I.C.E. Director John Morton and Assistant Director Phyllis Coven got a vote of No-Confidence from the 259 I.C.E union members. There are approximately 7000 I.C.E agents in the United States.
Who is John Morton exactly? According to the Washington Post:
Morton, 43, is a boyish-looking former career federal prosecutor who took over ICE last year in May. Described by colleagues as earnest and apolitical, he said he is seeking a middle ground on the debate, enforcing immigration laws while calling for comprehensive reform in Congress and viewing legal immigration as “a good thing for our country.”
“You develop a thick skin in a job like this,” said Morton, who admits to reading many of the brickbats that come his way but says they don’t consume him. “I’d imagine that for some other senior leaders in government, the day when someone calls for their resignation would be the day they’d remember throughout their career. That’s just part of the territory here.”
Sure enough, Morton and his agency evoke strong opinions from all sides. Crystal Williams, executive director of the pro-immigrant American Immigration Lawyers Association, faults him for overaggressive deportations and moving too slowly on promises to reform the immigrant detention system.
“If he’s throwing people out without a lot of focus, he’s hearing about it from the left, and that’s what’s going on here,” she said. “If he’s not doing enough enforcement, he’ll hear about it from the right.”
Rep. Harold Rogers (R-Ky.), a persistent critic, accused Morton of “letting known illegal immigrants take American jobs and turning a blind eye to those who overstay visas or illegally cross our border.”
Similar criticisms are voiced by the American Federation of Government Employees Council 118, which represents about 7,000 ICE workers and recently cast a vote of no confidence in Morton’s leadership. The union accuses Morton of abandoning ICE’s “core mission” of enforcing immigration laws and focusing on “policies related to amnesty.”
Morton’s defenders are equally fervent. “We often say we are a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws. John brings a great deal of sensitivity to both aspects of our identity,” said Alejandro Mayorkas, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which, like ICE, is part of the Department of Homeland Security.
Doris Meissner, who worked with Morton when she was commissioner of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, known as the INS, in the 1990s, chalked up his difficulties to the growing pains of a young agency and “resistance to change” within it. She credited Morton for taking on detention reform and for trying to focus ICE on “serious and complex criminal investigations.”
Though public perceptions of ICE are dominated by its enforcement of immigration laws, its agents also investigate terrorism, narcotics smuggling, child pornography and other criminal cases. ICE was the principal investigative agency for nearly half the intellectual property theft cases the Justice Department filed in 2009, federal figures show.
ICE was created by the 2002 merger of the immigration service and the U.S. Customs Service, which gives it the wide authority customs had to stop contraband from entering or leaving the country. Morton is trying to increase awareness of ICE’s criminal investigative work, saying it is “poorly understood and poorly celebrated.”
The No-Confidence Union Vote has been heralded over conservative blogs, Fox News, and the Examiner newspaper chain for the past 48 hours. The letter may be downloaded in pdf form. It is better to read the letter for yourself. Those doing the ‘retell’ are taking far too much delight in throwing in their own selective speech.
What the Examiner article doesn’t tell us is much about this 259 disgruntled I.C.E. employees. Where are they located, how many didn’t sign on, and where are the rest of the 6000 plus I.C.E. on this issue. Their letter expressing a vote of No-Confidence might very well have merit. How can we tell when we see only a snippet? Also what is not said is how much policy and direction has changed since President Obama became their new ultimate boss. How are things different from under the Bush Administration?
The Examiner article and spokes people have been very biased in their reporting. I pick up on key phrases that send out a strong signal that I am getting the news through the right wing filter. That prompted me to look for this story in multiple media outlets. It wasn’t there which is a strong signal that I am getting fed a line of Far Right BS.
The question now becomes, how does this information from 259 people affect the political horizon? On the one hand, doesn’t AZ SB 1070 rely heavily on I.C.E. agents picking up those who have been apprehended by AZ law enforcement? It sounds to me like there could just be a new game of catch and release. To those who want no enforcement or who espouse open borders, this vote of No-Confidence isn’t such good news either.
