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By George Runner — Wednesday, July 25th, 2012
As seen in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, San Bernardino Sun, Santa Clarita Valley Signal, Ventura County Star, California Political News & Views and Fox & Hounds Daily If you fall for an opponent’s head fake in sports, you risk losing the game. The stakes are much higher for taxpayers. If they fall for the Governor’s head fake this November, the price tag could be as high as $50 billion dollars by 2019. Don’t be fooled. The Governor and Legislature have for months been carefully orchestrating a head fake of massive proportions designed to scare Californians into voting for higher taxes. At the center of this head fake are $6 billion dollars of “trigger cuts” contained in this year’s recently signed budget. The budget hopes voters will approve raising taxes by $8.5 billion a year. The trigger cuts kick-in only if voters reject higher taxes this November. There’s no good reason for CONTINUED » |
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By Anonymous — Wednesday, July 25th, 2012
Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement
Hearing on: The Aftermath of Fraud by Immigration Attorneys WASHINGTON, D.C. — Unscrupulous notary publics, immigration consultants, and immigration lawyers have increasingly utilized fraudulent tactics to obtain immigration benefits for their clients. Unfortunately, this type of immigration fraud is usually identified after the fact, when an immigrant has already fraudulently obtained the benefit. In order to combat this fraud, on June 9, 2011, the executive branch unveiled a multi-agency nationwide immigration service scams initiative. As part of the initiative, the Department of Justice works with ICE and USCIS investigators to secure convictions – with sentences up to eight years in prison and forfeiture and restitution of over $1.8 million – for those who commit fraud on the immigration system as legal representatives. But what of the immigrants who received immigration benefits based upon fraudulent applications? On its ICE website, ICE boasts of numerous instances where Homeland Security Investigations charged, and the Department of Justice has gone on to prosecute and convict, attorneys committing fraud. In one of the largest cases of immigration fraud in history, Earl Seth David and his law firm submitted fraudulent claims to labor and immigration authorities concerning tens of thousands of immigrants sponsored for immigration benefits. Davis pled guilty and faces a minimum sentence of 25 years in prison. To date, the government has identified at least 25,000 applications submitted by his firm. In another example, Maryland lawyer Patrick Tzeuton was convicted of conspiracy to prepare false asylum applications, immigration fraud, and obstruction of official immigration proceedings. Tzeuton prepared over 1,100 asylum applications, many of which are believed to be fraudulent. In support of these applications, he and his assistant submitted fraudulent supporting affidavits such as fake medical certificates demonstrating that an immigrant had been beaten and tortured in Cameroon. So far, of the 1,100 plus cases he handled, only 40 have been identified to date for “further action” by ICE and referred to USCIS. Although Tzeuton was convicted in 2009, none of the immigrants involved have been removed as of this date. The jury is still out on whether DHS makes a concerted and vigorous effort to go back and revoke immigration benefits after attorneys have been found to have engaged in fraud. In some instances, DHS has apparently revoked thousands of benefits. In other cases, little seems to have been done, even where attorneys were convicted years ago and DHS boasted of uncovering the fraud. Clearly, how DHS responds to the David case will be the acid test of its commitment. Immigrants who obtain benefits by fraud with the assistance of counsel make a mockery of our immigration system, which is the most generous of anywhere in the world. We must hope that at the very least when DHS proclaims that it has uncovered immigration attorney fraud it will conduct a thorough case-by-case review of the immigrants that the attorney represented. |
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By Anonymous — Wednesday, July 25th, 2012
WHO: WHAT: WHEN: WHERE: |
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By Anonymous — Monday, July 23rd, 2012
WHO: WHAT: WHEN: WHERE: |
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By Anonymous — Wednesday, July 18th, 2012
The Fillmore City Council majority held interviews for city law firms on July 17 and 18. On the agenda following the interviews is “Discussion and Possible Action to Determine the Process for Negotiation of Legal Services Agreement and Authorize the Steps Necessary to Achieve the Intent of the Council.” In other words, to replace current city legal counsel Ted Schneider. Below are the bids received when Request for Qualifications were sent out by City Manager Yvonne Quiring. How detailed the RFQ’s were is unclear considering the limited proposals sent in by 17 applicants. The proposals are available to the public for review at Fillmore City Hall. In mid-June Mayor Gayle Washburn called Schneider’s law firm and told a senior partner Schneider was not allowed to attend council meetings anymore. No reason has been given by the Mayor for such action, however in a Letter to the Editor (see this page) from Councilmember Brian Sipes, he states “The issue at hand is simply a personnel issue of conduct of City Attorney, Ted Schneider.” Exactly what ‘conduct’ on Mr. Schneider’s part has not been disclosed. Jones & Mayer, Fullerton. Flat Rate: $150,000/yr. ($12,500/mo.), Litigation Rate $185/hr. |
