxer today applauded President Obama’s decision to submit a proposal to Congress to reinstate pay-as-you-go budget rules. Reinstating this common sense principle is long overdue. It will help us maintain fiscal discipline while we continue the hard work of rebuilding America’s economy. Senator Boxer is a longtime cosponsor of PAYGO, which would reinstate pay-as-you-go rules and help block measures that increase the deficit.”


At a teleconference on The Hiring Incentives To Restore Employment Act on February 17, 2010 Boxer discussed the importance of controlling spending. “Now, I could talk to you on the whole issue of the debt, because I was in the Congress in the Senate when we had no debt. And excuse me, we had no deficit, and we were on our way to ending the debt under Bill Clinton, and that is done through pay-as- you-go policies. It's got to be - you've got to have tough - you've got to make some tough cuts and tough votes.”


A recent Rasmussen Reports poll states that 71 percent of voters now say the legislature is doing a poor job. The time when politicians could say they believed in balanced budgets to the cameras and then voted to bust the bank with so-called jobs bills are over.

With the November midterms just nine months away Rasmussen says 9 percent of lawmakers jobs are safe. Most Americans believe members of Congress are not genuinely interested in helping people, which ties to the continued fall in poll numbers. Eighty-one percent say most members of Congress are more interested in their own careers - this is a new multi-year high.

Most troubling for Boxer in the latest Rasmussen Reports survey of likely voters in California is her continuing inability to break the 50 percent threshold against any of the Republican hopefuls. Rasmussen contends that incumbents who capture less than 50 percent of the vote at this stage of their campaign are considered vulnerable. Something all three GOP candidates, Chuck DeVore, Tom Campbell and Carly Fiorina are all zeroing in on.

"This is a triumph of jobs over politics," Senator Boxer said after the bill cleared a key procedural vote Monday night.

While Boxer continues to vote for every left-leaning piece of legislation put in front of her pen, November may be the only chance for voters to return the favor and hold her voting practices accountable.


For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Human trafficking group seeks awareness and tougher prison penalties

Looking for ways to slow human trafficking and the evils that comes with the modern-day slavery, California Against Slavery has started its petition drive to get tougher penalties for those who peddle in human trafficking onto California’s books.


The groups seeks much tougher criminal penalties, aid to district attorneys to better prosecute cases, increase protections for victims and train law enforcement officers all with hope of deterring those who continue to smuggle immigrants in America under the guise of a better life.


Victims of human trafficking are often subjected to forced labor, sexual exploitation and blackmail from their captures. This phenomenon isn’t unique to the United States, but is thriving in many countries around the world.


"We support and desperately need to see revision in our state law with regard to human trafficking," said Jenny Williamson, founder and president of Courage to Be You, a Sacramento-area organization that rescues and restores victims of child sex trafficking. "Severe fines and extended jail time for the perpetrators of this evil must be enacted if ever this crime is to be deterred. Our courageous law enforcement officers must be equipped and encouraged with mandatory, specific training so that rescuing these vulnerable victims and putting their perpetrators away becomes a priority within our state."
Taking a crack at the issue is Daphne Phung, executive director and founder of California Against Slavery;

1. How many people are found in California and U.S. who are victims of human trafficking?


Due to the underground nature of human trafficking, the counts of victims in California and the U.S. are not concrete or recent.


For California, a report by "Human Trafficking in California" of the California Alliance to Combat Trafficking and Slavery Task Force, published October 2007. (http://www.homeland.ca.gov/pdf/Human_Trafficking_in_CA-Final_Report-2007.pdf )

The report said California has five Task Forces funded by the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). Between December 1, 2005 and March 12, 2007, California’s five Task Forces reported there were 559 potential victims identified. (These numbers do not include data from the Orange County Task Force, which was funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.)
For the United States, the numbers are very imprecise. On February 3, 2010, Luis CdeBaca, director of U.S. Department of State's Office To Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, held a press conference about human trafficking. Here's what he said (from http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/rm/2010/136475.htm):


2. What are the percentages of women/children verses men?


Approximately 80 percent of victims of human trafficking are women and girls.


3. Is there one ethnic group that is particularly vulnerable to human trafficking?


According to a study from Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley, the largest number of foreign victims came from Thailand, Mexico and Russia.


Experts estimate at least 100,000 American juveniles are victimized through prostitution in America each year. (Shared Hope Report, at http://www.sharedhope.org/files/SHI_National_Report_on_DMST_2009.pdf Common factors for these juveniles are: poverty (basic needs not met), history of abuse, parents use drugs.
American children are victims of sex trafficking within the United States. Domestic child victims tend to be easy targets and carry less risk for the traffickers and buyers than adults and foreign nationals. Many victims are youth in the child welfare system and/or runaways, but some are recruited from middleclass homes as well. A common factor is the history of child physical and sexual abuse in the home or the extended family.

4. What regions of the state/country are more prone to this abuse?


The major metropolitan areas (San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Diego) are hubs for receiving trafficked victims. Central Valley receives trafficked victims for the agriculture and factory work.

5. What will this cost the taxpayer and how will it be paid for? Do you propose cutting another program to make way for this new law?


Potential increased local government costs of up to a few million dollars on a statewide basis due to the new mandatory training requirements for certain law enforcement officers. Unknown but probably minor net fiscal effects for state and local governments from a potential increase in human trafficking arrests and convictions. This would be a negligible percentage increase in state General Fund spending.


California Against Slavery does not have a position on cutting other California State programs, since the expected increase in General Fund spending would be negligible. For a breakdown visit; California Legislative Analyst's office estimated the fiscal impact of our initiative cost; http://lao.ca.gov/ballot/2009/090850.aspx


6. Why should the voters care?


First, voters should care because human trafficking threatens the core foundation of our modern society that every person - regardless of race, age, gender, background -possesses an inherent dignity. Human trafficking is a crime against human dignity and a deprivation of the most basic human and civil rights. Allowing this crime to exist and flourish practically unchecked will impact the fabric of our society.
Second, voters should care because human trafficking is linked to other criminal activities that will negatively impact the safety and health of our communities. It gives criminals access to a large amount of money. “Instead, human trafficking often involves organized crime groups who make huge sums of money at the expense of trafficking victims and our societies,” according to the U.S. State Department.


CNN did a story in August 2009 about Mexican drug cartels moving into selling humans. Drug lords are recognizing the high profit in the human trade. A supply of drugs can only be sold once, but slaves can keep producing day after day, week after week. Source: http://humantrafficking.change.org/blog/view/mexican_drug_cartels_switch_to_selling_humans


The US State Department also identified that human trafficking can result in increased exploitation of children, lowered wages (as cheap goods get even cheaper), reduced workforce productivity, and heightened public health problems (STD’s, psychological traumas).


Third, voters should care because current laws in California fail to deter traffickers from committing these heinous offenses. Under California's current anti-trafficking laws, a trafficker will walk away with a 3-5 year sentence (and a maximum of 8 years only if the trafficked victim was a minor)! Suffice it to say this does not overweight the profit that traffickers can gain from the crime.


The reality that slavery exists today is a tragedy; and the fact that it is flourishing in our own backyard is absolutely appalling. Its growth is propelled by a lack of deterrence and awareness.


7. Are you going to have a professional signature service collect the 600,000 signatures needed to make the ballot?


No. We are an independent grassroots, volunteer-based organization. We are not financed by any corporation or organization and look to citizens to support our cause. Our current funding comes solely from donations from individuals who believe in our cause. Our strategy is to use volunteers to get signatures in their communities as well as heavily leverage the Internet. We estimated that we would need 600,000 signatures by March 31st to get on the November 2010 ballot.


***
The importance of deterring those who seek to exploit other humans should be second nature by now, yet it continues to oppress people throughout the world. How we address this issue in the Untied States should be something the rest of the world could turn to as a fair practice barometer. It should also enlighten those in America to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves.


"Human trafficking is an egregious crime against the most basic human rights and it is an important issue for our state," said Phung, of California Against Slavery. "We are bringing this issue to the voters to give Californians an opportunity to speak up against human trafficking. We hope that every voter in California will sign the petition and ask ten friends and family members to do the same."

Please visit http://www.CaliforniaAgainstSlavery.org to print and sign the petition, read the full-text of the initiative, or learn more about California Against Slavery.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County

Tea party movement fights political push back by Clinton machine

Tea Party organizers have found their voice, grown exponentially and have exerted their political will into both parties. Many of these grassroots organizations are now celebrating their first anniversary, but one thing is certain, they won’t rest until Washington politics is restored to its roots and begins to live within its means.


