Earlier this summer President Obama indicated that, if Congress fails to act on immigration reform as they had one year earlier, he would be forced to use his executive powers to provide some relief for immigrant families fearful of potential deportation and exasperated by the weight of constantly living “in the shadows. At the time it was viewed as a final plea to the majority caucus in the House of Representatives to craft a bill which could address the nation’s ongoing immigration problems.
Recently, however, some members of the President’s own party, particularly a handful of Senate Democrats contesting tight races for re-election in states which are not overly disposed to comprehensive immigration reform, have urged the White House to delay any such announcement until after the November midterm elections. The President’s own press secretary, Josh Earnest, contributed to this sense of ambiguity when he stated recently that “There is the chance that it could be before the end of the summer. There is the chance that it could be after the summer.”
For those who have been urging the President to expand the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program — which halted deportations for some illegal immigrants brought to the country as kids – to include the parents or siblings of the DACA program, these remarks brought swift disapproval. “The president said that he was ready to take bold action, and a few Democrats should not stand in the way,” said Clarissa MartÍnez-De-Castro, deputy vice president of policy at the National Council of La Raza.
In addition, Congressman Luis Gutiérrez and other immigrant rights advocates dismissed the idea that such action by the President would damage the Democratic candidates in the upcoming election noting that Democrats benefitted at the polls in 2012, just a few months after Obama adopted the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
As the Labor Day holiday has moved to the rear-view window, in short order it will be demonstrated whether the President will move on his commitment in the next few weeks or hold off until after the early November election.
The Shulman Law Group endeavors to ensure its clients be kept abreast of all significant developments relating to the process of naturalization to the United States. Edward Shulman, Esq, founder of The Shulman Law Group, LLC is a national speaker for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). AILA is the national association of immigration lawyers established to promote justice, advocate for fair and reasonable immigration law and policy, and to advance the quality of immigration and nationality law and practice. In the course of Mr. Shulman’s involvement with AILA, he has been dedicated to educating other immigration attorneys about the import of helping intending immigrants to navigate a new cultural system. He meticulously follows all of the developments occurring in the battle over immigration reform so that he will be prepared to effectively assist his clients obtain residency if a new system is enacted.