Image Credit: chattanooga.gov
The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –
Earlier this week, we reported that buses loaded with immigrants originating from the border in Texas were making pit stops in Chattanooga on their journey to D.C. Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly states that the buses have now changed their route and will no longer be stopping in Chattanooga.
As of August 8th, more than 150 buses traveling from Arizona and Texas have transported thousands of illegal immigrants to the nation’s capital. Since April, Texas alone has transported over 6,800 individuals to D.C. Chattanooga became a pit stop for some of those buses en route.
Mayor Kelly stated that the City was unaware that the charter buses were passing through or stopping in Chattanooga, prior to calls made by concerned citizens to the Chattanooga Police Department (CPD) about buses loaded with immigrants having layovers at the Comfort Inn just west of downtown Chattanooga at 3117 Parker Lane. However, the Kelly administration admits to hearing “rumors” about charter buses over the last few weeks, but was unable to establish details prior to last week.
The CPD discovered Chattanooga was simply a stopping point for buses to change drivers on their journey to the Northeast.
Kelly stated that his office spoke with the charter bus company and that they made the decision to alter their course and no longer pass through Chattanooga. It is currently unknown what route the buses will take going forward.
The mayor said that 51 immigrants came through Chattanooga. Of the 51, four have stayed within the city and were taken in by a local family.
Kelly went on to say that the majority of the immigrants boarded planes at Lovell Field bound for destinations currently unknown.
As reported by Fox News, an employee of McDonald’s close to the Comfort Inn reported the busload of immigrants after they began panhandling.
A gentleman told the Tennessee Conservative, “My wife and I witnessed one Hispanic male being arrested or detained in front of the McDonald’s next door. I told the Chattanooga officer I had seen the guy sitting there since lunch. This was around 6pm. The officer said he told them someone was supposed to pick him up to take him to work but he didn’t speak any English. They had to get an interpreter. CPD took him away. Two other females who had been there at lunch were taken away in cars .”
Mayor Tim Kelly stated that the immigrants are “asylum seekers,” stating that the individuals were fleeing life-threatening situations, that they have paperwork which allows them to travel in the U.S. and went on to say, “the general public should not be concerned for their safety from these people.”
Kelly said that even though the city should not be a pit stop for the buses any longer the city will provide resources to “coordinate a compassionate response should the situation change.”
It is currently unknown how many charter buses have traveled through Chattanooga, prior to this incident, or how many immigrants may have not made the trip all the way to the Northeast previously.
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A related report, coming out of neighboring Dade County, Georgia indicates that individuals were allowed by the bus drivers to disembark at stops and not go all the way to their assigned destinations.
Dade County Sheriff Cross responded to a call at a Pilot Station in Rising Fawn, where he spoke with the bus driver stating that several illegal immigrants had decided to get off the bus and end their trip in Rising Fawn.
Based on Sheriff Cross’ conversation with the bus driver, it appeared as if the illegal immigrants were being encouraged to exit the bus at this location, with the impression that Chattanooga was within walking distance.
In this particular case, after securing a translator, Sheriff Cross created a dialogue with the illegal immigrants, as well as the bus staff. After a short discussion with all the parties involved, the illegal immigrants chose to get back on the bus and continue their journey out of Dade County, and on to Washington, D.C.
Several bills were introduced in the last session of the General Assembly concerning illegal immigration. However, the only ones that passed were either not helpful in curbing the influx of illegal immigrants into the Volunteer State or served as another magnet to bring more illegals to the state.
As outlined in The Tennessee Conservative’s RINO Report, these are the illegal immigration bills that passed or failed the General Assembly last session:
• Relocating Illegal Aliens To Home States Of Biden, Harris, Pelosi & Schumer
HB1994 / SB2636 – Legislation sought to require the Commission of Safety, in collaboration with the Commissioner of Human Services, to implement a system for the relocation of illegal aliens who arrive in Tennessee to other locations. Legislation sponsored by Rep. Bruce Griffey in the House and Sen. Frank Niceley in the Senate.
Status: Failed in the House Department and Agencies Subcommittee after no Representative in the Subcommittee offered a second to move the bill forward.
• Opening Door For Non-U.S. Citizens To Receive Professional Licenses In TN
HB2309 / SB2464 – Law paves the way for non-U.S. citizens to obtain professional and commercial licenses in the Volunteer state; increasing magnets for illegal aliens to migrate to and successfully habitate in the Volunteer State. Bipartisan legislation sponsored by Democrat Bob Freeman in the House and Republican Shane Reeves in the Senate.
Status: 34 House Republicans voted in favor of House Bill 2309, while 15 Senate Republicans voted in favor of Senate Bill 2464. Governor Bill Lee had the power to veto the bill, but signed it into law only four days after it reached his desk.