According Dylan Ratigan at MSNBC the Tea Party movement has “no coach, no game plan, and did we mention, the tea party has a bit of an integrity problem, as everybody from birthers, to open racists, to outright Nazis are actually on the team. And no one involved, including its leadership, seems to mind the fact.”


Ask the millions of everyday Americans who attended political rallies for the first time in their lives about main stream media view of their cause and you get something along the lines of “sticks and stones.”
While the mainstream media continues to mock the grassroots movement, the Tea Party folks look at the swelling ranks assuring their value in the political process.


“There are two things I have discovered during the course of the past year regarding the media. First, San Diego is blessed to have very engaged and fair-minded local news organizations. Second, in terms of national coverage, Tea Party participants rely mainly on the internet, Facebook, and Twitter and we really don't expect much out of the beltway/New York media organizations,” says Leslie Eastman founder of the Southern California Tax Revolt Coalition.

The chance to usurp a new movement may prove more difficult as the Tea Party remains leaderless. However that won’t stop the left trying to discredit a movement that is clearly resonating with a large majority of Americans. “What they still don't understand is that this is a leaderless movement, this is a 'We The People...' movement. Our new website is a chance for 'We The People' to stand up and say that 'I Am The Tea Party Leader,’” Eastman said.

“As a registered Democrat, and a co-founder of the Tea Party organization, I am taking a few moments to review information that has been setting citizen activists across the country abuzz. There are NO designated Tea Party Leaders,” Eastman explained.

Over the weekend the movement learned of a new clandestine attack against the Tea Party organizers. Recent upset victories in blue states have the Clinton political machine operating in overtime researching activities by Tea Party organizers. The man expected to head the full-frontal assault against the Tea Party crowd is none other than James Carville.

Big Government reports, “that Clintonistas are plotting a “push/pull” strategy. They plan to identify 7-8 national figures active in the Tea Party movement and engage in deep opposition research on them. If possible, they will identify one or two they can perhaps ‘turn’, either with money or threats, to create a mole in the movement. The others will be subjected to a full-on smear campaign.”

Responding to the attacks from the left, Tea Party organizers across the country have begun a counter-offensive. On their new website ‘I am the tea party leader’ the group posted a response to the attempt to discredit the grassroots movement.

“It is un-American and morally wrong for a former president to attack Americans who have gotten involved in the political system. It was Thomas Jefferson who said, ‘when the people fear the government there is tyranny.’" The website encourages tea party activists across the country o post a short video explaining why they are a leaderless movement and rebuff attacks.

According to Tea Party Patriots, “Our leaders are tea party organizers, patriots that make phone calls and send emails to their elected officials, bloggers, and activists that take time out of their lives to attend tea parties, the list goes on and on. We are the sleeping majority that has awakened.”

No matter the name calling the Tea Party movement likens itself to a starfish with many legs, “you cut one of us off and another will grow to take their place.”

“We patriots know that we are fighting for the principles that our freedom loving nation was founded on. We are just ordinary people reclaiming America's founding principles. We are a diverse group that comes from every walk of life and ethnic background. We all have one thing in common and that is we love freedom - economic freedom and freedom from big government and massive government deficits,” says Tea Party Patriots.

In an effort to make it easier former President Clinton and James Carville to identify Tea Party leaders the group established the new web site. “We hope to collect videos from thousands of patriots telling former President Clinton and James Carville that they are Tea Party leaders. The videos are filmed at home, soccer fields, grocery stores and other locations that are indicative of the diversity of the tea party movement,” the organization contends.

When asked about former President Clintons attempt to get involved in discrediting Tea Parties, Eastman admits she is angry.

“I have mixed feelings. Anger, because the Tea Parties are comprised of average Americans exercising their First Amendment rights who should not be personally targeted by political elites. I feel sadness, because I voted for President Clinton in 1992, so he obviously valued my opinion then - should it count less now? And I feel mystified, Clinton has a legacy of a sound economy and being flexible enough to change course after the 1994 election - why should he interject himself now in this way and potentially damage any remaining relevancy and credibility he has,” Eastman said.

When it comes to marring the movement or trying to paint the Tea Party actions into some sort of racially negative movement Eastman warns the left-leaning media to be careful.

“It is the opinion of every Tea Party participant that if any attempt is made to target one of us, then the rest of us will rally and become more active. A good example of this is the new I am a leader website,” Eastman concludes. Link here; http://www.iamtheteapartyleader.com/

It doesn’t matter if the media or political talking heads agree or disagree with the Tea Party movement, what is important is that ‘we the people’ are seen in every town across the nation ready to make a difference on election day November 2010, according to the millions of Tea Party leaders.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Latin American countries propose open borders in the Western Hemisphere

According to a report in El Universo, the Ecuadorian government will ask the Organization of American States (OAS) to consider pushing the U.S. to adopt an open-border policy to encourage all people of Northern and Southern America to be free to move throughout the region, thus ending the need for deportations.


In the story, Hernan Holguin, sub-secretary of the Ecuadorian national department that oversees migrant issues, said he would bring this matter to the attention of OAS in an effort to solve the “human rights” and to halt the “irregular immigrants” deportations.


The move by Ecuador’s leaders hopes to impose a new world order in the west. Hernan expressed that people around the globe are advancing to a ‘universal citizenship’ and the world at large has already accepted that world globalization extends beyond foreign trade and is advancing towards ‘universal citizenship.’


The Ecuadorian government believes citizens of the world should be able to travel to countries whenever they want to.


The one-world proposal urges that “an integrated migrant policy with full respect for human rights in the framework of human mobility,” Hernan explains. He also emphasized that the process of immigrant returning to their country of origin should be “orderly, planned and supported.”


Once the process is in place, illegal immigrants could avoid being arrested on a minor infraction therefore eliminating the need for deportation. In order to avoid situations in which the undocumented immigrants are arrested for a minor infraction the treaty of sorts would eliminate the need for deportation from North America.


Hernan explained that in order for all nations to accept this new-world order it would be necessary for all countries to sign ‘migratory agreement.’


Ecuador estimates that at least one-fifth of its population is already guilty of illegal migratory status. The countries that Ecuadorians migrate to are; America, Spain and Italy.


Hernan believes the Ecuador economic crisis in 1999 began the process to citizens seeking work outside their country.


The United States continues to be the top destination for Latin Americans seeking work, health care benefits and a better life. One problem that goes hand in hand with illegal immigration is crime. Currently one-third of California’s prison population is Latin American. According to reports, those in prison are there for committing robberies, domestic abuse, drugs, rape and murder.


This is a staggering number and obviously adds a financial burden to the residents of California. This fact alone will give Californian’s pause when the immigration reform battle heats up later this year.


Do read the El Universo article click here; http://www.eluniverso.com/2010/02/15/1/1360/ecuador-pedira-oea-libre-movilidad.html?p=1360&m=1860


For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

False allegations, ICE betrayal and cover-up surround the House of Death

Describing the mishandling of the House of Death case and ICE’s treatment of confidential informants goes something like this – what happens in Mexico, stays in Mexico or government agencies gone wild; or law enforcement agencies gone wild.


Not only has the House of Death incident never been fully investigated, but also none of the DEA, ICE and DHS management officials responsible for supervising the case reprimanded. No rule books were written to ensure U.S. law enforcement agencies could ever take part in covering-up a dozen murders that crossed international borders with Mexico.


Once the case was shut down and the ‘stuff’ hit the fan ICE agents found themselves in the middle of a game of ‘Clue.’ Except this was very real – it was Mr. ICE agency, with the rope in the House of Death.
A common fact that many news stories and ICE representatives in Washington D.C. conveniently leave out about this gruesome murder tale is the fact each time informant 913 - Guillermo Eduardo Ramirez Peyro or ‘Lalo’ was debriefed about his visits south of the border, several ICE agents and supervisors were present in the interrogation room.


In a recent series of articles by NPR a Kumar Kibble, acting director of criminal investigation for ICE said, "we have been successfully recruiting informants year after year, and I think they have a comfort level working with ICE," he says. "I mean, otherwise, we wouldn't be able to continue to bring the highly successful investigations that we have been bringing."

But according to the NPR story Kibble wouldn't talk about Lalo. He had no comment about why the agency wants to send its star informant back to Mexico, where Lalo faces torture and death at the hands of the cartels he sold down the river.


