November 5, 2008, - 9:46 pm

A Wash For Illegal Aliens: ICE Princess Leaves, Replaced by Immigration’s “Costanza”; “Blackface” Expert Leaked Obama Aunt Zeituni Immigration Status

By Debbie Schlussel
Na-na-na-na, Na-na-na-na, hey, hey, Good-bye. The woman who, for the last three years, has allowed over 400,000 illegal aliens to enter the United States, and refused to track down most of 20 million here already, is finally leaving.
Months ago, I wrote on this site that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Chieftess Julie L. Myers a/k/a “The ICE Princess”–the incompetent, unqualified, cronyette airhead acting as our nation’s top immigration enforcer–was mostly gone from ICE and “working” from home. I also noted that her hand-picked #2, John “Costanza” Torres–who is far worse–was running the show and was designated by Myers and Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff to be Myers’ interim replacement at ICE. And I mentioned Torres in another post earlier today, speculating on who’d head ICE after his “interim” status ended (can’t happen quickly enough).

juliemyersblackfacecostumepic.jpg

ICE Princess Julie Myers and Her Blackfaced Awardee

Today, The ICE Princess made it official. She’s leaving by the end of next week. Good riddance and well past overdue to this spoiled witch. I enjoyed writing about the many outrages this woman committed, but didn’t enjoy the pain she put our country through and the glee she gave illegal aliens and terrorists. I wrote a New York Post column about her ridiculous banquet with a “former” Islamic terrorist, FBI award revokee, and immigration law violator who perpetrated marriage fraud to remain in the U.S.–Imad Hamad.
But there’s a reason she officially announced her exit right after the election. While she had hoped that John McCain would hire her, that’s evaporated now. And she might be in some, um, serious legal trouble.
There’s news that The ICE Princess–the “Blackface” expert who gave an agent an award for a Blackface costume, then lied about it, then hid and destroyed evidence about it–is the likely source of the leaked information to the media about Barack Hussein Obama’s Aunti Zeituno Onyango, an illegal alien, who was long ago ordered deported.
While it’s illegal for Myers to have leaked this information–and she could lose her law license for it (in addition to destroying evidence in the Blackface incident)–that’s not what bothers me. I’m glad we found out about this aunt, though far too late in the game.
What bothers me and should bother you, too, is that Myers knew that Aunti Zeituni was here illegally and allowed her to stay and live in public housing off the taxpayers’ dime. Yes, that’s the kinda charitable gal Julie Myers is. And she’s the kinda gal McCain would have kept in place. Her exit is the tiny silver lining in his loss. Unfortunately, there’s the little matter of her close buddy and hand-picked “replacement”, John P. Torres, who is far worse.
And, hopefully, the Obama camp will remember that Torres is the crony of the woman who leaked the news about his illegal “Aunti”.
As I’ve noted on this site, Torres–a proud high school graduate with little experience doing much of anything, except cheating on his then-wife with his employees–is one of the worst picks to run ICE imaginable. Then, there’s that little manner of the $100K plus he spent on a weeklong ICE party in Kansas City promoting himself. Yes, he wasted $30,000-$50,000 of your tax money to pay “immigration expert” Tommy Lasorda to speak at the confab. Maybe he knows about immigration from El Duque.
He’s a vindictive man who gives promotions to women who sleep with him–that’s against the law, even in the U.S. government. He creates supersecret, unlawful committees to pick his unqualified chickies and beer buddies for jobs when normal ICE hiring procedures wouldn’t permit these individuals to obtain those jobs He harasses both male and female employees and has a temper that would make Tony Montana and Michael Corleone blush. All due apologies to Montana and Corleone, who at least have the concept of honor down pat.
I hope I don’t have to eat my words here, but I think anyone Obama could pick instead would be better than John P. Torres. The problem is how fast Obama will pick his replacement. Here’s what my ICE insiders say:
* Expert #1–this person was a top high-ranking individual inside ICE:

I don’t know that he’s got any political stroke with the Dems to be able to snag a political appointment. I wonder how long after the Inaugeration ICE will have to wait for a new A/S. I read that OPM had drafted, and both the Obama and McCain campaigns had agreed to, a plan to fill 100 of the “most critical” political appointments in the govt within 60 days or so of the new Administration taking office; and a list of another 250 positions to be filled within 6 months or so. I don’t know where the ICE A/S may fall within that plan – we know Obama’s at least partly aware of ICE issues given his hyperbolic campaign statements about immigration raids “terrorizing” communities.

* Expert #2–a top ICE senior agent:

We can only hope that the “advisors” the new administration places in the agencies can see through JT [DS: John Torres]. But, since he’s so self-serving, I’m sure he has a photo (shopped) of himself with Clinton hanging in his office already [DS: he currently has a photo of Reagan, but is probably dumping it in the waste basket].
I can’t say I had much expectation for the future of immigration enforcement no matter who won.
I think Torres had a little juice with the Republican (had a picture with Reagan in his office), but I doubt anything worthy of a political appointment (let alone Senate confirmation). He could be kept around as the number two like John Clark [DS: also harassed female employees] was. I do think Obama will move quickly, but there are over 100 political appointee jobs in DHS alone. It’s going to be a fun ride.

