Obama’s creeping amnesty plan

As President Obama’s top second term legislative priority, citizenship for the 11 million illegal immigrants currently in the United States, slowly dies from lack of momentum in Congress, Obama is expanding his administrative amnesty programs, further weakening the case for conservatives to trust him on the issue.

On Aug. 23, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency issued a new policy directive directing all ICE personnel to “ensure that the agency’s immigration enforcement activities do not unnecessarily disrupt the parental rights” of illegal immigrant parents or guardians of minors. The memo encourages ICE agents to exercise “prosecutorial discretion” in favor of parents “at any stage of an enforcement proceeding” but leniency in favor of parents is “preferable … as early in the case or proceeding as possible.”

In other words, as long as an illegal immigrant can show they have a child in the United States, they can stay.

“President Obama has once again abused his authority and unilaterally refused to enforce our current immigration laws by directing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to stop removing broad categories of unlawful immigrants,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said in a statement August 24. “The primary reason why our immigration system is broken today is because our immigration laws have largely been ignored by past and present administrations. It’s imperative that we prevent this from happening again by taking away the enforcement ‘on/off’ switch from the president.”

Obama’s August 23, policy directive on parents comes after his June 15, 2012 memo granting “deferred action” (also known as “non-priority enforcement status”) to all illegal immigrants who met the following criteria:

• under 31 years of age as of June 15, 2012
• came to the U.S. while under the age of 16
• continuously resided in the U.S. from June 15, 2007 to the present
• entered the U.S. without inspection before June 15, 2012, or individuals whose lawful immigration status expired as of June 15, 2012
• physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012
• currently in school, have graduated from high school, have obtained a GED, or have been honorably discharged from the Coast Guard or armed forces
• have not been convicted of a felony offense, a significant misdemeanor, or more than three misdemeanors and do not pose a threat to national security or public safety.

Via: Washington Examiner

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JUDICIAL WATCH SUES OBAMA ADMIN FOR AMNESTY DOCUMENTS

Judicial Watch today sued the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security for documents related to President Barack Obama’s “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” executive order that allows young illegal immigrants who meet certain qualifications to get a two-year work permit and temporary amnesty. 

Judicial Watch says it is seeking the following records in its June 22, 2012, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request:

All records concerning…the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to exercise prosecutorial discretion with respect to individuals who came to the United States as children…Such records include, but are not limited to, opinions, memoranda, or legal advice rendered by the Office of Legal Counsel.

The Department of Justice had until July 24, 2012 to comply with the FOIA request, but has failed to do so to date.  On June 22, 2012, Judicial Watch submitted a similar FOIA request to the Department of Homeland Security. DHS was required to by law to respond to Judicial Watch by August 10, 2010. DHS, to date, has not responded. 

“This new Obama amnesty program is an attack on the constitutional role of Congress and runs rough shod over existing immigration law.  It is no surprise that the Obama administration doesn’t want to share the legal basis for this unilateral executive action and is violating Freedom of Information Act law to keep the American people in the dark,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton in a statement.  “President Obama and his political appointees are abusing their offices with this new amnesty program.  If the administration were confident about the legality of its actions, it wouldn’t be keeping secret the legal basis for President Obama’s extraordinary decision to unilaterally change the law.” 

Via: Breitbart

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Report says Obama amnesty plan will add 1.76 million new workers

A pro-amnesty group is forecasting that up to 1.76 million young illegal immigrants would get work permits under President Barack Obama’s de facto amnesty announced in June, amid a stalled economy and near-record levels of unemployment.

That estimate is twice as large as the 800,000 new workers predicted by White House officials.

Another 800,000 illegal immigrant youths will be eligible for the de facto amnesty once they graduate, said the report, released Aug. 7 by the Migration Policy Institute, a well-funded, D.C.-based pro-amnesty group.

The new estimate says the de facto amnesty would add as may workers to the legal rolls as the economy has created during the last 12 months, or during all of 2011. Currently, roughly 23 million Americans are unemployed or underemployed, or have dropped out of the workforce.

The officials unemployment rate is currently 8.3 percent, and that number is much higher among young people and minorities.

For example, half of African-Americans in New York are unemployed, and almost half of adults aged 18 to 24 are unemployed. Unemployment among Latinos is also high, with 10.3 percent recorded in July as formally unemployed and still looking for work, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The new estimates was released after administration officials relaxed the eligibility rules for the controversial amnesty plan, which was first announced by Obama in a June Rose Garden speech.

Via: The Daily Caller

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Obama says Amnesty is yours for $465

The Obama administration will formally begin granting some young undocumented immigrants legal status and work permits later this month under a controversial new policy first announced by President Obama in June.

The Department of Homeland Security today announced details of the application and approval process for the DREAM Act-like program, outlining specific eligibility requirements and a $465 fee. It will begin Aug. 15.

Illegal immigrants younger than 30 who came to the United States before age 16, have lived here for at least five years continuously, attend or have graduated from high school or college, and have no criminal convictions are eligible to submit requests for so-called deferred action (legalese for an official exemption from deportation).

Via: ABC News

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