Several attempts were made to contact ICE and Mr. Kibble, but the agency could not find an employee with that name. Nevertheless Lalo’s attorney Jodi Goodwin made it clear that this problem is not isolated and she represents many informants in similar cases. “The fact they tried to blame this on Lalo and his ICE handler Bencomo and not any of the supervisors who made the decision to move forward after each murder is ridiculous.”


In an effort to cover-up their tracks ICE fired Lalo’s handler, Raul Bencomo. Not only was Bencomo a low-level agent, he was never in a position to tell Lalo to participate in murder and stay inside the Juarez drug cartel and collect damning information to bring down a major kingpin and give ICE some much-wanted notoriety. “In the end ICE did me in. They wanted a fall guy and I shouldn’t have been the fall guy. Why weren’t any of my supervisors who directed me through this case I didn’t want to be a part of lose their jobs?” Bencomo said.


The House of Death case did garner ICE notoriety, but it was the kind Washington decided to sweep under the mat and cross their fingers mainstream media would fail to pick up on the cover-up that went all the way to the Bush White House. ICE got lucky and indeed the mainstream media decided to focus on the war in Iraq.


Sandalio Gonzalez, the retired DEA Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of El Paso who blew the whistle on the House of Death says that members of Congress have been, and are being bamboozled by the Executive Branch on this issue. By failing to ask the tough questions relavent to this case makes Congress complicit with the federal law enforcement agencies involved in the House of Death cover up.

The JAT Report remains elusive


Emails posted on FBI Watch in March of 2006/07, quote the cover memorandum to the DEA/ICE Joint Assessment Team (JAT) Report prepared in connection with the House of Death debacle. The memo is directed to John Clark, ICE Director of Investigations, and Michael Ferguson, DEA Chief of Operations, from; (name redacted) Special Agent in Charge Buffalo and Rodney Benson ASAC, DEA Boston Field Division.

The memorandum reads, “This review commenced on February 10, 2004, and ended on February 19, 2004. In connection with this review, the JAT conducted forty-four interviews of DEA, ICE, United States Attorney’s Office and Department of State personnel in El Paso, Texas, and Mexico. In addition, the JAT conducted investigative and confidential source file reviews and reviewed several hundred recorded conversations in connection with the ICE and DEA [redacted] investigations.

This assessment report consists of the JAT timeline of pertinent events, JAT interview summaries and noteworthy reports; all the facts detailed within the JAT timeline were agreed upon by ICE and DEA JAT personnel,” the email read. (Link- FBI Watch 4th post down http://forums.signonsandiego.com/showthread.php?t=59139&page=28)


All parties involved know the JAT report exists yet very few eyes have been privy to the entire report including former DEA SAC Gonzalez. There have been claims that the report may be classified as National Security to shut the door for questions, however, Gonzalez sees it differently. “It’s not National Security issue, it’s a national embarrassment issue.”

A summary of the interview with the then DEA SAC Gonzalez, says the House of Death debacle reads something like this;

“On February 11, 2004, JAT members conducted an interview of Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Sandalio Gonzalez, explained that the interview was in connection with a joint review being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The purpose of the joint review was to ascertain the facts related to the events surrounding the evacuation of the DEA Resident Office in [Ciudad Juarez] Mexico and events and activities related to ICE and DEA investigations targeting [the VCF Juarez cartel and Heriberto Santillan-Tabares]. It was stressed by JAT personnel that this was solely a fact-finding inquiry to which the final report would be provided to the DEA Chief of Operations and ICE Director of Investigations,” the interviewers stated.


At many intra-agency meetings, during his four-year stint in El Paso, “SAC Gonzalez advised they discussed significant cases, operational and administrative matters, pertaining to Operation Sky-high: SAC Gonzalez was aware that it was an ongoing multi-agency operation including DEA, FBI, ICE, USAO (U.S. Attorneys Office) and Mexican Authorities targeting elements of the [Vicente Carrillo Fuentes] VCF [drug] organization in Mexico. According to Gonzalez, this multi-agency operation was initiated by DEA [El Paso].”


“Over the years, there has been some concern from U.S. Law Enforcement Agencies regarding the sharing of information with Mexican Authorities. SAC Gonzalez stated that he stressed that DEA would not share another agency’s information with Mexican Agencies without permission from the agency providing the information. Gonzalez stated that the FBI and ICE did not want certain information passed to the Mexican Authorities. SAC Gonzalez stated that the [Heriberto Santillan-Tabares] investigation was a joint investigation between DEA and ICE and that the FBI had very little involvement with this investigation,” the JAT Report team found.

Gonzalez recalled a March 2003 controlled delivery of “twenty-nine kilograms of cocaine that was received by the ICE [El Paso] CS [confidential informant, Guillermo Ramirez Peyro ‘Lalo’] from [Santillan]. In addition, SAC Gonzalez commented that DEA [El Paso] provided an undercover agent for the controlled delivery and DEA [El Paso] intelligence analysts participated in the debriefing of the CS shortly after the controlled delivery. According to SAC Gonzalez, Group Supervisor [redacted’s] group had primary oversight of the DEA [case] targeting VCF,” the report concluded.

Once the JAT report was finished and many questions remained unanswered about the misdoings by ICE, DHS and DOJ regarding the House of Death, many news agencies and attorneys began requesting the report through the Freedom Of Information Act or (FOIA). To this day the JAT report remains in a cabinet drawer in Washington D.C. or South America as some have reported.

Bill Weaver, a law professor at the University of Texas at El Paso who has written extensively about the murder case, stated that a letter from DEA in December 2006 stated, “that his FOIA request for the JAT is being jammed up because some documents are in South America and due to national security concerns.”

Weaver replied to the letter from DEA and said, “There is nothing in the Joint Assessment Team report or supporting materials that remotely involved ‘South America’ or the ‘Southern United States.’ All of the events investigated by the team occurred in the El Paso/Juarez region. Some interviews were made in Mexico City.”

A letter from DEA headquarters in Washington and the Department of Justice, to U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton’s office is proof that the JAT report does in fact exist. It also shows that Washington was concerned enough about a possible public relations disaster and then they buried the JAT report and settled their case against Santillan in a plea deal which didn’t include any murder charges.

The memorandum read, “This is a partial response to your letter of April 6, 2004, to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) El Paso Division Special Agent in Charge Sandalio Gonzalez concerning the captioned [Santillan] case. In that letter you requested any and all impeaching or otherwise exculpatory information relating to two essential witnesses for the Government (namely), Eduardo Ramirez, aka Lalo [the ICE informant] (and) Jose Jaime Marquez [Ramirez’ assistant in the House of Death murders].

More specifically, this memorandum is in response to paragraph 10 of your letter in which you requested ‘(a) copy of the final report, any internal memorandum or other documents prepared by the joint management inquiry team [the DEA/ICE Joint Assessment Team].’ Please note that the enclosed final report also includes a ‘Joint Assessment Team Timeline,’ which is referenced in paragraph “9” of your letter. This report is being provided to you in its entirety because we fully appreciate your office’s need to review all potentially relevant information with regard to the Santillan-Tabares case, and we understand that disclosure of this information outside of the United States Attorney’s office will not be made without further notification to, and consultation with, DEA,” the memo states.


The theory behind JAT Reports is two-fold. First they can hold a governmental agency accountable for mishandling operations, straying from agency policy and getting to the bottom of what happened and when. The second is to designate a new game plan when another similar event unravels and providing the rulebook to play by.


Neither has occurred in this case.


“The reason the Joint Assessment Team (JAT) Report remains so elusive is because the government has something to hide. It’s kind of like the child who breaks a toy and then hides it. The old adage out of sight, out of mind, can’t get in trouble. DHS has been hiding the facts for so long, they don’t know any other way. Unfortunately, DOJ also did this constantly during the Bush Administration. Had there not been anything to hide, they would have gone public long ago, instead of continuing to keep it quiet, hoping that it would all just go away. Remember that Acting DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart testified under oath during Sandy Gonzalez civil suit that ICE was responsible for the House of Death murder spree,” stated Andy Ramirez of the non-profit Law Enforcement Officers Advocates Council.

This case screams for Inspector General oversight

Currently there are approximately 69 federal Offices of Inspectors Generals (OIG), who are supposed to look out for the taxpayers and for the most part they try to sell the public on their anonymity. The IGs employ criminal investigators and auditors.