Yes, it will, but not for Americans concerned with secure borders. Those having the most fun ride will be–as is currently the case–illegal aliens within our borders.
I will miss having the incompetent Valley Girl, Julie Myers, to kick around. As I frequently noted, she was just like Veruca Salt, the spoiled rich girl in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” who demanded that Daddy Find Her a Gold Ticket. In this case, “Daddy” was Retired Gen. Richard Myers, who is Myers’ uncle and helped get her the job for which she hadn’t the tiniest qualification. It helped that she picked the candidate for the job, as a Bush personnel official.
Now, I will have to retire those wonderful, hilarious photoshops that David Lunde of Lundesigns made for me. So I am posting just a few of my faves herein shortly (stay tuned–they’ll be here, at the bottom of this entry).
Good-bye, The ICE Princess, Julie Myers. And don’t let the door hit you on the way out. Here’s the Julie Myers theme song for the exit:






39 Responses

Thump, thump, thump, thump thump, thump. What was that? Obama’s aunt under the bus.
COBRAMA’S theme song: Sung to Queens Another bites the dust.
Thump, thump, thump. Another one under the bus.
DEPORT OBAMA’s AUNT NOW.

californiascreaming on November 5, 2008 at 11:26 pm

Debbie,
How much danger are we in??? I’m really afraid now and worried about what will happen in January. Do you think that they will confiscate our bank accounts??? Is it best to withdraw our money from the bank.. I’m thinking so.. but I don’t think there is anywhere we can go…. My Father said that we should just leave things as they are but I’m afraid.
What should we do??
Karen

PrincessKaren on November 6, 2008 at 12:23 am

I’m not trying to stand in for Debbie, here, Karen, but if I may say how I see it- I truly thing Obama is “wrong” for the presidency of the USA- especially in light of the overwhelming majority of liberals in the House and Senate. That said, I firmly believe that this country will survive Obama’s presidency. It may be tough going for the term, but there are collective (no pun intented) lessons to be learned by hardship. We are Americans. we have a track record of surviving adversity- both within and from without. Every once in a while, I guess, things need to take a hard turn to port or starboard for a while, so that we can all see that the “center” with a little extra hold to the right is where this country should be.
Just keep the lessons of the past in mind and a weather eye out for a recurrance of the things that we know are wrong. I still believe in the American people’s general goodness and right thinking. We will all survive this and hopefully, in another 4 years, there will be someone with the heart and spirit of Ronald Reagan to kick it back in line. 😀

Mistress_Dee on November 6, 2008 at 10:07 am

I worked as a federal criminal investigator for over thirty years in the Departments of Justice, State, Treasury and Homeland Security. DHS in general & ICE in particular are third tier (lowest) “all show & no go” bureaucracies. Just like Rodney Dangerfield, ICE gets absolutely no respect from other federal agencies or the tax paying public. Local law enforcement agencies like Irving,Texas PD look to ICE to pick up Hispanics who ride their bicycles on the sidewalk. When $132,000 a year special agents don’t respond to pick up these single aliens the Chief complains and the ICE SAC responds that his agents are way too busy preparing for National Security Operations. In fact, all the “not so” special agents are sitting in the office waiting for HQ to tell them when to raid another meat packing plant.
The competent senior management from legacy INS & Customs is long gone from ICE. The cultures of the two legacy agencies continue to clash and pure ICE recruits are the rejects from the USSS, FBI, ATF and virtually any other federal agency. John Torres will be running the ICE Capades for a long time because the Obamanation couldn’t care less about this lowest of the low pseudo law enforcement agency. Me thinks that ICE is not long for the Obamanation and will eventually be broken up & forced out to CIS, CBP or WHATEVER…Who really cares anyway? The first clue to the ICE’s future was the removal of “worthy of trust and confidence” from the agent’s credentials. The only mistake was not adding the new ICE motto of “Waste, Fraud & Mismanagement” to the agent creds. The only happy ICE agent is a FORMER ICE agent!
ICE would be a joke except there is nothing funny about that pathetic excuse for an agency. The only ICE you will be reading about post Obama is the International Commodity Exchange on Wall Street. BUY, BUY ICE @ NYSE & Bye, Bye ICE @ DHS.

ParaLyzer on November 6, 2008 at 10:58 am

ParaLyzer,
I am assuming you are speaking about the Dallas SAIC office. Let me tell you that you obviously are either lying about your experience, or are no longer in the Dallas area.
Let me reassure you that my husband works incredibly long hours working towards making this country a safer place not only in Dallas, Texas, but for everyone in this country. You may have issues with higher ups, but please do not diminish the hard work and long hours these men spend away from their families.
To make such a blanket statement makes me wonder if you even comprehend the issues that this office and others in this country are dealing with. I sure hope that you are retired!I have never posted on a board before, but your comment is so over the top, and I am sick of people accusing these agents of doing nothing but raiding factories!
Plus, only top ranking agents make the salary you are suggesting, which means you are truly clueless!
You explain to the families who don’t have their spouses at home for special occasions that they are just doing nothing!

patriotic on November 7, 2008 at 3:03 am

I’m afraid I’m late to the party, but wanted to get my “retired .02” stated anyway.
ParaLyzer, and a few others out there, continue to bash ICE at every opportunity, completely disregarding some outstanding work that is being done by the men and women of this agency. Like soldiers in our fine military, our ICE agents don’t get to pick and choose the battles they will fight, they just saddle up and press on.
Administrations change, leadership changes, but the men and women that are pulling the wagon, will continue to do that. There will be, as there always is, some dead weight in that harness, but the job will get done, all the same. The rest of us will pull the weight of the lazy, good for nothings, because the wagon still needs to be pulled.
Thankfully, paralyzer still speaks for the vocal minority, as it’s my opinion that the bulk of the ICE workforce doesn’t share his views or opinions. It still isn’t perfect, but no agency is. Respect is earned, by individual agents and officers, in the way they conduct their business.
I’m confident that the folks I trust and really know within ICE are doing everything they can to earn that trust and respect, day in and day out. I know for a fact that many of them are working incredibly hard to do that.
I believe J.T. has done an admirable job since being elevated to his current position, and there is no reason to think he would do any less, as the Acting Secretary. It’s easy to throw rocks from the shadows. A lot harder to lead, out in the open, where your every move is examined, and second guessed.
Patriotic, Please keep the faith. You are absolutely correct and I applaud you stepping into this forum to defend what is right.
Be safe,
EVS

