Obama to States: Only Feds Can Enforce Immigration Law (but feds will dismiss ch

[Confederate Kahanist]

http://www.numbersusa.com/content/nusablog/beckr/august-26-2010/obama-states-only-feds-can-enforce-immigration-law-feds-will-dismiss-c?jid=682671&lid=9&rid=4832&tid=538663



Obama to States: Only Feds Can Enforce Immigration Law (but feds will dismiss charges)

 

By Roy Beck, Thursday, August 26, 2010, 3:58 PM EDT - posted on NumbersUSA

At the National Press Club earlier this week, the main question asked me by reporters there was to the effect of "What makes you think the Obama Administration would actually declare a de facto amnesty without going through Congress?"

My answers were good but not nearly so convincing as the Houston story two days later that the feds are dismissing cases against arrested illegal aliens hand over foot.

What we are learning from the Houston story is that the feds say they don't have enough money to deport illegal aliens who haven't committed a violent crime.  So, the feds are just releasing them back into the population to continue to illegally hold jobs that unemployed Americans are seeking.

And we are supposed to be inspired by the Obama Administration's claims in court that states should butt out of immigration enforcement because the feds have it covered?

We were holding the press conference to announce a joint letter to Pres. Obama signed by 18 organizations urging him to refrain from using de facto amnesty tactics that were outlined in a memo leaked from his Department of Homeland Security.

The memo -- which we told you about earlier -- outlined ways that Pres. Obama could give some kind of amnesty to as many illegal aliens possible if Congress continues to refuse to pass "comprehensive immigration reform" amnesty.

The idea behind those options was to use parole authority and deferred action that are "intended for handling extraordinary cases and appliedonly on a case-by-case basis," our letter stated.

    Were these very narrow, individual-case authorities unilaterally expanded to groups or classes of aliens, that action would constitute not only abuse of power, it would feed public cynicism.

    -- Letter to Pres. Obama from NumbersUSA and 17 other groups

Because Administration officials have said that the memo was just an internal exercise and did not indicate any actual plans to try the de facto amnesty options, reporters asked me if our 18 groups weren't just being hysterical.

My answer was that I understand that the memo was indeed just listing options. But I noted that if a family sat down at the kitchen table to list all the ways they could increase family income and then put on the list "rob banks," that might not mean they would actually rob banks but it certainly tells you something very troubling about the way that family thinks.

That federal officials even listed an end-run around Congress is troubling.

But I also noted to the reporters that we have to take the memo seriously because:

    * We know the President intensely wants to give amnesty to most illegal aliens.
    * We know the President already has worked vigorously to keep states from arresting illegal aliens by taking Arizona to court.
    * We also know the President doesn't want states keeping illegal aliens out of U.S. jobs.  He has joined a suit before the Supreme Court that seeks to protect illegal-alien-hiring businesses from state sanctions.  And he refuses to allow his allies in Congress to bring up the SAVE Act that would drive most illegal aliens out of their jobs, opening them up for unemployed Americans.
    * We know that Democratic leaders in Congress don't want to have a vote on amnesty because they believe it would hurt many Democrats at the polls in November.
    * Thus, the only way for the Obama Administration to protect most illegal aliens from the movement of citizens against them is to effect some kind of amnesty without making Congress vote.

I made a big deal at the Press Club about the fact that the estimated 7 million illegal non-agricultural workers are holding jobs in occupations regularly filled by less-educated Americans.

Reporters asked me why in the world would the Administration consider a de facto amnesty if it would hurt vulnerable Americans?  My answer was that Mr. Obama is scared to death that more illegal aliens are going to voluntarily leave the U.S. and repatriate themselves back home.  Up to 2 million illegal aliens have already gone back home in the last couple of years.  Mr. Obama appears frightened that the number of illegal aliens is just going to keep dropping, which would be harmful to the plan to turn these illegal millions into voters with the knowledge that a large majority wil vote Democratic.  In that light, you can see why Mr. Obama is looking for all kinds of ways to keep the illegal aliens in the country until he can figure out how to pass an amnesty.

I made the point to reporters that I believed the leaked memo was a serious threat because I feared that the Administration is already giving de facto amnesties by simply not fully enforcing the law.  Then, the Houston story broke!

I told reporters at the National Press Club that the Supreme Court in the past has ruled that a primary purpose of immigration laws is to protect U.S. workers.

The refusal of the Administration to enforce immigration laws is a refusal to protect vulnerable American workers.

Would the Administration be brazen enough to carry out the backdoor amnesty outlined in its memo?  The Houston story suggests that it would.

(P.S. Most news stories about our press conference referred to 18 "conservative organizations."  In fact, I said at the press conference that unlike most of the other groups signing the letter, NumbersUSA is not a conservative group.  I explained that we represent citizens across the ideological spectrum from left to right.  I said I was glad to see so many conservative groups join us to protect unemployed Americans and that I wished there were more liberal groups who would be as prtoective of these vulnerable Americans.)

ROY BECK is Founder & CEO of NumbersUSA