One of the goals many Inspector Generals are responsible for is uncovering misconduct activities by federal agencies including the detection and prevention of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement of the government programs and operations within their parent organizations. IG investigations may be internal and can target government employees; or external when it comes to targeting grant recipients, contractors, or recipients of the various loans and subsidies offered through the thousands of federal domestic and foreign assistance programs.


The mission statement of the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) states “was statutorily established as an independent entity within the executive branch by the Inspector General Reform Act of 2008 to address integrity, economy, and effectiveness issues that transcend individual Government agencies; and increase the professionalism and effectiveness of personnel by developing policies, standards, and approaches to aid in the establishment of a well-trained and highly skilled workforce in the offices of the Inspectors General.”


Once the House of Death was discovered, Clark Ervin, the DHS Inspector General, began to write a series of reports on security programs used by DHS that were failures and run by “inept” government officials. "There isn't a concern about the importance of spending every single dollar to the maximum effect of the core mission of the department," Ervin told ABC News in 2004.


The White House only appointed Ervin for one term. He was appointed to oversee issues within the Department of Homeland Security. ABC reported he wanted to stay on, but was informed that he would be replaced. "I think this was a voice that was a little too critical and made the administration a little too uncomfortable," said Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight, a nonprofit government watchdog group.


Former DEA SAC Gonzalez reported the House of Death murders to the two most appropriate government watchdog agencies. As a Department of Justice employee he wrote to the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General to request appropriate action, and as a government whistleblower he wrote to the Office of Special Counsel seeking protection from retaliation. In addition, after he retired Mr. Gonzalez personally briefed senior staff members of Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Patrick Leahy (D- VT) about the House of Death murders and the subsequent cover up. All parties he tried to inform ignored him.


In a letter from Office of Special Counsel to DEA agent Gonzalez dated July 2, 2004 the OSC office appears to take a blasé tone regarding the SAC of El Paso’s concern regarding mismanagement -resulting in 12 murders. The letter reads in part; “This will acknowledge receipt of the above-referenced disclosure matter… Please bear in mind that each year OSC receives a large number of matters concerning disclosures of information of a violation of law, rule or regulation, gross mismanagement, gross waste of funds, an abuse of authority or substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.


We attempt to handle all the cases as expeditiously as is possible. Cases are generally processed in the order in which they are received,” The OSC office said in the letter. Wow, murder doesn’t appear to garner much attention from the Washington D.C. It’s worth pointing out that there has yet been a report taken by DHS, DOJ or ICE that has been made public detailing the atrocities that occurred at the House of Death.


For now Lalo’s family in the U.S. remains hopeful the government will pull through and honor their promises to give Lalo his U.S. paperwork so he can get on with his life. “I just came from a visit with my son in New York,” says Lalo’s father. “They only allowed me one hour a day and I had to talk into a phone through thick glass. This isn’t right my son isn’t a wanted criminal in any country. Why are they treating him like this – solitary confinement and no TV or computers, it’s just no way to live.”


For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Fire 92 percent of Congressional members a new poll cites

In a new CBS News/ New York Times poll only eight percent want the current members in the House to remain in office while a staggering 92 percent want the bums kicked out.

The November election is shaping up to be historical in nature especially with the general public completely placing their anger squarely on the ultra-partisan politics taking place under the tutelage of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV).

The question being raised is how will President Obama react if he loses the majority in both chambers, will he dig in or will he morph much like President Clinton did after the 1994 Congressional revolution?

Nowhere is this scenario on display more than the shocking announcement from Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN) that he would not seek reelection-not because he didn’t like serving, but he didn’t like D.C. politics.

The American people are voicing their concern in a big way as 80 percent of those polled stated Congress is more interested in serving special interests rather than their constituents.

It doesn’t get much better for those poll participants who voiced their overwhelming disapproval of the job Congress is currently doing, 75 percent are unhappy with House members.

As far as the President is concerned, the left-leaning poll reports Obama’s numbers continue to sink and now stand at 46 percent with 45 percent strongly disapproving of his performance.

Also there’s no improvement when it comes to Obama’s signature piece of legislation – health care reform. Highlighting the process that took place behind closed doors and bribing his own party members didn’t bode well with respondents, 55 percent said they disapproved of the President’s handling while only 35 percent sided with Obama.

Another poll out today from Pew Research Center showed the numbers increase when it comes to reelecting their representative. More than 30 percent said they would not vote for the incumbent. The polls in the past showed voters upset with Congress as a whole, yet they seemed to like their guy. This should serve as a wake -up call for the entire Washington clan

Riding the wave of discontent is the tea party movement and their efforts have has been successful in getting fiscally conservative candidates elected in the recent off –cycle races namely, Scott Brown (R-MA), Bob McDonnell (R-VA) and Chris Christie (R-NJ).


The success of Conservatives comes as welcome news to tea party organizers who tend to be more moderate on social issues and remain solid on smaller government and less taxation principles.

The populist movement could help propel Reagan Conservative Chuck DeVore in his fight with California’s stalwart Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and the Bayh vacancy opens up the primary race to Indiana tea party supporter John Hostettler (R-IN) race against a liberal Republican and GOP establishment player Dan Coats (R-IN) who is also a former lobbyist.

As the silly season warms up one thing is for sure, no one in Congress is safe, no candidates are immune from online blogging and the 24-hour news cycle will be catching every minute on the campaign trail.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Graffiti and taggers display handy work

Graffiti and tagging are nothing new, but brazen efforts drew the ire of community that prides itself on local artistry and the tagline of “keep Leucadia funky.” While the majority of handy work is likely the work of teenagers looking for attention, some could be related to “sea aliens” who are now invading San Diego’s coastline from Mexico.

The words used in connection to this graffiti or tagging spree included Liberté, égalité, fraternité, which is French for “liberty, equality and fraternity for brotherhood. The words used in that combination are also commonly used as a sometime motto for French groups and can be tied to the French Revolution.

Regardless of the meaning residents who were on the receiving end of the graffiti found nothing artistic or funny about it.

“I have worked all my life to live in a nice neighborhood and I am outraged that these punks have the gall to mark their turf with spray paint like some dog urinating on a tree to mark their territory,” John Herbert a resident in the middle of the tagging spree. “When I see such a total disregard like this for someone else's property, it's obvious to me that it's all going to hell.”

Others took it in stride, but expressed their disappointment in kids who think defacing public and private property will gain some attention.

“This is the first time we’ve seen this and we are very disappointed and saddened with whoever defaced the Stone Steps stairwell and private property,” said Tom and Jan Lyon. “We’ve lived here for 13 years and it’s disappointing and unacceptable for this to take place.”

One beachfront resident had a different spin on the graffiti that has shown up in recent months.

“I’ve noticed an uptick of tagging on sign and telephone poles lately,” explains Rick Stoddard an Encinitas beachfront resident. “I’ve seen the panga boats come up the beach and drop off illegals on the sand. I think there’s a strong possibility that the graffiti out here on the street could point these illegal immigrants who are getting off the boats to safe houses somewhere in the community.”

One thing the beachtown residents have on their side is a well-prepared city. First thing in the morning residents called the graffiti hotline and by four in the afternoon it’s as if nobody had disturb the lazy seaside neighborhood. “We send out code enforcement employees to photograph the graffiti, forward pictures to the Sheriff Department and then we repaint,” said Joan Kling Code Enforcement manager.

The community representatives also want the residents to know that no matter the problem they are attentive and want to work with the community to solve issues as they arise.

“It’s important to make all the people who live in San Diego County feel like you are looking out for them,” says Sheriff candidate Jim Duffy. “Even graffiti is a quality of life issue and we need to make sure our deputies address these types of issues within the targeted communities.”

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Money Bombs, politics and Senator DeMint

Looking to build on the Scott Brown (R-MASS) Conservative mania sweeping across the country, Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) has dedicated a new political action committee to help lesser-known candidates.The Senate Conservatives Fund (SCF) is floating much needed finances to Conservative candidates in hotly contested primaries.


DeMint explains the SCF has made sure the “conservative voice” is heard within the Republican Party as well as around the nation. “What we are trying to do with the Senate Conservatives Fund with people like Marco Rubio, Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania, Chuck DeVore in California, and a number of others is to at least give Republicans an option of main stream conservative candidates in the primaries.”


A good example of this “mixing it up politics” is the Florida GOP primary where establishment guy Charlie Crist is facing a tightening race with young up-and-comer Marco Rubio.


“RubioMoneyBomb.com is the money bomb we hope to drop on Marco Rubio. He’s a great young candidate in Florida running for the Senate against more of an establishment Republican. He believes in limited constitutional government and I think he is the new face of the Republican Party,” DeMint told Fox News. Rubio was able to surpass the $200,000 mark with a few hours to spare.


