Lou Dobbs blasts Cohen&Grigsby Seminar

Date: Wednesday, June 20, 2007 1:29 AM

<<<<< JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER No. 1712 -- 6/19/2007 >>>>>

Cohen&Gigsby pulled the video clips of their immigration seminar off Youtube
but not before the Lou Dobbs got their hands on them.

Today the Dobbs show did a report that featured the Programmer's Guild excerpt
of the seminar. Click this link to watch it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCbFEgFajGU

I thought it would be very fitting to post the Lou Dobbs report online also,
so here it is:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Bsp2V3ifZjM

Reactions to the Youtube videos are flaring all over the internet --
especially blogs. Several articles have already been written about the
controversy. I will do another newsletter with more info but I thought I
should get this out fast so all of you could enjoy the two youtube videos.

The video definitely hit a raw nerve on the Dobbs show -- I don't think I have
ever heard a statement from him that was this strong:

DOBBS: I don't even know if we can call them "loopholes." I mean
that's a pretty startling, straightforward statement that business
and those that support business, the law firms and everyone else,
they're just basically trying to screw the American worker.

I received word that there might be another Lou Dobbs report on this soon, so
stay tuned!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0706/19/ldt.01.html

LOU DOBBS TONIGHT

Aired June 19, 2007 - 18:00 ET

DOBBS: The government has a guest worker program. In fact, several of them.
But you wouldn't know that listening to either President Bush or the
Democratic leadership of the Senate. In fact, the United States government
issues some 80 different types of visas and administers a half-dozen guest
worker programs right now.

As the Senate considers expanding the guest worker program, critics fear it
will only offer employers even greater incentive to bypass American workers in
favor of cheap, foreign labor. Further driving down wages and working
conditions for Americans.

Christine Romans has our story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): There are a half-dozen guest
worker programs meant to fill U.S. labor shortages with foreign labor. In this
grainy seminar video posted on the file- sharing site YouTube, a Pittsburgh
law firm on how to use loopholes to ensure foreign workers can get the jobs
instead of Americans.

LAWRENCE LEBOWITZ, VP MARKETING, COHEN & GRIGSBY: And our goal is clearly not
to find a qualified and interested U.S. worker.

ROMANS: The Programmer Guild, a high-tech worker advocacy group, spliced
together several minutes of footage, including an apparent how-to for meeting
minimum requirements for advertising a job.

LEBOWITZ: So, certainly, we are not going to try to find a place where the
applicants are going to be the most numerous. We're going to try to find a
place again where we're complying with the law and hoping -- and likely not to
find qualified and interested worker applicants.

ROMANS: The seminar has since been removed. After repeated calls and e-mails,
a spokeswoman for the law firm would only say the event was to educate their
clients and would not confirm the substance of the seminar.
It all comes as the debate over guest worker programs intensifies.

SEN. CHUCK GRASSLEY (R), IOWA: Quite frankly, we have evidence that a lot of
companies are using H-1B skilled worker program for illegal immigrants at the
very same time that they could be hiring Americans.

ROMANS: Senator Grassley has long been concerned about H-1B visa abuse, and
recent congressional testimony highlighted humanitarian concerns in the H-2A
and H-2B programs.

RON HIRA, ROCHESTER INST. OF TECHNOLOGY: You try to control one set of misuse
in one category, and employers will just adapt and go to another visa category
and start to misuse those.

ROMANS: He says employers are gaming the system. But advocates of guest worker
program say they're essential for the economy, especially in agriculture,
where more legal slots are needed.

JAMES HOLT, AGRICULTURE ECONOMIST: We're talking about bringing the workers
that are coming in now illegally into the United States in a legal, controlled
program. And I'm -- I think anybody and everybody would be in favor of that.

ROMANS: Fraud and abuse can be stopped, he says, if Congress allocates more
resources and personnel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: And now the Senate is considering revamping the entire system, giving
Z visas for workers already in the country illegally and Y visas for those who
want to come. But worker advocates fear a new system will only mean a new
generation of loopholes -- Lou.

DOBBS: I don't even know if we can call them "loopholes." I mean that's a
pretty startling, straightforward statement that business and those that
support business, the law firms and everyone else, they're just basically
trying to screw the American worker. And to hear the Senate talking about its
nonsense associated with this amnesty legislation.

Couple of little facts that Bill Gates, wanting unlimited H-1B visas, the
president saying you got to have a guest-worker -- the most tortured logic to
come from the president's mouth, I think, is we can't secure our border
without a guest-worker program. No one can construct any kind of reason from
that statement.

But there are two facts that people keep forgetting -- seven out of 10 visa
requests under the H-1B program come from Indian companies in the United
States to provide employees to outsource to American companies and reduce
wages. And the other little minor item which is supposed to be high-skill
jobs, four out of five jobs under the H-1B program are level-one jobs, not
level four, i.e., low-skilled jobs, not high-skilled jobs. These are Americans
trying to screw American workers. And it just is as plain, straightforward and
can anyone convince any of us that the president of the United States and this
Senate with this sham amnesty program isn't aware of these facts?

ROMANS: Senators Grassley and Dick Durbin have actually sent a letter to the
government. They've been asking some hard questions about the H-1B program and
fraud and trying to make sure that any kind of loopholes are closed so we'll
see how far they can get.

DOBBS: Well, Durbin is supporting amnesty, Grassley is opposed to it. So 50
percent shot of some reason prevailing. At least in that instance. Perhaps
higher if we see any kind of semblance of character and honesty in the days
and weeks ahead. Christine, thanks for the illuminating report. Christine
Romans.

The Bush administration also facing outrage over its failure to clear what is
now a massive and growing backlog of passport applications. The State
Department can't even handle the passport applications, let alone anything
that would be associated with this amnesty legislation. The State Department
can't process those applications in time for the summer vacation season.
Senators on Capitol Hill today, well, they've noticed. And they've blasted the
State Department for its sheer income tense. Andrea Koppel reports from
Capitol Hill.

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