Upcoming vote on Cravaack amendment is about keeping violent illegal aliens detained until deported

Your phoning yesterday — and your faxing the last six months — reaped big benefits when several of our sponsored amendments passed the House in marathon voting that lasted into the wee hours this morning. 

For now, though, we all still have work to do as voting continues on the 2012 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security.

Please phone your U.S. Representative at 202-224-3121 and urge a YES vote on “the Cravaack amendment to ensure that violent illegal alien criminals remain in detention before deportation.”

This amendment is by freshman Chip Cravaack of Minnesota. Welcome to the fight, newcomer!!! He’s a former career military officer and airline pilot, so he is used to taking command.

Pronounce his name kruh-VACK, with the accent on that second syllable.

The Cravaak amendment to the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill would prohibit funds from being used in contravention of section 236(c) of the INA (which requires mandatory detention of violent criminals pending deportation).

The amendment is needed to stop the Administration from occasionally allowing violent criminals to be released on bail and otherwise while awaiting deportation and then disappearing into our population.

Cravaak was allowed to introduce and debate his amendment late last night, but the vote on it won’t be until later today. This will be a roll call vote, and we have alerted Members of Congress that we will “score” the vote on our Immigration-Reduction Report Cards.  

ROY BECK is Founder & CEO of NumbersUSA