So far DeMint’s hard work has paid off as the South Carolina Conservative Senator reported more than $1.3 million in his SCF war chest. "I think Republicans are looking for a way to distinguish themselves from the old Republican,” DeMint admits. “The establishment Republicans that many think ran our party into a ditch with too much spending and tens of thousands of earmarks."


DeMint’s new PAC has used direct mail solicitations and online tools to build a network of some 27,000 donors in 2009 and has an e-mail list of more than 100,000 contacts, according to a report from CQ Politics.
"We have a situation now where our e-mail list is bigger than a lot of newspaper circulations and we can get instant response like what we're doing with the Rubio money bomb," DeMint says. "So a lot of doors are open. It gives people voices who haven't had voices in a while."


The expansion of the Tea Party movement throughout urban and rural America has reestablished the desire for smaller government, less spending, reducing the debt and living within one’s means. “These are commonsense ideas and for any Republican to try to radicalize those ideas is a signal that we still have Republicans in name who just don't get it," DeMint said.


NRSC spokesman Brian Walsh said if DeMint or any other Senator or Congressman wants to help raise money for Republican candidates the NRSC views that as a good thing. The NRSC has taken in more than $40 million so far this year. "The bottom line is that at the end of the day we share the same goal of leveling the financial playing field with the Democrats next year," Walsh said.


Back in ultra-liberal California, the GOP Senate primary is shaping up to be a real horse race. While Conservative DeVore doesn’t have large name recognition on his side, he has logged thousands of miles, hundreds of stops, possesses a Tea Party grassroots network and an ICaucus endorsement,it is well known these folks are more likely to vote in primaries.


"Whatever the polls say four months before the primary, the strength of the volunteers backing us, the lack of any skeletal remains in my closet are going to allow me to prevail in this primary and to ultimately vanquish Barbara Boxer," DeVore said at the January meeting of the West Valley Republican Women Federated at a diner in San Jose.


“A sleeping giant has been awakened," DeVore said. "Some of you (voters) are scared. Some of you are mad as heck, but times are different and we can win.”


A recent poll from Rasmussen Reports states 75 percent of Americans are somewhat/very angry while 19 percent are not very angry, this underscores the need for Conservative candidates to have a fair shot in the primaries, DeMint says..


This ground swell coupled with DeVore’s history as a Reagan foot solider makes the possibility of DeVore’s California dreaming tsunami to go all the way to D.C. in November a reality.


For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

National security flaws shine through at a yearly security Congressional meeting

There are many reasons applicants are denied the right to carry a hand gun, prior brushes with the law, inconsistent legal records or lack of need, however in San Diego it appears if they just don’t like you your conceal carry permit application it is stamped – DENIED.

It’s true California is a liberal state and as such keeps a close eye on the state’s gun owners, however, San Diego takes exception to what constitutes residency in order to prevent gun owners from legally carrying their weapon. As a result, Edward Peruta has filed a lawsuit against San Diego County and Sheriff William Gore – leveling some precedent setting charges.

Peruta, a Connecticut native, owns home in several states (including California), calls himself a liberal Democrat and is a firm believer in the Second Amendment and finds it odd that he is having so many troubles in San Diego.

“I guess you could say my wife sums it up best, California seems to follow the ‘rules de jour,’” Peruta said.

His San Diego saga began when he and his wife decided to take their home on the road, a motor home that is. When the Peruta’s made the decision to travel across the country law enforcement officers encouraged him to carry a firearm for protection.

“It seemed plausible enough, we were traveling in a vehicle with only one exit, carrying quite a bit of cash and would pass through areas where cell phone coverage would be spotty,” Peruta explained. “So I naturally looked into what the process was for states around the country and put together a piecemeal gun owner application process in the states I owned homes. I wanted to make sure I was covered wherever I traveled.”

His logic garnered him three conceal carry permits in the states of Connecticut, Florida and Utah. In each state he went through the application process that included references and background checks. Smooth sailing for Peruta in other states would not meet with the same result in San Diego.

“I knew there was going to be trouble when I turned in my application at the San Diego Sheriff’s office and they denied me before they even took my application! I was stunned by their lack of candor,” Peruta explains.

According to the San Diego Sheriff’s paperwork they received Peruta’s application and he was interviewed by Donna Burns, a licensed supervisor on November 17, 2008. During the initial phase of the CCW application process Burns advised him he did not meet the criteria for a CCW license and was denied the ability to turn in an application.

“I wasn’t happy about the decision and returned in December to talk to Blanca Pelowitz, a manager, who concurred with her staff that I did not qualify to even hand in my application for processing,” he said.

At this point his career in journalism kicked in and he insisted the Sheriff’s Department take his application, his references and required fees.

In paperwork obtained from Peruta, the San Diego Sheriff ‘s office had this to say. “Despite the fact Peruta was told he did not meet the criteria for a CCW license Peruta insisted this office accept his application. Peruta was advised that no monies would be refunded once his application was accepted.”

Houston we have a problem, collecting 100 percent of the fees and not refunding money is against California Penal Code.

This is where the San Diego Sheriff Department ‘s claim begins to unravel. The psychic abilities of the San Diego Sheriff’s office are amazing. Apparently they can predict which CCW applications will be approved and those that won’t without reading and checking completed CCW applications.

One of the main sticking points for San Diego Sheriff employees is the fact Peruta lives in his motor home at Campland on the Bay in San Diego, from November 15 to April 15 each year. The department balks at Peruta’s residence even though he has presented paperwork for the last two years, fulfilling the residency requirement the Sheriff Department claims is mandatory for a successful application.

The lawsuit Peruta filed will tackle the residency issue San Diego is claiming as the leading indicator for denial of his CCW permit. The thorough process the SD Sheriff’s office says they completed did not include contacting the plaintiff’s eight character references, including three law enforcement officers, disregarding the three states that have issued CCW permits to Peruta already and looking at the “good cause” aspects in connected to the CCW submitted application.

Wording contained in the Second Amendment lawsuit stipulated Peruta provided all the required information necessary for a successful application. Mr. Peruta also turned in a completed and certified National Rifles Association (NRA) Basic Pistol Safety Course, an eight-hour Firearms Safety Proficiency Certificate, Good Cause and Durational Residency in San Diego, yet he was still turned down.

San Diego Sheriff candidate, Jay LaSuer, who is running against Gore in the upcoming election, has made many statements about the CCW process and has openly endorsed a “shall issue” stance. “If a person can pass a background check and is a law abiding citizen they ‘shall’ receive a CCW license,” LaSuer explains. “When you have a Sheriff like Gore who doesn’t understand the law, how can you expect him to apply it?”

The County and Sheriff’s Department have requested the case be dismissed, however the law remains on Peruta’s side and he is prepared to take this all the way. “I’ve discussed this with my attorney and we will take it to the Supreme Court if we need to,” he candidly said.

Looking down the road Peruta remains confident. “I never thought of anything but winning, and often think of the people who don’t know how to litigate or don’t have the personal funds or funding sources to solve their problems. I wasn’t looking for a legal fight with San Diego but couldn’t walk away given the facts and circumstances. I have the facts, knowledge, finances and legal resources to address this issue.”

What does Peruta want to happen as a result of the lawsuit? He hopes the staff of the San Diego Sheriff’s Department becomes educated, by court order or agreement if need be in how to read and implement provisions of the California Penal Code and make decisions based on the exact wording contained in the state law. He says it’s important for public employees regardless of the public agency they work for to listen, and treat individuals with the respect they deserve.

The continued disconnect between ‘real America’ and ‘bureaucratic America’ creates an unnecessary barrier for Joe taxpayer the result often ends with a lawsuit. “I would like public employees to stop adding or using words which are not contained in the law when making decisions,” Peruta explains.

Looking to change the way the San Diego Sheriff’s office does business is priority number one for Peruta, but the fact that many California residents don’t understand the law as it is written means they rely on public officials to be truthful during the application process.

“I believe that if this case is not settled and finds its way for whatever reason to a higher court, it has the potential to impact the right to bear arms across the country for countless law abiding individuals. I’d like to believe that this case will clarify and correct the current pattern of abuse which exists in the State of California regarding CCW licenses,” Peruta says.

At a minimum, Peruta would like to obtain and possess a government issued CCW permit, to exercise his second amendment right to defend himself and family members if necessary in California and receive compensation for the substantial amount of legal fees this case is sure to generate.

