To Be Announced...

Make no mistake, the newspaper has an agenda here. As the managing editor earlier stated:

Marshalltown editor: immigrations raids don't work

“We want to do two things — to make sure the higher officials we invite can walk away educated knowing that we’ve been doing immigration raids for how many decades, and the population continues to rise, so (the raids) are not working,” Larson said.

This is the Cedar Rapids Gazette version of the story on the summit:

Marshalltown plans immigration summit

MARSHALLTOWN (AP) — A meeting that is billed as a National Summit on Immigration is scheduled today in Marshalltown, and organizers say they hope it sparks a national grass-roots discussion on reform.

Rep. Tom Latham, R-Iowa, has agreed to attend the forum, and Sens. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Chuck Grassley, D-Iowa, may have representatives attend. The event will include sessions on the rights and responsibilities of individuals and employers, and immigration enforcement and policy. It is scheduled from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Dejarden Hall at Marshalltown Community College. Community leaders say local opinion on immigration varies.

Marshalltown Police Chief Lon Walker said he received a flood of calls from people after the raid saying it was about time someone did something about illegal immigration.

He said people are afraid to go public with their thoughts out of fear of being labeled a bigot or to have their business boycotted.

Ken Anderson, president of the Marshalltown Chamber of Commerce, was part of a group that traveled to Mexico where many of the illegal immigrants came from. He said the group found a bleak educational system with little opportunity for people to improve their lives.

Remember, that visit in 2001 was not only to see where they came from, but to solidify a better relationship with their "sister city" and help bring more to Marshalltown. See Cato Institute story link below:

(then) Marshalltown Mayor Harthun was eager to learn more about them — in part, because he wanted them to stay. “I was being self-serving,” he admits. “We need people.”

Get your tissues ready...Now, for the "softer side" of the story from the Marshalltown paper (with comments in bold-italics inserted by yours truly):

Immigration Summit to look at federal policies

It happened Dec. 12, 2006.

It was a typical day for early December. Cold and wet, trying to decide whether it wanted to rain or snow.

Fog shrouded the countryside and protruded into the city. Kids went to school, saying goodbye to Mommy or Daddy — never knowing that some of those parents would never return home that night.

("It was a dark and stormy night..." - Snoopy)

No more than an hour later, some of those very same children were yanked out of school by concerned relatives, fearing that the children would share the fate of their parents, perhaps both of their parents.

That fate was detainment by federal officials.

(Yanked out of school. Fear. Fate. Uncertainty. Concern. Better get some more tissues. The objective, fair, and balanced coverage continues...)

The morning of Dec. 12, 2006 was the morning much changed in Marshalltown for many families. It was the day federal officials with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement decided to raid the Swift and Company facility in Marshalltown, along with a handful of others across the nation.

The scene of the fog against the gray backdrop of the Swift plant created an eerie monochrome as federal agents escorted workers out of the building in small groups.

Some of those detained were later charged with criminal offenses as part of a large-scale identity theft operation. Others were charged with a civil offense, working and being in the country without the proper documentation.

(Otherwise known as BREAKING THE LAW. If I sell drugs on the street, can I be an undocumented pharmacist? Selling drugs...just not with the proper documentation)

All were taken to Camp Dodge near Des Moines and then later transferred to other facilities around the country.

For many who read about the incident or saw it on the evening news, that was the end of the story. But not for the families involved.

School teachers and other district officials note that it has taken time for some of the children to feel safe enough to return to classes. Others still have not returned.

Hundreds of families locally were thrown into crisis mode, because of something the federal government did.

(Al Capone felt the same way. Have you gotten the message yet? No wonder Tom Harkin isn't going to be there. He doesn't need to be there. He's got the newspaper serving as a representative of his views. What's the point?)

In the wake of that, the editorial board at the Times-Republican felt the time had come for a serious look at the federal policy on immigration and the thought of an immigration summit with federal officials here in Marshalltown was conceived.

(And I guess you already know some of their other "feelings" on the issue. No agenda here...move along, nothing to see here people.)

“Having key decision makers here and having them listen to what the Hispanic community, city/county government, the schools, the hospital, the business community, the chamber, MEDIC and other agencies have to say about immigration should prove to be valuable for those making policy,” said Times-Republican Publisher Mike Schlesinger. “This would also give those leaders a chance to hear from those who are directly impacted by the kind of ill-advised raids like was done here and what they hear could help formulate an immigration policy that would stop splitting families, provide workers for businesses and implement a procedure for workers who are here without proper documents to arrange for some type of retribution but still be able to obtain necessary documents through legal means that ultimately leads to citizenship.”

(Ill-advised raids, huh? What was "ill-advised" about it? Are they supposed to consult with objective journalists like you guys first?)

So Monday the event takes place. Beginning Tuesday, the Times-Republican will review the highlights of all the major sessions and relay the thoughts from those who were in attendance.

(Fair and balanced...of course.)

Wow.

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Labels: illegal aliens, swift