EverVigilantSheepdog on November 7, 2008 at 6:42 am

Well I have to throw in my opinion too. There is a lot of truth to what Paralyzer says; “Vocal Minority” or not. I also empathize with Patriotic. As I have said on this blog before, my problem was never with the field agents but with management that was so far removed and disconnected from the agents. ICE still has to be around 80% plus legacy customs management. Managers who knew/know nothing about the INS or immigration mission. They make their empty promises of how things are going to get better, and there are going to be changes. As I’ve asked before…WHEN? Meyers has been briefed and advised on the problems numerous times. Those problems being the clashes between legacy customs and ins agents, the loss(es) of legacy customs programs, systems, databases that were far superior to those of ins, the fact that legacy customs agents (1811’s) going from conducting real investigations to rounding up and processing illegal Mexican day laborers; melon pickers, litter collectors on the expressways etc. The list could go on all day. What has Meyers done about it? NOTHING! Along with her cronies at the national and sac levels…NOTHING! Going out and conducting huge raids and then turning out the majority of the arrestees for various reasons does not define success. It is a waste of the tax dollar. Does anyone know just how many of the arrested aliens were released due to Hurricane Gustav? These were the ones from Howard’s in Mississippi. Apparently the number is in the hundreds. EVS is that how success is gauged? Ice is still a boat adrift and at the brink of sinking. The few legacy customs managers left are leaving. According to a friend at EVS’ old office, one of TWO legacy customs supervisors who actually know what’s going on has submitted his retirement. Apparently, this man should have been an ASAC years ago but was stepped on by the last regime and the current (EVS’s former boss) one. This is going to leave one legacy customs manager who actually knows the job, has leadership qualities and gives a damn about his agents. Add this to the fact that all the competent legacy INS managers there have retired or left. What do they have? So what happens in that office? I empathize with patriotic and her husband. I also empathize with my friends who are still with ICE. Agents like Patriotic’s husband carry the torch as best they can and what happens? They get the shaft. Because management fails to see the commodity in agents like him, they get leaned on to do more and more. All-the-while the golden boys (SRT and certain program officials) get away with doing whatever they want. What’s worse is that the slugs who are too dumb to learn the job or who have gone “ROAD”-Retired On Active Duty, and say things like, “I don’t have access to Enforce” get away with as much as the golden boys. Management tolerates this crap! So where does this leave the rank and file agents who are willing to work? I know for a fact, my friends still at ICE are all trying to leave. I know some may say, I didn’t make it any better by leaving but I wasn’t prepared to wait around and hope it gets better. I wasn’t one of the chosen ones favored by management, nor was I a slug, ignored and tolerated by management. So what happened? I saw an opportunity and took it. And I can’t believe how much happier I am!!!! And to echo Paralyzer…yes I am happy because I am a former ICE agent.

freefromice on November 7, 2008 at 11:21 am

It is unfortunate that we dont have as many posts as we used to relative to this topic. I believe it is because there is so much apathy and no one really cares anymore, including the field agents, who, in my opinion, are doing the best they can with what they have.
However, I do feel there are certain matters that still exist within this agency that no one has yet addressed.
First off, after the last failed immigration reform, everyone from Congress on down just threw their hands in the air and said ‘well this was tough and it failed… NEXT!!!’ That left agents with doing an incredibly unpopular, but VERY LAWFUL, high profile function (ie immigration raids), with little or no support from management. What we needed to see was and is UPPER management face the cameras and tell the media with conviction and a stern attitude that this is the law, and we will enforce it!!!!
Second, ICE agents are still leaving to go to greener pastures at other agencies. That fact cannot be denied. I am aware of more than a few former ICE agents that are now with CBP IA. They tell us CBP is going to get 1811 who will be doing legacy Customs work and ICE will be doing Immigration work. ICE managers say differently.
It is my opinion that ICE is STILL failing to recognize experienced agents when it comes to promotions and movement on career ladders. How many more “thirty something wonder kids” with five or seven years on do we need as 14s in HQ or in the field??? Experienced agents who have worked in one legacy area, through no fault of their own, are being passed over and ignored in favor of the new crossbred trained agents.
As for the cross training, quite honestly, my training in computer systems was INADEQUATE to the point that I do not feel comfortable imputting something without error. You can hardly blame someone for not imputting a report or arrest into a system that they are not comfortable with for fear that the info will be incorrect.
If you look at the recent ICE budget, all the money seems to go to everyone EXCEPT ICE OI. What does that tell you???
Vacancies are running rampant again throughout the country (ie acting G/Ss, ASACs and even DSACS), and no one seems interested in filling them.
Five years into our existence, we are still for the most part missionless. CBP is growing further and further away from us, with some CBP management contacting other agencies such as DEA, the Coast Guard and local PDs before contacting ICE, despite the ICE/CBP MOU (that in and of itself is disgraceful).
I also hope, one day to say, “yes I am happy because I am a former ICE agent”.

ICEDover on November 7, 2008 at 3:32 pm

Dear Patriot (Mrs Chakwin?)& Bully Barnette (EVS),
You are both full of it but I am happy to see you are still reading the best blog on the internet. Hits, hits and more hits are good for DS. Thank you for your support.
The facts about ICE and JC speak for themselves. ICE is a joke and both JC & Bully Barnette are prime examples of the most incompetent, arrogant, clueless management in the history of federal service. Barnette is double dipping at the only agency that does less work than ICE. Chakwin’s reputation is known throughout the service. Chakwin is hanging by a thread and when his only friend in the world, Marcy Foreman leaves, he will be looking for a job too. Perhaps, Bully Barnette can hire him to drive his wide ass to and from Bay St. Louis in that new GOV?
The only issues John Chakwin deals with on a daily basis, are self promotion & trying to get his lame ass gym built in the office. JC doesn’t like working out at the local high school anymore. Apparently he is too cheap to join a real gym and perhaps the Volleyball team is starting to get creeped out? JC is also too cheap to change his car registration from Florida to Texas, which is a violation of state law. (But it’s only been 3 years!) JC did have enough stroke with PP to get BOTH his sons ICE agent jobs. Nepotism is alive and well at the ICE Capades.
JC also enjoys assigning new GOV’s to rookie agents when he recruits them as office snitches. Of course when they wreck the car the rookies move to the shit list that has grown from the original dirty dozen old timers to practically the entire office. Patriot needs to check the recent OPR office Inspection results and agent survey. Me thinks JC may be holding back the ugly facts.