There is also mention of Border agents who are signing on to a vote of no-confidence. I am not sure who they have no confidence in . It sounded to me like they were dissing this same John Morton. However, they don’t work for him. I would say that was a rather meaningless vote if, indeed, they did that.
I would pull a Ronald Reagan and fire those who signed a vote of NO Confidence, just like he did the air traffic controllers who got into a pissing contest with him. The immigration issue is politicized enough without those entrusted to do a job getting in the act of politics. Meanwhile, I.C.E. needs to fix this problem. Perception is reality and now we all have the perception that this is a directionless agency who can’t find its….well..you know the rest.
There are too many holes in this story that have no explanation. Therefore, I draw no conclusions. Please download the letter and read it for yourself. It is perhaps the only worthwhile read on this subject.
7000 agents to handle 10 to 20 million illegals. Now I’m starting to see the problem. Even if the feds tried to enforce the law it would take the addition of every state’s police departments to have the man power to carry it out, so Arizona is right on target. Anything less is an absolute joke.
That is what? 140 I.C.E. agents per state?
SA, AZ needs to do it the right way. They need to work WITH the federal government rather than say they aren’t doing their job.
I suspect some of that is what is behind this vote of no-confidence. I.C.E. is being accused daily and loudly of not doing their job. Any last one of us out there where the rubber meets the road would get defensive, especially if our bosses were taking a new approach.
On the other hand, how big of an army of ICE agents can we muster?
And….yes…I am on a soap box…..even if you did get the local police and state police involved, who takes care of the criminals? Who does the work that isn’t involved with illegal immigration?
I think AZ is a bid for the Governor to get elected. She inherited this job from Napolitano. I saw it here and I see it in AZ. And Corey is now back on the bandwagon because he seeks higher office. Ask those who he runs his mouth to. They will back it up.
So, based on the present statistics the invading countries south of the border will eventually hold power over the present US citizens if left unchecked. Yes, an army is required, and so if that’s what it takes then for once use ours to protect us instead of every other citizen in every other country in the world. Generations have gone to war for other countries, and now it’s time for them to spend a few tours at home in OUR defense!
@Second-Alamo
I wrote many moons ago (no pun intended) in a sort of half-jest that perhaps we should consider declaring war on Mexico. It would get us around “posse comitatus”. Is it time to bring the troops home and fire a warning shot across Mexico’s bow?
We might need to do that to keep the drug cartels out. A day or so ago the WaPo had an article quoting Corderone as saying that the cartels wanted to take over the government and become the government. If that should happen, then I would say we definitely need to consider doing something drastic.
The enemy isn’t some dude who wants a job picking strawberries or washing dishes.
You all are just hitting on why I get so frustrated with laws like sb 1070. We need to take a serious look at what is going on south of the border. 28,000 killings per year? I expect that is one reason so many people risk life and limb to come here–personal safety.
Meanwhile Governor ‘Vote for ME Please while I lie to you” Brewer completely misses the point of the REAL danger to our south.
Careful MH, or we could wind up accepting millions more under the pretense of asylum. That would certainly spell the end of our sovereignty. Send half the troops to secure the border, and the other half to eliminate the cartels, then we’ve got a plan! Instead of deporting illegal men, have them serve in our army to gain citizenship while being sent to fight the cartels. That would work out better for all. Have them put their a@@ on the line as we in this country have done for generations instead of fleeing the situation.
We might end up having to address those very problems. We keep looking afar at Korea and Iran. I think we need to look at the danger that is closer.
In defense of Latinos–many Latinos serve in the military. Check out the number of school age kids who serve in ROTC programs. It sort of warms the heart.
@Second-Alamo
“Careful MH, or we could wind up accepting millions more under the pretense of asylum.”