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By Anonymous — Wednesday, July 18th, 2012
SACRAMENTO, CA – Assembly Member Jeff Gorell (R-Camarillo) is traveling to Washington, D.C., as a member of Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez’s bipartisan delegation to meet with the Obama Administration and Congressional leaders to discuss fiscal, policy, and program issues of importance to California. Issues being investigated will include federal health care reform; veterans’ disability and pension benefits; transportation reauthorization; immigration; future Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC) actions; and the farm bill, among others. Over the next week, members of the delegation plan to meet with Senators Feinstein and Boxer, Congressman Kevin McCarthy, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, the Mexican Ambassador to the United States, and representatives from Treasury, Housing, Veterans Affairs, Consumer Protection, and Homeland Security. The state assembly is currently in summer recess for the month of July and reconvenes on August 6th. In addition to Assembly Member Gorell and Speaker Pérez, the delegation making the trip to Washington, D.C. consists of Katcho Achadjian (R-San Luis Obispo), Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), Steven Bradford (D-Gardena), Paul Cook (R-Yucca Valley), Roger Dickinson (D-Sacramento), Mary Hayashi (D-Hayward), Bonnie Lowenthal (D-Long Beach), and Henry Perea (D-Fresno). |
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By Anonymous — Wednesday, July 18th, 2012
 City of Fillmore FILLMORE ClTY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA |
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By Anonymous — Wednesday, July 18th, 2012
City of Fillmore FILLMORE ClTY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, July 17th, 2012
District Attorney Gregory D. Totten announced that Governor Brown signed Senate Bill 1342 (Chapter 104, Statutes of 2012) into law. SB 1342 was sponsored by District Attorney Totten and the California District Attorneys Association to combat real estate fraud in California. The measure provides county boards of supervisors with the discretion to increase the Real Estate Fraud Trust Fund fee charged upon the recording of certain real estate documents from the current fee of $3 per document to a maximum of $10. The bill also allows a portion of the funds to be directly allocated to the county recorder to support fraud prevention programs, such as sending fraud advisory letters to at-risk homeowners. According to RealtyTrac, California leads the nation with more than 47,000 residences pending foreclosure. Research shows approximately 2.2 million people or one-third of all California homeowners are “upside down” on their mortgages. Fifty percent of non-profit housing counselors have reported that fraud is “very common.” Working with the Ventura County Real Estate Fraud Advisory Team (REFAT), the District Attorney’s Office has observed that distressed homeowners in California are increasingly being targeted by a variety of foreclosure rescue scams and the perpetrators of these crimes frequently target monolingual and elderly people in our communities. District Attorney Totten CONTINUED » |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, July 10th, 2012
You are cordially invited to join Senator Tony Strickland, Candidate for Congress in California’s 26th Congressional District, for a “Meet-and-Greet” hosted by Councilman Eduardo Gonzalez, Thursday, July 12th at 5pm at El Pescador, 1305 W. Ventura St., Fillmore. Please RSVP to Lauren at 805-217-2939 or email Lauren@TonyStrickland.com. |
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By Anonymous — Monday, July 9th, 2012
City of Fillmore CITY OF FILLMORE CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA |
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By Anonymous — Monday, July 9th, 2012
City of Fillmore CITY OF FILLMORE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AGENDA |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012
Today, the Supreme Court upheld the federal Affordable Care Act, “ObamaCare,” by a vote of 5-4, a decision with far-reaching implications for all Americans concerned about the cost and quality of their personal healthcare. The court ruled that the “ObamaCare” requirement that all citizens purchase health insurance constituted a tax enforceable by the Internal Revenue Service. With “ObamaCare,” we will soon face more government intrusion into our personal lives and more taxes withheld from our paychecks to subsidize the extraordinary costs associated with this massive government program. States will be required to absorb some of these new costs. Last night, the Governor signed a budget that hedges on the hope and dream that voters will tax themselves to generate $47 billion to pay for existing services. If the state cannot afford to pay for existing programs, how can we possibly afford to pay for a new multi-billion program? |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012
SACRAMENTO, CA – George Runner issued the following statement today in response the Legislature’s completion of the budget process: “If the Governor had the courage, he would send this budget back and demand the Legislature send him a fully vetted plan that is truly balanced, contains real reform and spurs job creation in our state. “The truth is that California won’t have a real budget until November. That’s when voters will decide whether to embrace or reject the billions in higher taxes assumed in this budget. “Should taxes fail, the budget calls for billions in ‘trigger cuts’ to education funding. I suspect these ‘trigger cuts’ are little more than a head fake aimed at scaring overtaxed Californians into taxing themselves even more.” Elected in November 2010, George Runner represents more than nine million Californians as a member of the State Board of Equalization. For more information, visit www.boe.ca.gov/Runner. |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012