ParaLyzer on November 7, 2008 at 3:38 pm

Paralyzer,
My only issue with your post was your characterization of field agents doing nothing. I am not going to comment on upper management, I am going to stay away from that conversation.
I just wish you all would separate management issues from the poor guys just trying to do their job. Trust me, I know my spouse is not just sitting around waiting to raid a chicken plant.
I can’t believe that I am accused of being full of shit for saying that I know for a fact many agents are out there working very hard. My spouse is one of them, and the beaurocracy these agents have to deal with is hard enough without former agents degrading their efforts.
How do you know so much about what is going in this office if you no longer work there? When you leave a job, you should move on, or come back and be part of the solution. You can complain, or stand up to the problem, not hide in the trenches throwing stones.

patriotic on November 7, 2008 at 7:20 pm

Have to say I agree with Paralizer, icedover and freefromice. Kyle put down the kool-aid and get your head out of Tores’ ass. Just because you run the “Ice tactical intelligence center” (isn’t that an oxymoron?) doesn’t make you intelligent! Ya ever vigilant turd!!!

notanEVSfan on November 7, 2008 at 10:31 pm

ICE agents sit around in Dallas because Chakwin wants them in their cubicles where he can keep an eye on them. I spent 29 years in Dallas as an 1811 criminal investigator. I know what is going on in ICE because I still have contacts there and have been retired for only 3 months. GS/13 special agents are paid in excess of $100,000 to perform complex investigations. Current management not the agents are responsible for the current state of affairs in Dallas. SAC/Dallas is an “all show and no go” office. The record speaks for itself. The number of agents and supervisors in Dallas continues to rise and is now over 100 agents. More complex criminal investigations were worked by a dozen special agents and one supervisor (RAC) when I transferred to Customs in 1987. Rounding up illegals is not complex criminal investigative work. Charging illegals with using a false SSN is not the product of a complex criminal investigation. There is not any justification for paying special agents a six figure income to round up & process illegal aliens. DRO should be performing 90% of the duties that SAC/Dallas is involved in under current management. As a tax payer, I am outraged. As a former ICE special agent, I am embarrassed.
I am even more outraged and embarrassed that former ICE officials, retire on Friday and start double dipping the following Monday. GG in Houston and Bully Barnette in Bay St. Louis are just two examples of this common ICE practice.
I am well aware that legacy Customs management has run legacy INS into the ground. Believe me, there is no Customs in ICE. CBP is legacy Customs and ICE is legacy INS. An OPM audit would not justify the number of agents in Dallas nor the grade structure that currently exists. ICE in general and SAC Dallas in particular need to reduce management by at least half. GS/13 agents are paid well to work complex investigations independently with a minimum of supervision. Dallas meter maids have more autonomy than GS/13 ICE agents. Government transparency has been non existent for the past eight years. There will be changes as a result of the current economic recession. It’s just a matter of time before the light will shine on the waste, fraud and mismanagement that has been pervasive not just at ICE but throughout the federal bureaucracy under the Bush administration. In fact, DHS was formed to bust unions and civil service rights. The DAAP is the best example of what DHS is all about. The courts have prevented DHS from implementing further “reforms” that would have totally eliminated MSPB regulations and rights at ICE.

ParaLyzer on November 8, 2008 at 2:30 am

Oh, and for the record, I do NOT believe the views and opinions expressed by ParaLyzer are in the minority. Quite the contrary… it is my opinion that ParaLyzer is expressing views shared by the MAJORITY!!!! Failure to recognize that fact is the basis for the problem that currently and historically has existed within ICE since its inception…. no one wants to admit that these problems exist!!!!
ICE is a combination of two old buildings that need a face lift. The brain trust that came up with ICE decided to do create a walkway between the two old buildings and cover it all with the same cosmetic exterior.
What they failed to address the effect that all this added weight would have on the foundations, which have been left to crumble while we continue to replace the cosmetic exterior.
AS Myers herself illustrated what’s wrong with ICE during her “farewell tour”. She stated several things have yet to be fixed within ICE, which is commendable as this is the “first step to recovery”. However, this is where the speech ended. No proposed solutions, no proposals to even address the problems (ie; immigration reform, continuing these “draining” immigration raids, ect).
The problem is compounded by a group of cheerleaders who are running around screaming “all is well” at ICE, when in fact the opposite is the case. If I were a “re-hired annuitant”, I might also be towing the company line, but based on the people that get those jobs, I won’t be one as I am NOT part of the “in crowd”. Based on the people I have seen hired as retired annuitants, regular, working, knowledgeable, field agents are not even considered for this job. Only kool aid drinking “yes” man managers.
Many people I know, some of whom have spent time in HQ and left for “greener pastures” are saying that it’s no secret that ICE is in fact heading for a meltdown. Experienced and veteran agents are leaving. Agents with less than 5 years on are being promoted to supervisors while agents with 15 years or more on are being ignored. There is so much disconnect between field agents and management, it’s as if we don’t even work for the same agency.
The growing chasim between ICE and CBP should be criminal, as law enforcement officers who were part of the same agency are now witholding information from each other, going to other agencies such as USCG, DEA or local PDs with information, and competing for the same investigations rather than working together.
According to information I heard, one area director is telling her CBP officers that they should be talking to DEA instead of ICE. That’s disgraceful, yet no one seems to want to address the problem.
Is there a REAL and MEANINGFUL cross training program set up for veteran agents from both legacy agencies? Sad to say, 5 years after this agency was thrown together, the answer is still NO. Check out the last personnel ratings. See how happy some agents are working in cross disciplines.
However, none of this will change in my lifetime. I also agree that we get little or no respect from the rest of the law enforcement community and the only time other LEs call us is when they want “detainers”. Certainly nothing will change in the next few months as we move from one administration to another. People will continue to blow smoke justifying their jobs and practicing CYA techniques.
Sorry, I have to go…. my cellphone just rang.