• E-Verify Bill To Weaken Job Magnets For Illegal Aliens In Tennessee
HB1636 / SB2297 – Legislation sought to require employers of six or more individuals to utilize an e-verification program in hiring; remove immunity for an employer’s reliance on other forms of verification; and prescribed penalties for employers found to be in violation. Legislation sponsored by Rep. Bruce Griffey in the House and Sen. Mark Pody in the Senate.
Status: Deferred to ‘Summer Study’ in the House Banking and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee. Motion to move to summer study made by Rep. Clark Boyd citing preference for his own E-verify bill that, after amendments, only lowered employee threshold from current 50 to 35, prescribed no disciplinary action and fines for businesses/individuals that are found to be in violation and would not ask that employers use the E-verify system to verify the work authorization status of employees unless they are hired on or after January 1st, 2023.
• Allowing Local Law Officials To Enforce Federal Immigration Laws
HB2222/ SB2264 – Legislation sought to give local law enforcement the authority to enforce federal law and arrest anyone transporting, harboring or facilitating the transport of illegal aliens into Tennessee. Legislation sponsored by Rep. Dennis Powers in the House and Sen. Frank Niceley in the Senate.
Status: Failed in Senate Judiciary Committee with Republican Senators Mike Bell, Todd Gardenhire and John Stevens voting against.
• Stopping Tennessee Taxpayer Education Funding Of Illegal Aliens
HB1648 / SB2597 – Legislation sought to stop taxpayers from being forced to fund education for illegal immigrants. Give school systems the choice of whether they wanted to enroll students who are unlawfully in the United States. School districts who choose to do so would no longer receive state funding for those students, leaving them responsible for any costs associated with educating those children. Legislation sponsored by Rep. Bruce Griffey in the House and Sen. Joey Hensley in the Senate.
Status: Failed in the House K-12 Subcommittee with Republican Representatives Kirk Haston, Mark White and Chris Hurt voting against.
About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career. Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others. He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History. Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com
7 Responses
They should start taking them to Biden’s home town in Delaware. In fact they should let them off the bus in front of Biden’s house.
Made contact with Gov. Lee, told him he’s a jerk and then some concerning the Bills listed in this article. Sent him a separate message for every Bill.
Someone actually emailed me back with the usual “no answer” rhetoric.
—————————————————————————
Dear Gary:
I have received your comments on and appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts on this legislation. I am committed to open and transparent government, and I greatly value your input.
To track bills as they make their way to my desk, please visit http://www.capitol.tn.gov/legislation/. If you have any additional thoughts this legislation or other matters, please e-mail my office at bill.lee@tn.gov or see https://www.tn.gov/governor/contact-us.html.
Warmest regards,
Bill Lee
BL/qc
This state is going to hell in a handbasket. I sounded the alarm years ago when the state thought it was smart to invited all those libs that couldn’t handle the burdens of their own state. They get here and decide it wasn’t so bad back home and since we can’t go back home, lets make Tn. just like the place we escaped from. In the words of that great philosopher, Forrest Gump, ‘Stupid is as stupid does’. That Mayor cannot dictate who and what passes through his city on an interstate highway. The bus company just tried to avoid a conflict. A conflict is what it’s going to take to put these “Wokes” back to sleep.
WE have to be the most stupid country in the world. WHAT part of ILLEGAL does the government feel they should enforce?. THEY have no problem from enforcing DUI LAW. THEY make money off those people, first they sell them the booze, with a high tax. THEY have no problem enforcing the law, if you carry a gun with out a permit, and it goes on and on. BREAK into MEXICO or CHINA or better yet NORTH KOREA and see if the enforce there laws. AND guess who gets to end up paying for these law breakers, YOU ARE RIGHT WE THE PEOPLE. THE LIBERALS and PC have ruined our country, and making it worse every day.
Just what we need, RINOs turning Tennessee Blue
Thanks a lot u backstabbing #@%*%$!
The news here is that our lawmakers continue to vote down anything that would make illegal immigration less attractive. See the great presentation in the article of the laws that have been put forth but voted down by our elected officials. Way to go all you Rino’s. Including Todd Gardenhire & Gov. Lee.
TN legislators, particularly your Republicans, should start acting like America-First Trump Republicans, and not RHINOS, and start passing as many state laws as possible to punish TN employers who hire even 1 illegal, stop all state benefits for illegals, require arrest/detention/ICE deportation for every illegal found driving without a license or for license plate or insurance violations, and legally require every County Sheriff to mandate that deputy sheriff’s ask about immigration status for every public encounter with an illegal, and then put them in deportation proceedings after calling ICE. Let the Illegals go to Chicago, CA, NY, etc.