I am disappointed in the Supreme Court decision on ObamaCare and believe we need to take this opportunity to repeal this massive tax. There's no doubt that affordable health care is a problem that needs to be addressed, but this bureaucracy is not the answer. Instead, we need to pursue more common sense private sector incentives. Today, it is more important than ever to elect somebody with strong, fiscally conservative values from Ventura County to stand up to the reckless anti-business agenda coming from the Obama Administration and the liberals in Sacramento. Please stand with me in these coming months to send a clear message - this is not the time for a $500 billion tax on the American people. Yours truly, P.S. Your contribution of $25, $50, or $100 will be a tremendous boost to my campaign. I encourage you to let your friends and family know how important this is as well. Please share this email with them, and when you discuss jobs, the economy, and the housing market here in California - tell them about my efforts and to checkout my website, www.jeffgorell.org. |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012
Tom Del Beccaro, Chairman of the California Republican Party, released the following statement this morning on the Supreme Court's ruling on ObamaCare: Today, our American system of government changed dramatically if not irrevocably. Congress can now tax citizens into doing what it wants. We used to have a Supreme Court Justice, John Marshall, that believed the "power to tax" was the "power to destroy." Now we have a Chief Justice who believes that the power to tax is the "power to mandate." The stakes of this election have now doubled if not more. The fate of this legislation is now in the hands of voters. By re-electing Obama, they will keep this law. If they elect Romney, it could well be repealed. Few elections provide such a clear choice. For California, a state already in more than financial distress, this represents a potential huge new financial burden. Californians cannot afford the government we have - there simply is no way for us to afford this new and massive expansion of government. |
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By Anonymous — Monday, July 2nd, 2012
City of Fillmore ClTY OF FILLMORE ClTY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, June 26th, 2012
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-CA), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement, released the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling today on Arizona’s SB 1070: “It is a sad time in America when Arizona and other states feel the need to pass their own illegal immigration laws in light of the federal government’s failure to enforce federal laws on the books. “Arizona’s law mirrored federal law. In striking down three provisions of the law, the court ruled today that Arizona may not fill the breach caused by the federal government’s failure to enforce immigration laws, which it did when the federal government’s failure to act placed the state’s citizens in danger and hurt its citizens’ ability to get jobs. “To make matters worse, after the court upheld Arizona’s right to have police officers check the immigration status of drivers during traffic stops if they had a reasonable suspicion they were in the country illegally, the president further interfered with Arizona’s right to protect its citizens by declaring that Immigration and Customs Enforcement would no longer cooperate with local law enforcement. “In the past several months, President Obama has unilaterally made it possible for more than a million illegal immigrants to continue to take American jobs by removing them from deportation proceedings and giving them working papers. Instead of putting more Americans on the unemployment line, President Obama should be enforcing federal immigration laws and cooperating with the states so Arizona’s SB 1070 and other protective state laws would be unnecessary.” |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, June 26th, 2012
City of Fillmore CITY OF FILLMORE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AGENDA |
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By Anonymous — Tuesday, June 26th, 2012
Ventura County Clerk Recorder/Registrar of Voters Mark A. Lunn announced today the final election results for the June 5, 2012, Presidential Primary Election with 100% of precincts reporting. This election was certified 6 days prior to the 28 day certification deadline of July 3, 2012. Final results revealed a 32.9% voter turnout. Lunn stated, “We know we've done our job when we are able to process all of the voted ballots and give every registered voter an opportunity to cast their vote. We were well prepared to conduct this election.” A total of 133,800 ballots were cast this election. This included 80,917 Vote By Mail ballots and 52,883 ballots cast at 361 polling places throughout the County. Lunn also attributed the success of this election to the coordinated efforts of his dedicated election team, which included more than 1,500 citizens who volunteered to work the polls on Election Day. For questions, please call the Ventura County Elections Division at (805) 654-2664. |