ICEDover on November 8, 2008 at 9:44 am

While I am tempted to continue this thread, debating the merits and faults of ICE, issue by issue, as I once did, on this blog, I have chosen not to do so, for two important reasons.
First of all, I am retired from ICE/OI, and while I still communicate regularly with numerous members of the ICE/OI leadership team, I am no longer “in the loop” or part of the decision making process, thus I no longer have the insight of a “Senior Manager” to share with Debbie’s readers.
What I learn now would be derived from confidential/private communications, and I will not violate the confidence of any of my friends and/or former peers.
Secondly, I no longer find it interesting to “debate” with “former” agents, who decided to bail on this agency, but just can’t leave. I know it was entertaining for many, but I choose not to travel back down that washed out and rutted dirt road. People can continue to post, using numerous identities, to bolster his argument, but I won’t play the silly game.
As our 26th President, Theodore Roosevelt so eloquently said:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”
President Roosevelt also said “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
Enjoy your weekend & be safe,
EVS

EverVigilantSheepdog on November 8, 2008 at 10:38 am

Barnette, you have made that promise at least a half dozen times before in the comments. Do you think anyone really cares? If you don’t have anything to say, then just go away. We don’t need anymore of your bullshit farewell speeches and emails. BTW, I am aware you came to the Dallas SAC office looking for me before you suddenly retired. You introduced yourself to every agent you could find, but only one agent in the office recognized who you were (famous in your own mind). That agent gave me the heads up seconds after you hit the floor with Chakwin. Apparently the greatest investigator in the history of Customs, can’t find his ample ass with both hands. You got lost and couldn’t even find me though I was sitting at my desk the whole time you were on the floor. We laughed for a week at the fact that you attempted to check every window cubicle yet you missed the only one you were actually looking to find! A couple of weeks later we found out that you were bailing to that bullshit job in Bay St. Louis. Good luck with all that! The Obamanation will be searching for and destroying all those double dipping, golden parachute positions that you and your Customs cronies created for yourselves.
No, the DS blog has not heard the last word from Bully Barnette. Just like Chakwin, he is his own worst enemy. And just like the scorpion that hitched a ride across the Mississippi River on the frog, they can’t help themselves. It is what it is, and they are what they are.

ParaLyzer on November 8, 2008 at 11:40 am

Again EVS with his sugar coated kool aid laced line of bull shit. “Man who is in the arena”? Who would that be? Certainly not you or any of your management cronies in New Orleans or abroad! You can throw out quotes from real men (Roosevelt) all you want, it doesn’t elevate you. As with all your other posts–you have no answers or solutions. Not now and not when you were running rough shod over people with customs and ice. Cheerlead all you want it still doesn’t help the “rank and file” agents Paralyzer, ICEdover and Freefromice are talking about. And as far as those agents who “bailed” on this agency. I hope to be one of them in about three months. My ship may have finally come in. Nobody I know with ICE blames me! They all just wish they were going with me! Speaking of “bailing.” What did you do? You didn’t stick around for the “fight” or battle or whatever analogy you have used before to describe those who are smart enough to abandon ship. You were willing to do nothing but cheer on the damned merger and expect everyone else to do the same. When that did not happen what did you do? YOU SAT IDLY BY WITH YOUR BUDDIES IN NEW ORLEANS AND IGNORED THE PROBLEMS. Yea big part of the solution? Managers like you are part of the problem!

notanEVSfan on November 8, 2008 at 12:23 pm

Oh and Kyle I forgot to say–Ya Ever Vigilant Turd!

notanEVSfan on November 8, 2008 at 12:25 pm

Relative to “bailing”, I only wish that “bailing” was an option for me, but due to the time invested in my current position and the time I have remaining, “bailing” for me is not a viable option. However, I do not condemn anyone who has bailed. Several people I know quite well have bailed. They are (or were) dedicated ICE employees (from BOTH legacy agencies) who looked around and didnt like the direction in which we are going.
Furthermore, this double dipping (ie rehired annuitants) is something I would eliminate immediately. To me, it seems like a breeding ground for favoritism and the role of a “rehired annuitant” has yet to be defined. It seems to me that we are now paying people TWICE as much to do the same job and that these jobs are only available to upper managers.
Unfortunately, continuing to fail to acknowledge ICE problems will just cause them to fester…. but then, that’s nothing new around ICE.

ICEDover on November 8, 2008 at 12:56 pm

Every dog has his day, including EVS. Times are changing and due to the very serious economic recession that is going to grip this country for at least the next 18 months, everything is going to be on the table. Now is the time to write your U.S. Representatives and Senators about the waste, fraud and mismanagement in the federal government. The good old days for the good old boys is coming to an end. “Transparency” and “delayering” of management are the new buzz words in the Obamanation. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. The double dipping, retired annuitants at ICE and the bullshit pork barrel boondoggles like the Tactical Intelligence Center in Bay St. Louis are easy targets. Delayer federal management and deliver the billions of dollars saved to the United States Treasury.
The hard working rank and file employees of the federal government want to get back to work. The only thing standing in their way are reams and reams of self serving GS/15’s. Expose these arrogant thieves to the light and they will be crushed as they scatter for cover.

