When word went out that President Obama would announce at a press conference today that—tired of the Republicans lack of backbone to address immigration reform—he was finally going to act using executive action—something immigration reform activists and DREAMERS had been begging, organizing and fasting for.
Today’s press conference happened and it felt like maybe the Obama administration had been taken over by Arizona Democrats who use terms like border security like the best of Gov. Brewer’s advisers. Yeah, mentioning the large number of Central American children crossing and now warehoused and then an increase in border enforcement, what are folks left to think except maybe we have a president who doesn’t understand the difference between a humanitarian crisis and immigration reform. And continuing the trajectory of increasing the number of Border agents—it’s, well, kind of depressing.
Congressman Raúl Grijalva issued a statement in response to Obama’s “executive action,” and it seems he’s thinking the same thing, but being diplomatic enough with a dash of hopeful—let’s wait and see:
Today, President Barack Obama announced that he will take administrative actions to address our nation’s broken immigration system in the face of continued Republican opposition in the House of Representatives. Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement:
“After 18 months of political stonewalling and 12 months of ignoring the bipartisan Senate immigration reform bill, I am glad to see the president is prepared to act where Congressional Republicans refuse,” said Rep. Grijalva. “There are many options available to the president, from extending deferred action to all deserving family members to allowing for prosecutorial discretion on deportations.”
President Obama has directed the Secretary of Homeland Security and Attorney General to move available and appropriate enforcement resources to the border. He also directed his team to identify additional actions and send him recommendations by the end of the summer.
“While the president’s announcement today is a welcome first step, the success of this effort will depend largely on what comes next,” Grijalva continued. “Sending more enforcement to our borders will do nothing for the men, women and children who are caught up in our broken system. Nor will it provide a humanitarian solution to the crisis of child refugees arriving from Central America. I look forward to the president’s next steps, and urge him to focus his efforts on protecting vulnerable families going forward.”
Also in response, Presente.org‘s Executive Director Arturo Carmona:
“Latinos want more than words from President Obama on immigration reform, we need action to stop deportations and an end to the President’s attacks on our families and communities.
Latinos have long borne the brunt of President Obama’s immigration policies— from record deportations to the use of police to harass people of color in the name of immigration enforcement to inhumane raids and record detentions.
Just yesterday, the President asked Congress for $2 billion dollars to respond to a humanitarian crisis of scared Latino children with a militarized border patrol and ramped up deportations. We need a humanitarian response that treats Latino children and families with dignity and respect.Latinos deserve better from the President, and we hope he uses this opportunity to halt deportations once and for all until our immigration system is fixed.”
This article appears in Jun 26 – Jul 2, 2014.
Why would you allow illegals to dictate immigration policy? Does not seem to be a single politician in Washington with the backbone to do the right thing!!! It’s all political theater.The American people are being sold out and thrown under the bus for the sake of freaken Hispanic votes!!!!
Grijalva never misses a chance to advocate for his constituents in Sonora and Michoacan.
Grijalva is not for Mexican Americans, he’s for Mexicans. Nothing he says matters.
I want to see immigration reform. But, I would like to have it happen the proper way through congress. It is amazing to me that my friends on the left are happy that the President is pressing the limits of his power. How would they feel if it was a Republican pushing another agenda? It might be better if we followed the laws of our land.
I too was disappointed in President Obama’s lack of compassion for the Central American refugees. Threatening to deport these refugees without due process and admonishing others in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador not to try to escape violence and poverty in their countries by coming to the U.S.A. seemed cold and, as Mari wrote, lacked understanding.
An Irish teenager by the name of Annie Moore came with her two younger brothers to the U.S.A. She was the first immigrant to be processed at Ellis Island on Jan. 1, 1892. Many Irish children came on their own.
I am so glad that no President of the U.S.A. admonished the tens of thousands of people in Ireland who faced the violence of being stripped from their land and abject poverty to stay in Ireland and die. Many of the Irish faced a dangerous trip and many did not make it to America. I am so glad that my relatives had the will to survive and risked the trip in what they called “coffin ships.”
The beauty of an executive order is when the next president is elected which will be republican, he can UN-excutive order it and anti-Americans like Grigalva will be thinking he should move to mexico.
Until the court kills it.
Oh, and I love the way Grijalva put his own people out of work when he called for a boycott of AZ. What a dunce.
grijalva needs to be out of office. vote rep. this year. he is only for the mexicans who have no rights to demand anything from obama, this is why reps will win.
I sent emails to every city that boycotted us thanking them. I Told them that considering most illegals have service industry jobs many will Lose them and go back to Mexico.