Back in May I wrote a piece for the Washington Times entitled Borderline Obama. In it, I dscuss one of the most overlooked aspects of the question of immigration: its connection to national security.
My colleague and coauthor, Robert Spencer, has spoken with people who live along the Arizona border who for years have been finding Korans and Islamic prayer rugs on their property, left by illegal invaders. It is well documented in the Department of Homeland Security's 2008 Yearbook of Immigration Studies, from the Office of Immigration Statistics: Federal law enforcement agencies detained 791,568 deportable aliens in fiscal year 2008, and 5,506 of them were from 14 "special-interest countries" -- i.e., nations full of jihadists such as Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan.
Informants are telling us that those numbers continue to swell. But where are these people? What Americans -- Arizonans in particular -- are not being told is what Immigration Customs Enforcement does with individuals who were detained after illegally entering Arizona from a "special-interest country."
What action does the President of the United States take in response to this? He sues the good people of Arizona.
Here is what we do know:
- Whenever Arizona law enforcement officials contact Homeland Security about a suspected OTM (Other Than Mexican) they have detained, federal authorities swoop down, cart off the illegal entrant, and tell local officials nothing more about the case. OTMs have utilized sophisticated human smuggling networks to enter the United States from as many as 157 countries around the world - including Iran, Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Morocco and Egypt.
- All this is happening against the backdrop of President Obama's refusal to admit that the global jihad even exists. John Brennan, his counterterrorism adviser, even denies that jihad is a motive for jihadists. Mr. Obama has publicly excoriated Israel, demanded that the Guantanamo Bay detention facility be closed, called for civilian trials of terrorists and embraced Palestinian statehood even if it jeopardizes Israel's security.
- Mr. Obama's stance is consistent: As I show in my book, "The Post-American Presidency," he is a socialist internationalist who wants to subordinate America to international law. Why should he care about securing the borders? And in Arizona and all along the border, the beneficiaries of his policies will be Islamic jihadists - the same people he is encouraging, enabling and backing in their jihad against Israel.
You can read the rest here.
Suspicious Package Found at Nuke Plant Near Phoenix FOX Hat tip Kenny S
WINTERSBURG, Ariz. — Authorities are investigating a suspicious package that was found early Wednesday at a nuclear power plant west of Phoenix.
Maricopa County Sheriff's spokesman Brian Lee says security officers at the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station called them at about 5 a.m. after they found the suspicious package. A second call initially led to confusion that a second device may have been found, but that was quickly discounted.
Lee says a sheriff's bomb squad is investigating.
A spokesman for plant operator Arizona Public Service Co. says security guards found the suspicious package during a search of a vehicle at a checkpoint about a mile from the plant.
The plant is operating normally, but traffic in and out is stopped.
More reports.
MCSO investigating suspicious item at Palo Verde KTAR
PHOENIX -- Gates to the Palo Verde nuclear plant west of Phoenix were closed for about three hours after a suspicious item was spotted in a vehicle a mile from the plant Wednesday morning.
The nation's largest nuclear plant, 55 miles west of Phoenix, was not locked down, spokesman Jim McDonald said.
He said the suspicious item was spotted by a security guard checking vehicles entering at the Wintersburg Gate. He had no information about the item.
McDonald said the driver was a "non-badged worker," who did not have a specific Palo Verde badge, but could have legitimate business at the plant.
The main gate, on Arizona Public Service Co. property outside the nuclear plant, was closed from about 5 a.m. to 8 a.m.
Two of the plant's three reactors were operating, the third was down for routine maintenance. Operations were not affected.
The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office will investigate, McDonald said.
The sheriff's office said it was contacted at 5 a.m. by Palo Verde security about a suspicious device and received a second call at 5:30 a.m. about another suspicious package.
"Both the device and the second package are being evaluated and investigated," the sheriff's office said in a statement.
