With less than a day left till the election, many Republicans are seeing the writing on the wall. Their days are numbered or are they? If you are Karl Rove, it is not over until the last dirty trick is played.

Recently, a story broke out about Barack Obama’s Kenyan aunt, Zeituni Onyango, she was living in public housing in Boston. However, now with less than 72 hours till the election, there is a twist to this story. According to the Associated Press, reported that Onyango is an “illegal.”

But it doesn’t stop there. It was later found out that somebody within the Immigration and Customs Enforcement leaked the story to AP. The AP wrote:

Onyango was instructed to leave the country by a U.S. immigration judge who denied her asylum request, a person familiar with the matter told the AP. This person spoke on condition of anonymity because no one was authorized to discuss Onyango’s case.

For those who have lived in Texas during the 80’s and the 90’s, this story suddenly becomes very suspicious. In fact, any Texas Democrat who has been involved in Texas prior to the 2000 election this was “the Mark of Rove,” there are no fingerprints. For me, I immediately had flashbacks of Lena Guerrero’s demise.

Shortly after former Governor Ann Richards appointed Lena Guerrero to a vacant seat on the Railroad Commission, someone serving on a University of Texas committee selecting distinguished alumni learned that Guerrero had never graduated, contrary to her claims during her campaigns for a House seat and later for the Commission. Rove held on to the information until the time was right, then turned it over to the Dallas Morning News; confronted with the question, Guerrero unraveled.

I had a chance to meet her and to get to know her. As people jumped ship, I supported her until the very end. At that time, I didn’t know who Karl Rove was, or what he was capable of doing. It was not until I saw the movie Bush’s Brain by that I found it was Rove who leaked this information. He did not just forced her to tearfully resign, but destroyed her political career.

There are countless of people lives he destroyed through his vile smear campaigns, and sadly, he does it without reservation. Without a doubt, his fingerprints can be found all over the Auntie Zeituni story. Whether or not this story will have an effect swaying independents or moderate Republicans to vote for John McCain, we not be known until Tuesday; what does matter is the individual who was just demonized, harassed and persecuted because it made good political fodder.

As Duke, a fellow Sanctuarian, writes, there is a bigger picture to the Auntie Zeituni story, it exemplifies the current problems found in our broken immigration policy.

Knowing there is a major focus in the current debate in the US over immigration policy concerning people; red flags should have gone up immediately considering this story surfaced in the last 72 hours of a national election, especially on an issue that has taken a back seat.

According to the AP, Onyango was instructed to leave the country four years ago by an immigration judge who rejected her request for asylum from her native Kenya. However, instead of leaving, he was living in public housing in Boston.

It is easy to see why nativist are in hysterics and are crying foul. To them, they see the world in black and white. You are either denied or accepted. If you are denied, the person should leave. In reality, however, the asylum process is much bigger and more complex.

Asylum is the legal protection against deportation. It is the status sought by non-US citizens, either legally or illegally, asking for refuge based on claims of persecution or fear of persecution in their home country. According to the Office of Immigration Statistics, there are two routes to gaining asylum, “…affirmatively through a USCIS asylum officer or defensively with an immigration judge as part of a removal hearing.”

Since Onyango had a hearing with an immigration judge, she went through the defensive route. The defensive process is triggered automatically for individuals placed in removal proceedings who have expressed a “credible fear” of persecution if they are returned to their homeland. I would not be surprised if Onyango expressed fear.

It is understandable why the progressive blogosphere would rather consider this a non-story instead of defending the issue. Why rock the boat when victory is so close? However, considering this story a non-issue is also considering Zeituni Onyango a non-person. Here is a woman whose life was ripped apart, much like the families who are broken up due to our ineffective system. By ignoring Onyanga’s plight from her country, which recently exploded into violence over a disputed election, is to play into the bureaucratic machine of oppression that works tirelessly to strip people like Onyanga of their human rights and to keep them faceless, so they can simply remain as non-persons.

The current situation is the product of our current political establishment. As an asylum seeker is refuge, there are a number of factors they must over come, particularly which immigration judge is assigned to the case. It is not surprising she was denied asylum, only a few hundred women have been given asylum.

Recently, has been found that the Bush Administration appointed immigration judges who espoused conservative priorities and Christian lifestyle choices. In extensive report by the department’s Office of the Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility found that Monica Goodling, former Department of Justice’s (DOJ) White House Liaison, had broken civil service laws, run afoul of department policy and engaged in “misconduct.”

Many Americans believe that the process of being granted asylum is easily abused by persons who seek this status in order to come to and stay in the United States, whether to work, to commit crimes or to endanger national security. There are many details that were left out in this AP. All we have been told she was denied asylum, it is possible she may appeal the denial to the Board of Immigration Appeals and thereafter to a US Court of Appeals.

It is obvious Karl Rove has corrupted John McCain in his thirst for power. Hopefully, Rove’s immigration ploy really did not have an effect like some are wishing, as they remain silent. However, it must be advised, the longer the Democrats and progressive bloggers let him get away with it, the more influence he’ll have on other Republican candidates.

The immigrant community faces a real challenge from our inability to fix our immigration system has engendered. If the Democrats and progressive bloggers feel it is better to handle Rove, hopefully, this stunt did serve as a reminder of a system that requires our immediate attention. One that can no longer be ignored.

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Tags: Barack Obama, Elections, Immigration, Karl Rove, presidential election |  Print This Post |
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