Isn’t this exactly what we have done for Cubans? They have basically taken over the southern half of Florida and they are the ones who continue to stand in the way of normalization of relations with Cuba. Hell, North Vietnam killed 56,000 Americans and we are trading with them andformer service personnel just can’t wait to return to the scene of the crime. Cuba sits 90 miles off our coast and we can’t find a way to turn things around with them. Is there something wrong with this picture?
“The enemy isn’t some dude who wants a job picking strawberries or washing dishes.”
But Wolfie, how do you know if you can’t ask?
The Russian spies recently deported lived for years without suspicion by even their neighbors. I believe people didn’t even know they were Russian.
The opinions of 259 ICE members of the 7000 total don’t mean squat.
@Rez, I am lost. My point was that there are some dangerous thugs across the border who want to take over their own country’s government and then they want to take over ours. That to me presents more danger than a strawberry picker.
Starry, I tend to agree. I do think they made some good points though that I didn’t realize.
And there are dangerous thugs in ordinary places.
Of course there are dangerous thugs everywhere. Are you dismissing that there are drug cartels in Mexico, especially along the border towns? The ones I am reading about are extremely violent.
I am dismissing none of that. But we can’t dismiss other things as well.
What other things are you talking about Rez? If you are talking about working class people who are not trouble makers, then you handle that one way…and yes there are problems associated with them that might be fixed by legislation. The border town drug cartels probably are going to have to be fixed with guns, I am sorry to say.
I am one of those people who is going to go after the worst problem if I don’t have the resources to go after every problem.
Those were the ones brave enough to put their names out there. There are thousands of others that feel the same way.
@Starryflights
It is the extra-ordinary fact that a vote was taken within the leadership of the elected National Immigration and Customs Enforcement Council — an AFL-CIO affiliate — and affiliated local councils casting a unanimous 259-0 vote of no confidence in ICE Director John Morton that is the point of news here. That any AFL-CIO member would publically challenge the Obama Administration on any issue is the news worthy event here. That it is over the Adminstration’s un-willingness to enforce current law – putting the whole concept of comprehensive immigration reform into the crazy locker box is wat is news worthy here – and it comes from the inside – not the Tea Party.
In a letter announcing the vote, the National Council criticized the directors for “misguided and reckless initiatives,” and said their leaders have “abandoned the Agency’s core mission of enforcing United States immigration laws and providing for public safety, and have instead directed their attention to campaigning for policies and programs related to amnesty.” Rather strong stuff – don’t you agree?? but all then more imnportant becasue this is not from the Heritage Foundation – its from law enforcement. The folks who know. It also comes on the heals of the ICE leadership’s amnesty without law memo.
No Starry, this is prima faci that Obama has no legitimacy on this issue. Somebody in the west wing must have been really screamin gover this one. It took real guts on the part of the ICE Council — suggesting how bad it really is.
@belugajedi
Would you like to offer up some documentation for that statement or was that just your opinion?
How did they feel about their fearless leader George Bush who also was preceived to do very little. He deported fewer people that Obama.
TP, you have some documentation on that also or was that just an opinion?
Thank you for you response Moon. It was an article in the examiner – previously posted at commnet 14, under topic “Secure our Boarders Money is on the Way”
These are the elected shop stewards within ICE that represent ICE officers. They are saying very bluntly that Obama has NO credibility with respect to immigration enforcement. Yes deportations are up, but apparantly those numbers are themselves being depressed by an official Administration policy designed to reduce the number of arrests over the number of arrests that ICE agents themselves know could and should have been made.
@Moon-howler
You don’t see any supporters putting any notices out there supporting the guy…..other than those working in the administration or who have favored employee status do you? If you do – post the link. I’d like to read it.
The fact that 259 people stuck out their necks in an envoirnment known for vindictiveness by its management – from the executive level on down – is indicative that there are thousands out there that are not vocal. This vote is unprecidented.