Why am I not surprised

When my mother's family arrived on these shores in the 1920's, my grandfather mistakenly thought that the fee for a family to be accepted was - at least according to family lore -  $25. It was actually - at least according to family lore - $25 per capita. So the family - my toddler mother and her parents - hung around in Ellis Island's holding facilities for a week or so while my great-uncle in Chicago came up with the additional $50 entry fee. My mother's younger sister had died between when the family's decision to emigrate and their leaving the old country. If Leni had lived, the family might have had to wait a few more days, as they would have needed $75 more, not $50. (Leni was part of the family picture on the family passport, but her face was x'd out. I don't know if that was done by my grandparents or by immigration officials. But that x'd out face is the one and only picture anyone has of her.)

My mother remembers being in the women and children's dorm with my grandmother, who was crying off and on because my grandfather was separated from them - he was in the men's dorm - and she wasn't quite sure what was happening.

It all worked out, of course. The entry money was raised, the passports were stamped, and the family got on the train to Chicago, where they became Americans and prospered. 

America still likes white immigrants of European stock. These days, they're just not so prevalent among the huddled masses yearning to breathe free in the good ol' US of A. And the good ol' US of A has adopted quite an attitude towards those who currently want in.

As the daughter of an immigrant, I have always valued our country's ability to absorb people and make them part of our nation. It's one of the things I cherish the most about us, one of the things that I actually do believe makes us exceptional. Our abililty to turn "others" into Americans has always made me proud. 

But that was then, and this is now.

These days:

The US government is taking fees from immigrants and US sponsors for services that it has no plans to provide. The government took their money, and now it won’t even adjudicate their applications—in many cases, it refuses even to issue denials. The State Department is actually telling consular officers not to notify future applicants that the government has banned them. (Source: The Cato Institute)

The Cato Institutes estimates that this "theft of processing fees for services never rendered" is at least a $1B fraud.

Here are the policies responsible for this fraud:

Legal entry and most visas are denied for citizens of dozens of countries that Trump & Co. don't want here. The countries on the list include, but aren't limited to: Afghanistan, Brazil, Chad, Egypt, Haiti, Ghana, Iran, Nigeria, Russia, and Somalia. (No surprise: African countries are disproportionately on the blacklist.)

...any citizens from these countries will be denied if they apply for an immigrant visa and most types of temporary visas. Nonetheless, consular officers are being instructed not to “counsel applicants or advise them in advance of the interview that they are subject to the [proclamations Trump has signed barring entry].”

So, ka-ching, ka-ching. In most of the world, taking money from someone for something you're not going to deliver is considered fraud. Big fraud. 

The list impacts not just for those applying now, but those who're already here. Some have been here for decades. They're paying fees for "everything from employment authorization documents to permanent residency applications." But the benefits they're applying for are frozen for them. Ha, ha! Joke's on you, immigrant sucker. Apply all you want. 

Over 320,000 immigrant visa applicants—based on 2024 flows—are now blocked. Once accounting for the immigrants in the United States, the number of potential legal permanent residents blocked rises to 561,000.

Then there's something called the diversity visa (DV) lottery. Naturally, with the triggering word "diversity" in there, this program is going nowhere:

The State Department writes, “DV applicants may submit visa applications and attend interviews, and the Department will continue to schedule applicants for appointments, but no DVs will be issued.” Once again, the State Department is letting people pay fees and go to interviews, while simultaneously promising not to process them.

Not to worry, though. The vast majority of DV immigrants were already on the banned list. 

There are all sorts of fees associated with immigration. 

The fees stack up. For instance, to sponsor a spouse, a US citizen must pay a $675 fee to USCIS to petition for their spouse to obtain lawful permanent residence. Then, the immigrant must pay $1,440 to adjust status from temporary to permanent residence. That application takes so long that people usually pay $560 for the spouse to receive an employment authorization document, so the total fees can add up to $2,675.

And to think that my grandfather was confused by the $25 a head requirement. Once they got to Chicago, I'm pretty sure there were no "employment authorization documents" to pay for. My grandfather got a job working as a butcher; my grandmother (my mother in tow) cleaned houses to help the family save up to set my grandfather's very own butcher shop up. The 1920's sure were a kinder, gentler time in so many ways. 

Congress should immediately require the administration to start processing applications and fairly adjudicate those applications without regard to a person’s birthplace. If someone cannot establish their eligibility, they can be denied under the law, but there is no reason to steal people’s fees and fail to provide the service the law entitles them to.

Also sprach Zarathustra the Cato Institute. Cato's David Bier, in testimony before Congress has said in no uncertain terms that "This is a scam. This is a fraud." 

And if you think the Cato Institute is some sort of haven for crazy lefties, for bleeding heart progressives, think again. It's a libertarian think tank.

"This is a scam. This is fraud."

Associating the words "scam" and "fraud" with the Trump administration? Why am I not surprised. 

Meanwhile, Lady Liberty weeps...(Me, too.)

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