ParaLyzer on November 8, 2008 at 1:18 pm

I thought that when I retired a year ago that morale at ICE had hit rock bottom. I was wrong, at least in Dallas. While the agents I talk to in other parts of the country seem to be making the adjustment, albeit grudgingly, things are still bad in Dallas. I think even Chakwin would admit that he rules by intimidation, it’s just his style. Government cars are taken and given as rewards, TDYs are always used as punishment, and for those who rock the boat, they are quickly on the list. If the punishment or rewards were given to agents who either make a good case or mess something up, well that would be one thing. But rewards and punishments are given according to who he thinks is in his corner. What he seems not to know is that no one there is in his corner, well maybe with one exception. If there were such a thing as a confidence rating for a SAC,
Chak’s would be lower than George Bush’s.
I’ve always said that the Customs mission and the Immigration should be separate, it was true then and it’s true now.

longshanks on November 8, 2008 at 4:38 pm

Longshanks, it is silly for us even to think a guy like Chakwin is going to do the right thing. He never has and never will. If his nose wasn’t so far up Marcy’s ass, he would still be in Jacksonville playing golf and his wife would be happy. Me thinks he is probably thinking he should have been careful what he wished for. He ignored his own advice and transferred to Dallas to get his crown. Now it looks like Marcy is bailing and he is going to be twisting in the wind. In as a GS/15, out as a GS/15. Oh well, he should have followed his own script and been careful what he wished for!!!!!!!!!!!!

ParaLyzer on November 8, 2008 at 9:50 pm

I think I am done with this blog. There is no reasoning with incompetence. Paralyzer, I finally know who you are, and thank god you are no longer with ICE! You do not have the reputation of being the smartest cookie in the jar. The comments I have heard about you, I will not repeat. Plus, how could you single people out by name on a blog? This is seen by everyone, and that is why many of the good guys steer clear of this. So much for being anonymous.
ICE is now an official agency, and there is nothing anyone can do about it. I don’t think INS or legacy customs was happy, but that is life. Life is not fair! If you really want to accomplish something, you need to get over it and try to overcome the system. This agency is new, is changing it’s leadership, and if you had over thirty years as an agent, shouldn’t you have been at the level to implement change? You made the choice to cower to others in your little cubicle. Why, because they threatened to take your nice car away, or send you to headquarters?
There are good things that field agents are accomplishing out there, they just can’t be spoken about in a blog. You know that, which is why you can throw stones, knowing that nobody will throw them back at you.
Thirty years, and you had no power? That is sad, because you seem so passionate. Oops, I guess you were just missing the intelligence factor and work ethic. By the way, Mr. Chackwin can’t be to blame for your entire career. By the time he got to you, you should have been smart enough to deal with him. Have fun posting you frustrations on this board. I have better things to with my time. Maybe you should take up golf? It seems to work for my dad.
Bye

patriotic on November 9, 2008 at 1:57 am

I have to ask one question. Who is Chakwin? And is he Patriotic’s husband? O.k. that was two.
Patriotic in case you read this–not to take sides because I’ve never wanted to bash anyone except the incompetent managers who have ran this agency into the ground, but there are many instances where 20, 25, and 30 year agents have been in a powerless position. Especially those who were vocal about the merger. Customs was not a perfect place, but it was still a lot better tha ins. I know because I was ins then customs. I don’t know if the old website is still active but it was called “customscorruption.com” If it is stil there look at that and it will give you some ideas of the types Paralyzer is talking about. Those idiots have flourished at ICE because the competent customs managers were silenced and have left or are leaving and the competent ins managers were largely ignored and have left or are leaving. Freefromice said it best in an above post. A prime example of this would have been EVS and his little buddy “Barney Rubble” over in Gulfport and New Orleans. BR has been sent to HQ but sent back because they didn’t want him because he is such a turd! EVS let him go uninhibited! Most people will know who I am talking about. That way I won’t call names.

notanEVSfan on November 9, 2008 at 9:29 am

I have to ask one question. Who is Chakwin? And is he Patriotic’s husband? O.k. that was two.
Patriotic in case you read this–not to take sides because I’ve never wanted to bash anyone except the incompetent managers who have ran this agency into the ground, but there are many instances where 20, 25, and 30 year agents have been in a powerless position. Especially those who were vocal about the merger. Customs was not a perfect place, but it was still a lot better tha ins. I know because I was ins then customs. I don’t know if the old website is still active but it was called “customscorruption.com” If it is stil there look at that and it will give you some ideas of the types Paralyzer is talking about. Those idiots have flourished at ICE because the competent customs managers were silenced and have left or are leaving and the competent ins managers were largely ignored and have left or are leaving. Freefromice said it best in an above post. A prime example of this would have been EVS and his little buddy “Barney Rubble” over in Gulfport and New Orleans. BR has been sent to HQ but sent back because they didn’t want him because he is such a turd! EVS let him go uninhibited! Most people will know who I am talking about. That way I won’t call names.

notanEVSfan on November 9, 2008 at 9:29 am

Sorry about the double post–my computer or the site was lagging.