The San Diego Sheriff’s Department was contacted to respond to this lawsuit and have refused to respond.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

Illegal alien lawsuits continue to clog the courts in California

Well-funded illegal alien activists in Southern California have found a new way to attack Americans fighting for secure borders and enforcement of current immigration laws. The fight has moved from the streets where they wave the their Mexican flag to America's civil courtrooms.

“Allow me to understand this correctly. Illegal aliens, people who have committed a crime by entering this country illegally, and who continue to commit additional crimes by using counterfeit documents to project a status they are not entitled to, are suing cities and citizens for "disrupting their RIGHT to work in the US, even though they have no such right? If any immigrant "rights" organization or other advocacy group is responsible for the filing of such suits, either directly or indirectly, they should be counter claimed against for abuse of process and malicious prosecution. It's time for the good citizens of this country to fight back through the courts,” said retired ICE Agent John Sampson who now runs CSI Consulting and Investigations.

The beef about an upcoming lawsuit in San Diego against Jeff Schwilk, founder of the San Diego Minutemen, stems from a violent attack on Los Angeles anti-illegal immigration activist John Monti in November 2006 at the Rancho Penasquitos day-labor site in San Diego.

“Controversial San Diego attorney Daniel Gilleon was hired by La Raza operatives more than three years ago to go after San Diego Minutemen and other pro-security activists,” says Schwilk.

Monti had gone to the infamous makeshift hiring site to photograph the day laborers and the law-breaking employers hiring illegal workers. “It is still a felony to hire illegal aliens in the U.S. and studies have shown that almost all day laborers are illegal aliens from Latin America, Schwilk explains.

While photographing the street-side hiring process, Monti was suddenly jumped from behind by at least seven Hispanic men. “They punched him, tried to steal his professional camera, and pushed him into the busy boulevard. Several passersby’s witnessed the attack and called 911. When police arrived two minutes later, they found a bloody and shaken Mr. Monti,” witnesses reported.

Once the police were called to the scene, all of the attackers had made a run for it. Luckily, Monti photographed many of the laborers prior to the attack and was able to show San Diego Police Department. The next day the victim, Monti, sent the same pictures via email to local San Diego activists so they could call the police if the suspects returned to the day labor site where they usually look for employment every day. At this point Schwilk received the pictures and forwarded them to his local law enforcement contacts and other concerned residents in the area.

Their claim was defendants were disseminating pictures of the suspects with Monti's statement and pointed out that they were wanted for questioning by SDPD regarding day-labor site scuffle. The flyer indicated if anyone had any information about the incident to phone the police.

Police records show the suspects were being sought for questioning and most of them were eventually found and questioned. No charges against the suspects were ever filed, as they all, not surprisingly, claimed that Monti attacked them first. According to Schwilk, local illegal alien activists were seen speaking with the suspects soon after the attacks.

“Witnesses who saw Monti being attacked and beaten were ignored by investigators and the city attorney, who were under extreme pressure from the so-called ‘Mexican mafia’ to protect the suspects (most of them Mexican citizens) from prosecution,” Schwilk contends. Fox News' and Monti's lawsuits were eventually dismissed or settled, but Schwilk demanded a trial to prove that this was just another unfounded, frivolous lawsuit and malicious prosecution meant to harass and silence those who oppose illegal immigration.

This defamation suit also accuses Schwilk of putting up Monti's "wanted posters" in the area around the day labor site - a charge Schwilk denies. Schwilk and a few other concerned citizens did use Monti's pictures to identify two of the suspects standing at the sidewalk hiring area three days after the attack.

"When we saw two of the suspects back at their sidewalk loitering area, we immediately called SDPD. The lead detective of the nearby division came to the scene and explained to us that they had already questioned and released those two men and that an arrest had been made," Schwilk said. “The officers refused to elaborate further, but they told us they were fully investigating the assault on Monti and hoped to bring all of the guilty day laborers to justice.”

The lead attorney in this so-called lawsuit is Dan Gilleon of Del Mar(??). In emails from Gilleon obtained by the Examiner, Gilleon repeatedly seems to be asking Schwilk to settle the case over the past year. In the most recent email sent on Feb. 6, Gilleon again offers to Schwilk, "If you want to settle, we'll take $1,000 for each plaintiff, cash now, or $10,000 each in stipulated judgments."

Schwilk has repeatedly told the plaintiff’s attorney Gilleon that he has no intention of settling this case because he is the victim not the other way around. In addition to last minute attempts to avoid taking this case to trial, Gilleon failed to depose Schwilk for 2 1/2 years and recently convinced the judge to allow a last-minute deposition just days before the trial is set to commence.

In a voicemail message from Gilleon, he declined to comment on this pending case. However he claims there is a new lawsuit pending against Schwilk. However, court records show no new lawsuits have been filed.

Schwilk, who is now defending himself, says he strongly opposes a deposition at this late date because he believes Gilleon lied to the judge about trying to depose him in October. Evidence submitted to the court last week clearly shows that Gilleon claimed to have served Schwilk a notice of a deposition at a long-abandoned store in Oceanside. Schwilk says he has asked Judge Styn to rescind his recent deposition order and the motion is pending.

The trial begins on Thursday. It is worth pointing out, the attorney for the plaintiffs admitted that all his clients were living in Mexico and may not be able to enter the country legally to attend the trial, according to Schwilk.

It is a sad commentary that the civil court system is filled with well-funded foreign interests who hire activist lawyers to gain control of the country for their illegal clients.

The Minutemen vow to keep fighting no matter how many lawsuits La Raza activists file against them. "Our cause to make our cities and our country safe and secure is too great to be deterred by these people who make a mockery of our legal system," Schwilk finishes.

In another lawsuit filed in Costa Mesa, California, MALDEF the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund charges the city’s anti-solicitation ordinance is unconstitutional. Joining in on the February 2, 2010 lawsuit is the ACLU of Southern California and the National Day Laborer’s Organizing Network (NDLON).

The civil rights groups filed the lawsuit against the City of Costa Mesa on behalf of the Association de Jornaleros de Costa Mesa and the Colectivo Tonantzin, whose members have been restricted from peaceably expressing their need and availability for employment in the city’s public areas due to the ordinance.

Claiming his client’s first Amendment right, MALDEF President and General Counsel Thomas A. Saenz said, "Free speech, one of our most cherished rights, belongs to everyone in society. Day laborers seeking work have as much right to express themselves as the largest corporation employing hundreds of thousands. Costa Mesa’s anti-solicitation ordinance violates this vital and longstanding constitutional principle."

“The city’s anti-solicitation ordinance prohibits any person standing on a sidewalk or other public area from soliciting employment, business or contributions in any manner deemed to be intended to attract the attention of traveling vehicles. The ordinance subjects day laborers and other solicitors to a fine of $1,000 and imprisonment up to six months. The ordinance violates the day laborers’ First and Fourteenth amendments rights under the United States Constitution,” according Saenz.

"Day laborers have contributed to the Costa Mesa economy for decades," says Pablo Alvarado, director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. "Particularly during these tough times, the hard work they provide the community should be rewarded and not the target of destructive law enforcement practices."

The ruling of federal courts throughout the country in the past have ruled in favor of preserving the free speech rights of day laborers, which allows them to continue to solicit work.

“The contention that the civil rights of illegal day laborers are being violated is pure malarkey and if anything at all, the advocates can be criminally charged and prosecuted for aiding and abetting illegal alien immigration,” says Vince Johnson in a letter to the city of Costa Mesa.

He goes on to explain this frivolous lawsuit should be recognized as such by any federal judge who may incorporate immigration law regarding employment by undocumented immigrants.

“I suggest that you utilize the resources of Homeland Security/ICE, the US Department of Labor and the US Justice Department to promptly stop this court action and affirm that this country can not be controlled by people who do not even have the right to be in this country. Any meddling by the Mexican government is a clear-cut violation of American law and sovereignty,” Johnson finished.


The meddling of Mexico continues to play out on both sides of the border. It was reported by the M3 report (a publication put out by the National Association of Former Border Patrol Officers) that all political parties of the Mexican Senate must reproached the policy change of direction of President, Barack Obama, “who has decided to go back on the promise he made to all the Hispanic groups that supported him, and now he insists on closing the border. The government of Barack Obama seeks to increase the funds to reinforce border security with $4.6 billion to support 20,000 agents of the Border Patrol, as well as to finish the first portion of the ‘virtual fence,’” the report stated.


