::  Point of View  ::

I recently had the privilege of meeting with a number of employers and small business owners in Chesterfield County. The topics of discussion ranged from the cost of health care to the emergence of China as a major economic and military power in the world. However, without question, the topic that engendered the greatest passion was the issue of illegal immigration.

A few days ago, I had a series of meetings with minority business owners, civic leaders, pastors, shipbuilders, and bankers in Hampton Roads. Once again, illegal immigration was the subject that seemed to dominate our discussions.

Wherever I go, I hear from people who are concerned about the growing problem of illegal immigration. To many, it may come as a surprise that I get an equal number of responses from non-citizens who are here legally as I do from citizens. There are many hard-working legal immigrants in our country who work tirelessly to provide better lives for their families and they worry that those who are here illegally may cause a backlash against all immigrants. They are especially concerned about the rise of criminal gangs and the fact that some will begin to associate the violence perpetrated by criminal gang members who are here illegally with all immigrants. They are also concerned that their neighborhoods are often the ones most targeted by gang activity.

Although reasonable people can disagree on certain immigration policies, there is one area where the disagreement shocks me: allowing criminal gang members to enter our country and allowing criminal gang members who enter our country illegally to remain here.

As I have written before, there are currently over 750,000 criminal gang members in the United States today and they are growing dramatically in numbers and in the degree of violence they exhibit. Virginia is one of the states heavily targeted by gang activity.

According to testimony presented under oath to the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and Claims, which is a subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee, 60% of California’s 18th Street Gang are here illegally, 66% of MS-13 gang members are here illegally, 60% of Columbia’s Lil Cycos Gang are here illegally, and 75% of the Sureños 13 Gang in Harrisonburg, Virginia are here illegally.

While I have been a vocal critic of our government’s failure to enforce the immigration laws we currently have on the books, it is also important to understand how foolish some of our immigration laws currently are. While we ask potential immigrants if they are a member or representative of a terrorist organization, or if they have been a prostitute, most people are shocked to discover that if a criminal gang member attempts to enter our country legally, we do not even ask him or her on their visa application if they are a member of a gang. Even worse, if they volunteered that information and even stamped across their visa application that they were a member of the most violent criminal gang known, that information alone would not allow the immigration official to keep that individual from entering the country.

Of course, we know most criminal gang members do not enter the United States legally. Therefore, it is even more shocking to find out that the fastest growing and most violent criminal gang in America today according to many experts is a gang called MS-13. A large percentage of their members come from El Salvador. In 2001, our government issued a blanket protection from deportation for individuals in the United Stated from El Salvador – whether they were here illegally or whether they were members of criminal gangs. This protection is called Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and it now applies to nationals from El Salvador, as well as Burundi, Honduras, Liberia, Montserrat, Nicaragua, Somalia, and Sudan.

TPS is blanket relief that is granted by our government intended to protect foreign nationals who are from countries where there is ongoing armed conflict or natural disaster; however, many people are abusing TPS. Effectively, this provision put a blanket of protection over many criminal gang members who literally can stand on your sidewalk with a sign that says, “I am in your country illegally and I am a member of the most violent gang in America, and there is nothing you can do about it.”

Well, there is something we can do about it. This week I testified before the Immigration Subcommittee and presented a bill I recently introduced, HR 2933, the Alien Gang Removal Act of 2005 (AGRA). If passed, this bill would prohibit entry into the United States by any alien who is a member of a violent criminal gang. It would also allow for the immediate deportation of any alien in the United States who is a member of a violent criminal gang – whether or not they are currently protected under TPS. The message of this bill is simple: “There is no socially redeeming value to joining a violent criminal gang and if you do, we do not want your violence and crime here in our country.” The question is whether we will have the common sense to enact it into law.

:: A Salute to "Old Glory" ::

Many people do not know the great history of why we call the American flag “Old Glory.” The first flag to be named “Old Glory” was made for Captain William Driver, a shipmaster from Salem, Massachusetts in 1824 with twenty-four stars. Upon the first unveiling of the flag while setting out to sea on one of his many voyages, Captain Driver exclaimed “Old Glory” as the ocean breeze opened the banner. Driver proudly flew “Old Glory” on his ship on two trips around the world, on patriotic occasions and holidays.

Captain Driver retired to Tennessee, and with the outbreak of the civil war, Tennessee seceded from the Union. For fear that “Old Glory” would be destroyed, Driver hid her away in a secure location until 1862 when Union troops occupied Nashville. Many had often wondered if “Old Glory” had survived through the fighting in the South. It is believed that after Driver received word that the Union was now occupying Nashville, he went to his home and ripped open the quilt on his bed, and there within the quilt was the worn and tattered “Old Glory” safely hidden away. The flag was then taken to Nashville and in 1862, “Old Glory” flew proudly for the last time. And since that time; the name “Old Glory” has been passed down to all American flags.

The American flag is symbolic of the liberty, freedoms and values that our nation holds so dear. Whether it is World War II where our troops braved the treacherous climb up Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima, Japan to hoist “Old Glory”, or when the flag was raised with honor, dignity and profound patriotism in New York city and on the side of the Pentagon after the terrorist attacks in 2001, Americans cannot ignore the deep pride that swells within them when we see “Old Glory” proudly waving at our schools, little league baseball games or atop our Nation’s Capitol.

The flag is a reminder of what our nation stands for and the colors of the flag are symbolic of the following: red symbolizes hardiness and valor; white symbolizes purity and innocence and blue represents vigilance, perseverance and justice.

When displaying the flag, remember these simple etiquette rules:

- It is the universal custom to display the flag only from sunrise to sunset on buildings and on stationary flagstaffs in the open. However, when a patriotic effect is desired, the flag may be displayed 24 hours a day if properly illuminated during the hours of darkness.

- The flag should be hoisted briskly and lowered ceremoniously.

- The flag should not be displayed on days when the weather is inclement, except when an all-weather flag is displayed.

- The flag should never be displayed with union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.

- The flag should be displayed daily and on all holidays, weather permitting, on or near the main administration buildings of all public institutions. It should also be displayed in or near every polling place on election days and in or near every schoolhouse during school days.

- When displayed against a wall or a window, the blue field should be uppermost and to the left of the observer.

- When the flag is raised or lowered as part of a ceremony as it passes by in parade or review, everyone, except those in uniform, should face the flag with the right hand over the heart.

- The flag should never be dipped toward any person or object, nor should the flag ever touch anything beneath it.

For more flag etiquette tips, and for information on how you can purchase a flag flown over the United States Capitol, please visit my website at www.house.gov/forbes.