notanEVSfan on November 9, 2008 at 9:30 am

Me thinks patriot is Chakwin himself, not his wife. Chakwin is famous for writing run on sentences. My favorite lines,
“Thirty years, and you had no power? That is sad, because you seem so passionate. Oops, I guess you were just missing the intelligence factor and work ethic.”
Those three lines tell you everything you need to know about John Chakwin and Kyle Barnette. They did not join the federal “service” to serve the best interest of the public. They joined so they could be badge bullies. Neither was able to cut it on the streets, so they became group supervisors and we all know the rest of the story.
Paralyzer was promoted to GS/13 on a desk audit in 1988. Paralyzer retired as a GS/13 step 10 in 2008. I challenge you to find another agent currently serving in ICE who went to a step 10 in twenty years without busting down from a higher grade. Do the math, you can’t get there without a few QSI’s along the way. The SAC made less than $14,000 a year more than paralyzer due to the salary cap. He moved at least five times. Paralyzer has lived in the same city for 29 years.
I am proud to say, Paralyzer never applied for a single GS/14 position. Paralyzer was the case agent on more major cases in five years than Chakwin worked in his entire career. In fact, Paralyzer was the original case agent on the last successful long term major narcotics/money laundering investigation involving “BC Bud” in Dallas. Chakwin removed him from the case after he made both currency and narcotic seizures as well as arrests in the case. The case was transferred to a young agent who continued what Paralyzer started and did an excellent job finishing the case. The agent praised Paralyzer in a briefing to the entire office before the final search warrants and take downs. Chakwin only praised the fine work of the second case agent in an email to the entire office. Paralyzer was the ONLY agent in the office not included in the final take downs on direct orders from Chakwin. Everyone in the SAC/Dallas knows these are the facts.
John Chakwin is not popular nor is he a competent manager. In 32 years of law enforcement I never met anyone more disliked by those working for him and by anyone who gets to know him. Chakwin goes out of his way to get rid of anyone who “knows more than he does” ,which is the vast majority of senior agents. Chakwin transferred the three most senior Customs agents out of their groups of expertise. Case work suffered as a result. Everybody in SAC/Dallas knows this. Chakwin is indefensible on any level. The ONLY good thing that I ever heard about him is that a couple of agents liked to play golf with him back when he was a street agent. They now refer to him as “dick head”. One is now a GS is another office and told me that Chakwin is the LAST person on earth that he would want to work under.
The Paralyzer is a very lucky and happy man. I am not bitter because I have nothing to be bitter about. My life could not be any better. Anyone who knows me can attest to that fact.
But now that I am ICE FREE, that is free from the reprisals of Chakwin and Barnette, Paralyzer can tell the truth. Paralyzer will never take another order from an bureaucrat moron. I am financially secure, physically fit and as happy as anyone can be.
We may have heard the last from Chakwin and Barnette on DS because they are coward bullies. They are drunk with power but they have no power to stop the truth on DS. Their egos have always been big problems for both of them. Those egos stopped them from getting to where they wanted to be at both Customs & ICE. Chakwin is a career 15, unable to survice the SES vetting process. Barnette made it to number two and was assured he could never make SAC, so he bailed to be in charge of a 3 man boondoggle. Chakwin and Barnette hate it because the Paralyzer and many others who they went after in Dallas could not be “got”. Oh well, the paralyzer is easy to find just in case they want to try one more time. Paralyzer may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer but with half his brain tied behind his back, he can outwit, outsmart and outplay John Chakwin Jr. on any day that ends in “Y”.

ParaLyzer on November 9, 2008 at 12:29 pm

“I think I am done with this blog. There is no reasoning with incompetence. Paralyzer, I finally know who you are, and thank god you are no longer with ICE! You do not have the reputation of being the smartest cookie in the jar.”
ROTFLMAO- Explain the above statement. “You do not have the reputation of being the smartest cookie in the jar”. LOL, tears are rolling down my face. What a F’in moron you are. If you are trying to say , not the brightest bulb in the lamp, or not the sharpest knife in the drawer, they F’in say it. All the cookies in my jar are F’in dumb. After all, they are F’in cookies !!!! ROTFLOL
This can’t be JC JR. Even he ain’t that F’in ignorant. I hear that both his little ice cubes are products of the Atlanta & Jacksonville public school systems. Nuff said.

ParaLyzer on November 9, 2008 at 4:12 pm

For those who may be confused. John Chakwin Jr is the ICE SAC/Dallas. He has two sons who are now ICE special agents hired via the nepotism route. One is in the San Diego area, the other in Shreveport, LA. Word is that son number one wanted to go to Atlanta. The SAC there said no F’in way and San Diego was as close as he could get. Number two son came along after Chakwin and Kyle Bully Barnette, the former DSAC of New Orleans became Ahole buddies as they share a similar passion for F’ing with subordinates and retaliating against all they deem to be “coconuts”. Bully Barnette jumped ship just ahead of the sheriff and is now a political hack, double dipping at the Tactical Intelligence Center, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. That boondoggle of mess is not long for this world under the Obamanation, which is looking to cut the fat from DHS.
ICE has a lot of problems, but nothing compares to the mess in the SAC/Dallas. Almost a dozen GS 14 & 15’s have left the agency or transferred just to get away from Chakwin. Chakwin has a reputation as the most abrasive, angry, arrogant SAC in Customs or ICE history. Chakwin was the original acting SAC in Atlanta when ICE was started but he pissed Garcia off so bad, he was exiled to Jacksonville, FL. Word is that he had to leave there a step ahead of the EEO sheriff. His former Rabbi, and former Chicago SAC Alysia Brown went to bat for him and Chakwin was appointed GS 15 SAC in Dallas. His tenure has been a total disaster as the DEA, FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office all have acrimonious relationships with ICE because of Chakwin. Morale is as bad as any office in the country, which a recent OPR Inspection verified. But Chakwin has one a rabbi and her name is Marcy Foreman, the Director, so he is untouchable. Chakwin is expected to hang on only as long as Marcy does. Marcy is trying to get him his SES before she bails, which could be any day now.

