OPD 18 August 2014
Barack Obama’s huge immigration amnesty
Published in Gazeta Wyborcza
(Poland) on 15 August 2014
by Mariusz Zawadzki (link to original)
The President of USA issued a regulation that will in fact make millions of illegal immigrants legal. It would be an obvious rebellion against the Congress that blocks the amnesty for years.
- It will be one of the most important decisions in Obama's second cadence, which will have influence on how he will be judged by the history - says Frank Sherry, the director of America's Voice, which is an organization that advocates for the rights of the immigrants. And there is not much exaggeration in these words, if the leaks from the White House are true and the president will decide to do it. The stake is the fate of 5 million immigrants, which is nearly half of the 12 million illegal ones that are currently living in America.
For years Obama wanted the immigration reform, which would give the illegal people a chance to legalize their stay and receive nationality. But at the same time consequently enforces the existing law - from the beginning of his cadence in January 2009 already 2 million people were deported. None of the other presidents removed so many illegal immigrants from America.
Last year the immigration reform was accepted by the American Senate, which is dominated by Democrats, but the lower house, which consists mostly of Republicans, does not even want to take care of this project. Two weeks ago Obama lost his patience.
- If the Congress will not accept the law that I could approve, so I will take action to resolve the problem - stated the president.
From then on from the White House come reports regarding administrative regulation that will be issued yet in August. Obama is to instruct the Immigration Services to stop prosecuting immigrants who fulfil certain conditions: either are close relatives of an USA citizen ( e.g. parents of a child born in the USA), or live in America for many years. It is estimated that the regulation will affect 5 million people, who will not have to fear deportation. They would be able to try to get a work permission.
Presidential regulation does not have to be accepted by the Congress. However till now regulations were never used to make decisions about such important matters. Republicans claim that it would be lawlessness and heavy breach of presidential rights.
Critics of the planned decree also say that it is not possible to abandon prosecuting for crimes but for that Obama's lawyers have an answer. Technically speaking, the regulation will not mention the abandonment of prosecution but it will say that immigrant matters from that category should be labelled as '' the last priority''. Immigration Services have to divide their task into less and more important ones, because they cannot cope with the illegal immigration problem - every year 400 people out of 12 million who live in USA illegally are deported. Marking the matter with the last priority means moving it to the end of the queue.
In 2012 Obama issued similar regulation but it concern only half a million people - those illegal ones who came to USA as small children ( so they are not responsible for breaking the law: they were in some way forced to do it by their parents). That decision was taken couple of months before the presidential elections and was criticized as a pork barell.
This time it is quite similar - in November there are elections to the Congress. In the long term the decree would be very good for the Democrats, because it would guarantee the party Latinos' support ( who in 70% voted for Obama). But will it help the Democratic candidates in the current elections? It is not so clear anymore, especially in some states, where the forces are equal. Republicans can use there Obama's decree as an argument against their rivals in the race to Senate or the lower house of the Congress.
Arguments raised by the right wing against the amnesty are always the same: that it would be a reward for breaking the law and an encouragement for the next seekers of better life in USA. In the presidential elections in 2012 Republican candidate Mitt Romney used to say that the solution to the illegal people problem is '' self- deportation'' - i.e. one should make their life so unbearable that they will leave America themselves.
Paradoxically, the last big amnesty for the immigrants was introduced by Ronald Reagan,who was loved and made famous by the right wing. It was accepted in 1986 as a bill and introduced as a ''settlement with the illegal ones''. It predicted exacerbation of the border control with Mexico, penalties for employers employing people illegally etc. But in reality it was a huge quilts absolution as 3 million people that lived in USA before 1982 received residence permit and later on nationality.
- It will be one of the most important decisions in Obama's second cadence, which will have influence on how he will be judged by the history - says Frank Sherry, the director of America's Voice, which is an organization that advocates for the rights of the immigrants. And there is not much exaggeration in these words, if the leaks from the White House are true and the president will decide to do it. The stake is the fate of 5 million immigrants, which is nearly half of the 12 million illegal ones that are currently living in America.
For years Obama wanted the immigration reform, which would give the illegal people a chance to legalize their stay and receive nationality. But at the same time consequently enforces the existing law - from the beginning of his cadence in January 2009 already 2 million people were deported. None of the other presidents removed so many illegal immigrants from America.
Last year the immigration reform was accepted by the American Senate, which is dominated by Democrats, but the lower house, which consists mostly of Republicans, does not even want to take care of this project. Two weeks ago Obama lost his patience.
- If the Congress will not accept the law that I could approve, so I will take action to resolve the problem - stated the president.
From then on from the White House come reports regarding administrative regulation that will be issued yet in August. Obama is to instruct the Immigration Services to stop prosecuting immigrants who fulfil certain conditions: either are close relatives of an USA citizen ( e.g. parents of a child born in the USA), or live in America for many years. It is estimated that the regulation will affect 5 million people, who will not have to fear deportation. They would be able to try to get a work permission.
Presidential regulation does not have to be accepted by the Congress. However till now regulations were never used to make decisions about such important matters. Republicans claim that it would be lawlessness and heavy breach of presidential rights.
Critics of the planned decree also say that it is not possible to abandon prosecuting for crimes but for that Obama's lawyers have an answer. Technically speaking, the regulation will not mention the abandonment of prosecution but it will say that immigrant matters from that category should be labelled as '' the last priority''. Immigration Services have to divide their task into less and more important ones, because they cannot cope with the illegal immigration problem - every year 400 people out of 12 million who live in USA illegally are deported. Marking the matter with the last priority means moving it to the end of the queue.
In 2012 Obama issued similar regulation but it concern only half a million people - those illegal ones who came to USA as small children ( so they are not responsible for breaking the law: they were in some way forced to do it by their parents). That decision was taken couple of months before the presidential elections and was criticized as a pork barell.
This time it is quite similar - in November there are elections to the Congress. In the long term the decree would be very good for the Democrats, because it would guarantee the party Latinos' support ( who in 70% voted for Obama). But will it help the Democratic candidates in the current elections? It is not so clear anymore, especially in some states, where the forces are equal. Republicans can use there Obama's decree as an argument against their rivals in the race to Senate or the lower house of the Congress.
Arguments raised by the right wing against the amnesty are always the same: that it would be a reward for breaking the law and an encouragement for the next seekers of better life in USA. In the presidential elections in 2012 Republican candidate Mitt Romney used to say that the solution to the illegal people problem is '' self- deportation'' - i.e. one should make their life so unbearable that they will leave America themselves.
Paradoxically, the last big amnesty for the immigrants was introduced by Ronald Reagan,who was loved and made famous by the right wing. It was accepted in 1986 as a bill and introduced as a ''settlement with the illegal ones''. It predicted exacerbation of the border control with Mexico, penalties for employers employing people illegally etc. But in reality it was a huge quilts absolution as 3 million people that lived in USA before 1982 received residence permit and later on nationality.