The LuLac Edition #36-June 24, 2006

NEWS OF THE DAY..................TODD IN THE HALL....We have a few sports analogies coming out of the gate with this latest blog edition. On the Nancy and Kevin show on Thursday morning, Todd Vonderheid faced off with the duo on the reassessment issue. Vonderheid concluded the call by saying that he was elected to make hard decisions, and that if one third of those decisions were right, he'd be batting .350 therefore making him a Hall of Fame caliber player. Very good comparison to make, plus judging from the interview, the guy can field pretty well too, both tough questions and softballs tossed his way.

CASEY AT THE BAT.....U.S. Senatorial candidate Robert Casey's campaign came out swinging on the immigration issue. This was vintage Casey negative stuff, complete with the music of "The Mexican Hat Dance" in the background to make his points about Rick Santorum's immigration stands. The radio ad was biting, humorous, informative and forceful. When the usually soft spoken Casey said at the end of the ad, "I'm Bob Casey and I approved this message", I thought he was going to come through the speaker.

FAMOUS PAIRINGS.....During the 1960s and 70s, two of the most recognizable sports pairings of athlete and reporter were Muhammad Ali and Howard Cosell. Ali bonded with Cosell and gave him the lion's share of exclusives and scoops because he felt comfortable with the tart tongued commentator and trusted him. It got to the point that Cosell and Ali were one of America's famous duos. Locally, Sue Henry from WILK seems to be becoming Howard Cosell to Senator Rick Santorum's Ali. The Senator has sought out the talk show host as his media sounding board as well as when he wants to break some news. The other day, the Senator was talking about his "weapons of mass destruction" disclosure on network TV. He also touched on the immigration issue which is fast becoming a major anchor for him as well as touting his beliefs and experience. It is evident that he feels comfortable with Sue Henry, even when she gives him a few jabs. Whether the frequent Santorum-Henry broadcasts will gain the fame of the Cosell-Ali pairing is only a matter of time. But like the previous offerings of Ali and Cosell, these too are entertaining and downright spontaneous.

MORE IMMIGRATION NEWS..........……………………The Bush administration, vowing to crack down on U.S. companies that hire illegal workers, abandoned employer sanctions before it began pushing to overhaul U.S. immigration laws last year. At least that’s what government statistics show. From 1999 and 2003, work-site enforcement operations were scaled back 95 percent by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, which eventually was merged into the Homeland Security Department. The number of employers prosecuted for unlawfully employing immigrants dropped from 182 in 1999 to four in 2003, and fines collected declined from $3.6 million to $212,000. 1999 saw the United States initiate fines against 417 companies. In 2004, it issued fine notices to three.
The government's retreat from workplace enforcement in the years since it became illegal to hire undocumented workers is the result of political pressure from business lobbies, immigrant rights groups and members of Congress. Punishing employers also was de-emphasized as the government recognized that it lacks the tools to do the job as the Department of Homeland Security shifted resources to combat terrorism.
The good news is that the government is seeking more resources to sanction employers, toughen penalties and finally set up a reliable system -- first proposed 25 years ago -- to verify the eligibility of workers. That would allow the government to hold employers accountable for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants.
The Homeland Security Department is seeking access to Social Security Administration records of workers whose numbers and names don't match -- access that has long been blocked by privacy issues.