ParaLyzer on November 9, 2008 at 7:44 pm

Comments by ParaLyzer & EVSfan are completely out of line. You sound like 10 yr old school boys trying to pick a fight over anything with EVS. You’ve mentioned the Tactical Intelligence Center in Bay St. Louis, and it appears to me you don’t even know what that office is about or does so how can you sit there and put it down when you haven’t a clue? You babble like boys and hide behind DS column. If you got a problem with someone why don’t you just deal with it! There are office across the US that have special jobs to do and we aren’t all privy to that information due to it’s classification. I know for a fact there aren’t too many people who knew of the existance of the Tactical Intelligence Center before you so openly put it out here. Have you ever considered there is a reason for that and you possibly exposed it? No, you’re too worried about what EVS is doing nowdays since you can’t complain about him driving to New Orleans everyday on the taxpayers dollar and doing whatever other things you were always complaining about. There are reasons, beyond our control, that our superiors do what they do. I’ve come to the conclusion that if I do my BEST everyday at my job then I can sleep at night knowing I’ve given it my all. I can’t predict what my upward chain of command will do, nor do I want to know most days.
Just grow up and quit acting like little boys!!!

Priceless on November 10, 2008 at 9:29 am

Priceless + EVS = EVS to the power of 2
Me thinks 2 cents is far from priceless
Welcome back Bully Barnette!

ParaLyzer on November 10, 2008 at 8:00 pm

How about this latest blirb coming out of Washington. CBP may be getting 1811’s to handle all the Customs investigations and ICE/OI will just handle Immigration matters. But I know we all have heard this rumor, HOWEVER
Thats not the best part, current ICE/OI 1811’s would not be allowed to apply with CBP unless they stepped down first. ICE/OI is horrified about the loss of hundres of SA’s if this goes through. Which, is looking more and more promising everyday. I have no idea how they will get this accomplished, but they are pushing hard for current ICE/OI to be “banned” from making the move unless they step down first.
And the punches just keep rolling along.

kcrat on November 11, 2008 at 1:06 pm

It’s not surprising, ICE OI walked away in many cases from their long standing commitment to CBP in order to pursue the immigration thing full force. Most new ICE agents have no idea what CBP is about.

longshanks on November 11, 2008 at 2:37 pm

But Managers who have drank the kool aid will say there is nothing wrong at ICE.

notanEVSfan on November 11, 2008 at 4:27 pm

In response to kcrat …
As an legacy Customs Agent (and Inspector, to boot, AND CIBT/CBES trained), watch how quickly my happy ass files a lawsuit if I am not afforded an opportunity to lateral directly over to CBP without break-in-service if they get 1811s.
Considering I was FORCED into this Obamanation called ICE, the least they can do is allow those of us who have the legacy Customs training and who want no part of the immigration mess to return home with honor after a long, enforced exile.
What a bunch of f’ing bullsh’t …

4EVERCUSTOMS on November 11, 2008 at 4:30 pm

“All is well, all is well”….. that’s what the kool aid drinking managers continue to tell the troops….aaaahhhh, no it’s not. Those who continue to ignore the problem are just as culpable as those who caused it.
What’s worse, is that Agents from BOTH legacy agencies see it. The only one’s who dont see the debacle this has turned into are the managers who are benefiting from this train wreck.

ICEDover on November 11, 2008 at 6:09 pm

I kind of actually hope it happens so those of us that are legacy Customs and fully trained as Customs SA’s, can get together and put one hell of a lawsuit together.
The other big rumbling is to put DRO with CIS and make them all immigration and allow OI to handle Customs stuff.
Oh, and does anybody know what happened to our full Title 21 authority proposal that went up the chain? Word has it that Chertoff never intended to let this happen anyhow. It was some kind of fancy ploy to get morale up.
LOL, get the morale up for the appearance of enhancing our authority, then tear it right back down when the authority never gets granted.
You gotta love DHS baby.

kcrat on November 11, 2008 at 8:36 pm

We heard time and time again how “this person” is pushing for independant Title 21 authority and “that person” is backing it. As is usual with ICE, lots of talk, little or no action. I will subscribe to the theory that such false promises were nothing more than failed attempts at raising morale.
I will again start writing to various Congressmen, some new to the job, about how ICE should be dismantled, and be absorbed by CBP and CIS. If CBP were to stand up their own 1811s, it would take years. Why not just bring back the ones you had in the first place???
Stop the waste in duplicative systems such as personnel, purchasing, IT, ect. How many different “Intell” entities or organizations do we need????? Is anything really getting accomplished other than “infighting”?? How many more experienced people do ICE and CBP have to loose before someone opens their eyes???
How can some many people be so blind?????

ICEDover on November 11, 2008 at 10:49 pm

Priceless has nothing to do with EVS so if this is what kind of “AGENT” you were no wonder you retired! Priceless + EVS = EVS to the power of 2 HA. I have my own ideas without the influence of anyone.
If you came to the quick assumption that Priceless = EVS I should hope you didn’t train anyone before you left. A quick assumption on your part is terribly wrong. When I was trained we learned to weigh all the information before jumping to conclusions.
ICE has a lot of problems. They threw DHS together a bit too fast for me too. I have suffered with the reorganization of this agency and tried my best to help every situation instead of being a hinderance. If everyone would adopt that approach we might be further along that what we are today, instead of fighting amongst ourselves. Any new agency will always have growing pains, but it is up to the workers to put forth their best effort to make it work.
ParaLyzer definitely needs to find something to do in his retirement years that would give him satisfaction and make him a happier person. It is obvious he was very unhappy with his administration. You do know you can transfer to different positions within the agency don’t you. We are fortunate to have that opportunity given to us. If you don’t like what you do or who you do it with maybe it’s time to make a change. It’s up to you to make your own future, don’t leave it up to someone else.

Priceless on November 13, 2008 at 9:45 am

“If you don’t like what you do or who you do it with maybe it’s time to make a change. It’s up to you to make your own future, don’t leave it up to someone else.”
Yea that may be so in theory there Priceless. But what about reality? Most agents don’t get to decide when or where they want to go. Especially under EVS and his former boss in New Orleans. And that is FACT! There are several who are protected and get to stay in preferred groups and not get out of their comfort zone. And if you are who I think you are; you have a person who once worked directly under you who got to move four times in three years. Who makes the changes? Not the agents.

notanEVSfan on November 13, 2008 at 6:35 pm

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