The Mexican government continues by “announcing that he (Obama) will build the missing portion of the ‘virtual fence’ by means of which everyone who crosses, undocumented or illegally, will be detected and can be immediately jailed and later expelled, (and also) reinforcing the number of agents for customs, as well as for the border. From now on we Mexicans will not know what to believe when we speak with the President of all the Americans, because he is a President who fails to keep his word,” according to a member of the Mexican Senate.

One thing is certain Mexico continues to demand the rule of law be tweaked in their favor when it comes to illegal immigration. This will surely set up a very contentious immigration reform debate, one the American people have clearly stated Amnesty will not be a part of the legislation.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

More Democrats view Socialism positively than Republicans a new poll finds

A new Gallup poll shows approximately one third of Americans have a favorable view of Socialism. Among the findings pollsters found Democrats had a more favorable view of Socialism than Republicans.

The results found 36 percent of Americans thought positively about Socialism, however, 58 percent had a negative opinion.

The numbers also showed significant differences within the ideological and partisan groups. “A majority of 53 percent of Democrats have a positive image of Socialism compared to 17 percent of Republicans,” Gallup said. “Sixty-one percent of Liberals say their image of Socialism is positive compared to 39 percent of Moderates and 20 percent of Conservatives.”

There were many terms that Democrats and Republicans agreed upon, but they disagreed significantly on others. Some of the terms all parties agreed upon in the Gallup poll included;

Small business, free enterprise and entrepreneurs had a favorable opinion in both parties ranging fro 97 percent to 95 percent, 90 percent to 85 percent and 88 percent to 82 percent respectively.

"Democrats and Republicans agree in their ratings of several of the terms, but differ significantly in their ratings of others -- in particular, capitalism, the federal government, and socialism,” according to Gallup.

The topics that exposed the differences between the parties included, Capitalism (72 percent Republican and 53 percent Democrats), big business (54 percent Republicans and 46 percent Democrats) and the federal government (27 percent Republicans and 67 percent Democrats).

Moving forward the poll should help voters determine where their political candidates stand on these important topics and vote accordingly.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

DOJ's Double Standard, Terrorists get royal treatment, Informants get stiffed

Last week U.S. national security stood front and center with a stunning acknowledgment Americans can expect another terrorist attempt on the homeland in the next three to six months. That prediction sparked countrywide debate ending with a five-page letter from Attorney General Eric Holder lashing out at Republicans and letting the country know he will run the Department of Justice his way.

Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) took the brunt of Holder’s anger as the five-page letter was addressed to the Kentucky Senate Minority leader. The lesson in terrorist treatment of the most recent American terrorist attempt on Christmas Day began this way;

“The decision to charge Mr. Abdulmutallab in federal court, and the methods used to interrogate him, are fully consistent with the long-established and publicly known policies and practices of the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the United States Government as a whole, as implemented for many years by Administrations of both parties. Those policies and practices, which were not criticized when employed by previous Administrations, have been and remain extremely effective in protecting national security. They are among the many powerful weapons this country can and should use to win the war against al-Qaeda,” said Holder. (click link to read letter; http://www.scribd.com/doc/26325635/Eric-Holder-letter-to-Mitch-McConnell-2-3-2010)

This statement suggests the U.S. government must use all tools in the toolbox to combat the fight against terror. However, just as there are many tools in the toolbox, it can be said there are many forms of terrorism the country faces.

Case in point when it comes to the country’s southwest borders the Mexican drug cartels pose just as much of a threat to American sovereignty. In fact the cartels have no allegiance to America and will use terrorists as a means to their ends – get drugs to the hungry U.S. customer.

There are some curious points contained in Holder’s letter to Senate Republicans.

“In contrast to the government's recent self-serving letter by AG Holder to a number of U.S. Senators concerned with the handling of the attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines flight 253 last December 25th, the mishandling of House of Death informant Guillermo Eduardo Ramirez Peyro or ‘Lalo’ along with the related cover up of alleged U.S. involvement in over a dozen murders, is a national disgrace for which both the Bush and Obama administrations should be held accountable by the U.S. Congress,” explains Sandalio Gonzalez retired DEA agent who blew the whistle on the infamous House of Death case.

“The complete lack of integrity, rampant hypocrisy, and reckless disregard for the rule of law exhibited by the U.S. government in every aspect of this case (House of Death) is nothing short of reprehensible,” Gonzalez says. “To this day it continues to be an ongoing insult to the nation and all its law enforcement officers and law abiding citizens. Every government official with knowledge of this tragic affair, from all branches of government, who have stood silent and allowed the cover up to continue, are themselves part of the conspiracy and should hang their heads in shame,” he finishes.

For those unfamiliar with the House of Death, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) participated in an undercover operation to infiltrate one of the Juarez drug cartels. The informant they chose, Lalo, had a prior relationship with a ranking Juarez cartel lieutenant, Heriberto Santillan Tabares and Lalo would rely on his relationship with his boss to collect intelligence for the U.S. government.

Mexican drug cartels have evolved over the years and the ruthless, gruesome killing methods associated with the drug trade placed Lalo in the middle of a high-stakes, take no prisoners game. One wrong move and Lalo would be on the receiving end of death.

“My job was very dangerous,” says Lalo. “I explained this to my ICE handler, Raul Bencomo. They (ICE) knew I was giving good information and they wanted me to keep going even after the first murder.” Yes, the U.S. government wanted a civilian-informant to continue recording information about the cartel business even if it happened to be murder. “They wanted me to try and not record anymore murders, but I told them I couldn’t promise that because the ‘death house’ was very dangerous,” Lalo said.

With the promise of a new life in America and plenty of start-up money, Lalo continued to place his life on the line for ICE agents. “He was the best informant we had,” Bencomo said about his reliable informant Lalo. However, it would take a dozen murders and the breach of safety of DEA agents living in Juarez, Mexico to end Lalo’s run as informant.

Despite the emergency evacuation of DEA personnel from the world’s most violent city, Lalo would undertake one last job for ICE – lure cartel leader, Santillan to the United States so ICE could arrest him.

“Not only did I get Santillan to come to El Paso I drove him around and got him to talk about the past murders. Santillan started talking about the last days’ actions,” Lalo explains. It would be here the wanted cartel leader would talk about another murder at the “little house.”

Once the dark story was complete, Lalo would be pulled over in his own vehicle by a controlled traffic stop. The “House of Death” saga would end quietly with the arrest of Santillan. Law enforcement would tell the Juarez cartel leader he was under arrest and the last thing Lalo overheard from his boss was fact he had a warrant for his arrest, “I don’t have two hours in this country, how do I get a warrant?”

With Lalo’s mission complete, he is released from fake custody and Bencomo thanked him for a job well done.

In a strange twist, Santillan would admit to drug charges and get 25 years in U.S. prison and U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton would drop the murder charges in order to avoid a messy trial.

However in an unexpected turn of events Lalo would find himself in custody. Lalo explained that DHS was scrambling to pin a murder on him and when that didn’t work they wanted him to say his ICE handler, Bencomo was corrupt and when that didn’t work they threatened to deport his common-law wife and children back to Mexico.

“That was blackmail because if they sent my family back to Mexico the cartels would kill them immediately. Juanita Fielden, Assistant U.S. Attorney in El Paso, promised me many things, and once I signed the paper to remain in custody, I never heard from her again,” Lalo said.

He continues to fight deportation to this day even after favorable rulings by immigration judges. Yet he and has spent more than six years in jail, most of it in solitary confinement. While enemy combatants have access to other prisoners, TV, computers and attorneys Lalo does not. “I think they (America) want to keep me by myself and break me, hoping I will just accept deportation.”

The fact remains, Lalo, who was paid approximately $250,000 to be an ICE informant, was stabbed in the back by a corrupt U.S. government who continues to cover its tracks and push for Lalo to be deported where he will surely face death at the hands of the very people he successfully collected evidence against.

What effect will this have on future informants the U.S. depends on to fight the drug cartels or other criminal enterprises remains to be seen, but the fallout is surely devastating for future undercover operations.

“The implications are significant for such behavior on the part of the government quickly becomes known in the "underworld" so to speak, as in Lalo's case. As a result, potential "walk in" sources of information that the government has no hammer on, as opposed to defendant/informants (the ones that "flip" to get their sentences reduced), simply will not come forward to cooperate,” explains retired DEA Agent Gonzalez “There's also a strong possibility that agents with a conscience will simply not recruit such sources because they know that people above them in the pecking order will leave them hanging. Every time an informant is burned the word gets out, and it becomes increasingly difficult to convince other individuals to cooperate.”

