LETTERS

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CORREX In the March 2, 2017, article, “The vanishing Statehouse press corps,” Tara McClellan McAndrew misstated that the Illinois News Network, which the Illinois Policy Institute describes as its “independent project,” provides audio for free. The Network provides copy for free.

Clarification: After the Illinois House of Representatives and Senate denied the Illinois News Network press credentials in 2013 and 2014 because the legislature deemed its owner, the Illinois Policy Institute, “a lobbying entity,” the Illinois Policy Institute sued, lost and appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court refused to hear its case and let stand the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeal’s decision which upheld the Illinois legislature’s actions.

The Illinois Policy Institute denies that Illinois News Network (INN) and Illinois Radio Network (IRN), which it owns, are “ideological” or “partisan” media designed to look like mainstream media. In a letter to Illinois Times, Chris Krug, head of INN and IRN, says they “produce fair, journalistically ethical and relevant news stories” and “are independent projects of the Illinois Policy Institute, which is a nonpartisan 501(c)3 organization.”

CANADIAN IMMIGRATION I was surprised as I watched a story which aired on CBS’ “60 Minutes” about Canada’s immigration of Syrian refugees. I think it sounds nearly perfect for the U.S. to try.

According to the Canadians interviewed, to bring someone into Canada, you must have a sponsor for the entire first year. The sponsor must be vetted and prove they are capable to personally provide for all the housing, living, eating and learning expenses for an entire year and agree to be responsible for those individuals they sponsor. They must have a support network of people in place with dual-language teachers and advisers to care for and work with those sponsored. To stay in Canada, within the first year, those sponsored must secure a job supporting themselves and their families independent of all others. Those sponsored must go through a lengthy vetting process to get to Canada. According to the story, it may take nine months to more than a year vet those coming into Canada.

So for all of those who want open border immigration like Canada: If it is like the story says, I say bring it on. Someone other than the government would be required to sponsor and be responsible for immigrants. The sponsor would be charged with the welfare and care for those sponsored. The sponsor would be required to go through a vetting process and also prove they have the resources to sponsor those coming into the country for the full year. If the immigrant could not be vetted, they do not get in.

Based on this story, it seems to me that Canada has a good handle on immigration. Craig P. Williams Springfield

NOT A MUSLIM BAN A recent “Mallard Fillmore” cartoon suggested Trump should put the travel ban on countries that kill members of the LGBT community instead of putting the temporary ban on people from the seven countries the Obama administration said were the source of most terrorists. That way, the travel ban couldn’t be seen as being against religion, but purely against discrimination.

According to the Washington Post, there are 10 countries that will put you to death if you are convicted of being gay: Yemen, Mauritania, Iran, Qatar, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan and United Arab Emirates.

Here is a hint to the media: If there are around 50 Muslim majority countries and the Trump temporary ban is only on six or seven that the Obama administration said were the biggest sources of terrorists, it is not even close to a Muslim ban. The headline should be “Trump proposes temporary ban on travel from countries Obama considered the greatest risk.” It is the media that chose to focus on the Muslim issue to gin up protests. The bias and intent is astonishing. Jack Hellner Springfield