Former NYPD officer Charles Houser had this to say about the treatment of informants.

“Burning informants is a very bad and seriously unintelligent maneuver. It's very difficult to cultivate a productive informant from a law enforcement perspective. Informants are sometimes the only vehicle available to bringing bad guys to justice. Burning an informant only serves as a warning to other potential informants who may consider cooperating with law enforcement authorities, of the hazards of such a relationship.”

Houser explains that NYPD back in the day, “we had enough of a problem just getting witnesses to a felony, even homicides, to make a statement. I can't imagine any scenario short of an emergency where the public safety was a priority and necessary to sacrificing informant. The betrayal of trust would be enough to send potential informants running.

It is truly the height of hypocrisy that the government provides rights to terrorists, while government informants are held without charges pressed against them in violation of due process, according to Andy Ramirez of Law Enforcement Officers Advocates Council.


“It is important to define such labels as Congress has not declared war on Afghanistan or any other nation. Operations are being conducted against terrorist outfits that could consist of a number of cells with any number of persons, or made up of a sole individual, of which there is no way to know specifics. As such, one must question Constitutional protections provided beyond human rights.”


“Of course the irony is that these basic rights, given to terrorists, have not been provided to ‘Lalo’ the ICE informant in the House of Death case. He continues to be held illegally by ICE (and DHS), while justice continues to be obstructed by the government. Of course the reason is very simple as Lalo is ‘the material witness’ in the House of Death case and can implicate wrongdoing by many officials. Documentation shows that the cover-up of this case involved many of the highest- ranking Bush Administration officials. By continuing to try to deport Lalo to Mexico knowing he will be murdered by the cartels, and violating his rights, this is no longer just a Bush case as it continues to be obstructed by the Obama Administration.”


Given the tenor and tone of this letter from AG Holder to Senate Minority Leader McConnell, it’s what I would have expected of former AG Gonzales. Yet, it is what it is given the refusal by the Congress to hold the Justice Department and Homeland Security accountable for outright lying repeatedly in testimony as well as to the American people. “Both are known for rampant abuse, retaliations against whistleblowers, and bad terminations and prosecutions in what I’ve coined the ‘War on Law Enforcement,’” Ramirez states.


“The only way this nonsense will ever cease is for Congress to realize that the Executive Branch is out of control, as well as their partner in collusion, that being the courts, and rein the other two branches back in for that is their role, to maintain accountability under checks and balances. The other two branches have crossed the so-called separation of powers line repeatedly and that must stop by auditing funding, filing contempt of Congress citations and articles of impeachment, issuing subpoenas, conducting real hearings under oath, and appointing independent special prosecutors to get to the bottom of things,” Ramirez finishes.
When comparing Lalo’s House of Death case to the terrorists in U.S. custody Gonzalez calls it like he sees it.

“It's simple, while the government is willing to prosecute alleged terrorists, it is not yet, nor will it be anytime soon, willing to prosecute former and present high-level government officials on murder-related charges. That would be quite the embarrassing situation to say the least. Lalo would be key for such a prosecution, which is why he's being held as some sort of nuclear inter-galactic combatant because if he were a mere enemy combatant he would have some rights. Apparently the laws of this planet don't apply to him,” he says.

“By the way, let's not forget that the government was fully willing to take action against only one low level official; Agent Bencomo, a Hispanic, was fired by ICE. Coincidence?” This is Gonzalez’ explanation of the House of Death fiasco where an ICE informant who is not wanted for any crime anywhere in the world remains in jail, fighting for his life because the government he worked for wants him deported to Mexico – a death sentence.

In frustration Lalo sums up his experience as an informant for America, “it’s been my American nightmare and I can no longer trust anything the government says. I don’t even want to be in the witness protection program because I don’t believe they will protect me. It’s ridiculous how they are treating someone who did nothing but help DHS put dangerous cartel members in jail.”

Why does a “standard operating procedure” apply to suspected terrorists eliciting a detailed response by Holder, but yet the government continues to hold Lalo in prison, in violation of his rights - both human and constitutional? It certainly appears that the U.S. government is only interested in protecting terrorists who wish to harm American citizens, while the Departments of Homeland Security and “Justice” are interested in protecting their employees from the legal consequences of reprehensible actions they participated in.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner

National security flaws shine through at a yearly security Congressional meeting

In a yearly threat briefing to Congress, five senior intelligence community figures responded to tough questions in light of the increased terror plots Americans faced last year. Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) directly asked each intelligence member the likelihood of another terrorist attack on U.S. soil. Each agreed there would “certainly” be another attempt in the next three to six months.

“An attempted attack, the priority is certain, I would say,” said Dennis Blair, Director of National Intelligence. The other members appearing in front of Congress included, FBI Director Robert Mueller, CIA Director Leon Panetta, John Dinger, acting assistant secretary of state for intelligence and research and Ronald Burgess Jr. the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.

Blair outlined the possible terrorist threats the United States may face; computer networks and infrastructure attacks, Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and the instability in nuclear-power Pakistan, China’s military buildup, Iranian and North Korean nuclear ambitions as well as Venezuela’s flirtation with communist countries.

“In our judgment al Qaeda also retains the capability to recruit, train and deploy operatives to mount some kind of an attack against the homeland,” Blair testified. He goes on to explain favorite al Qaeda targets remain on a watch list of sorts and include, airplanes, financial institutions in New York City and the Washington Metro system.

"The recent successful and attempted attacks represent an evolving threat in which it is even more difficult to identify and track small numbers of terrorists recently recruited and trained and short-term plots than to find and follow terrorist cells engaged in plots that have been ongoing for years," Blair explained.

While the National Security Congressional briefings proved eye-opening and may have caught many Americans off guard those who work the front lines are privy to the inner workings of our ports of entry and say the daily break downs could be fixed.

It was reported several weeks ago that NYC Customs and Border Protection employees point to the "flying Jihad" flights arriving weekly at JFK. “Looking back to the Christmas Day bomber, we now know he trained in an al Qaeda training camps in Yemen, even with this knowledge we continue to allow hundreds of Yemenis per week to enter the U.S. via terminal one, on a Saudi Arabian flight, many of the passengers are Yemenis in violation of their green card status,” a veteran CBP Inspector said.

The full-body scanners to be placed at airports (in which former DHS Secretary Chertoff is a part owner) will not help solve the problem created and continuously perpetuated by the country's top officials. Many experts agree that the controversial full-body scanners would not have detected the chemicals in the Nigerian underpants bomber.

“I think the message from the Intel community was ominous and accurate, but Washington has still not addressed the potential for attacks on the homeland by terrorist green card holders, instead Washington continues to recklessly place Americans in harms’ way. Actually failing to protect Americans when Intel exists and points to potential terrorist who is in violation of visa misuse,” CBP Agents said.

It has been said Washington is putting on a "Dog and Pony Show" for the American public. “Just as the memo written by A FBI agent detailing an imminent attack using commercial aircraft loaded with passengers and fuel, was ignored by the Washington Elite and bureaucrats before 9/11. It appears the warning that terror cells are already here in the US, aided by U.S. officials ‘look the other way’ policies when it comes to enforcing LPR ‘green card’ regulations and the U.S. Department of State's liberal immigrant and visitor visa policy,” said another CBP Inspector who spoke in anonymity for fear of work place retaliation.

“U.S. officials who could work to secure our nation are busy playing lip service to the media and their constituents while taking no action to ensure America’s safety. The American public should hold Washington responsible for any future attack(s), because these are the very people who have failed to do their jobs- not TSA Agents, Border Patrol Agents or CBP Officers on the front lines.”

Just as alarming is the fact that the Agency responsible for protecting U.S. borders, CBP, still has no leadership in place to orchestrate an intelligent program necessary to protect the country. “The three ‘acting’ Assistant Commissioners running CBP operations now are like having Larry, Moe and Curly in charge. It's time for Washington insiders and bureaucrats to put away their theater make up and work, and do the job the American public pays them top dollars to do,” a CBP Agent explained. “If they can't then it’s time for them to retire and let responsible leaders step up.”

One thing is certain when it comes to national security – nothing is secure. When good rank-and-file agents on the front line are pointing out obvious flaws at the ports of entry, Americas’ front door, citizens expect management to take notice and think outside the box. If this fails to happen al Qaeda will be claiming responsibility for another American tragedy.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/x-10317-San-Diego-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner