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The deed is done.
To Republicans (who after the two Presidential elections that ended badly for their candidate and their party and who pooh-poohed suggestions that they go along with how the overall vote was against them), President Barack Obama is ignoring how the votes went against his party by issuing an executive order on immigration and acting like he thinks he’s an emperor. To Democrats and some independents, Obama is acting on an issue on which the Republican House refused to act despite the passage of a bipartisan bill in the Senate. Some believe many conservatives only want to enforce immigration laws and get people out of the country and not do a thing to help immigrants who are here and who may face complex or heart-wrenching issues.
But here’s the one certainty: Obama has finally issued his order and now it’ll be up to partisans — and lawyers — to argue and litigate it. And, in the meantime, in the immediate aftermath there’s all the sound and appearance of a crackling political firestorm. Here’s a cross section of mainstream media, blog and Twitter comment:
But the strong reaction by Republican leaders has less to do with opposition to the nuts and bolts of the president’s immigration policy and more to do with fear and anger that the issue will derail the agenda of the new Republican majority before the next Congress even convenes.
Republican leaders who had hoped to focus on corporate tax reform, fast-track trade pacts, repealing the president’s healthcare law and loosening environmental restrictions on coal are instead being dragged into an immigration skirmish that they’ve tried studiously to avoid for most of the last year.
That’s largely because the question of how to handle the estimated 11 million immigrants living illegally in the U.S. bitterly divides Republicans, and the party has been unable to agree on an alternative to the president’s plan.
To many, stark warnings from Boehner and McConnell sound more like pleas to the president to avoid reenergizing the GOP’s conservative wing, whose leaders are already threatening to link the president’s immigration plan to upcoming budget talks.
Another government shutdown is not what McConnell and Boehner had in mind when their party won control of Congress this month.
In fact, McConnell said flatly a day after the election that another shutdown would not happen. But calls by firebrand Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to use “all procedural means necessary” during Congress’ lame-duck session to block the White House’s immigration plans have left leaders scrambling to tame their rebellious ranks.
Republican leaders are increasingly concerned that if Obama follows through, the anti-immigrant fervor in their party will rise to an unappealing crescendo and the rank-and-file’s desire to confront the president will overtake other party priorities.
Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks, one of the lower chamber’s most energetic critics of comprehensive immigration reform, suggested that the president’s move could potentially be grounds for impeachment, or even prison time.
Brooks said there is a federal statute (“I don’t have the citation for it at the tip of my tongue”) making it a felony to aid, abet, or entice a foreigner to illegally enter the U.S.
“At some point, you have to evaluate whether the president’s conduct aids or abets, encourages, or entices foreigners to unlawfully cross into the United States of America,” he continued. “That has a five-year in-jail penalty associated with it.”
Brooks isn’t sure on what grounds impeachment proceedings might be justified because he hasn’t seen the outlines of the president’s actions yet.
“If the president is simply not obeying a statute that is noncriminal in nature, that does not necessarily rise to a high crime or a misdemeanor,” Brooks said.
“I don’t know what he’s going to do yet,” he continued. “Until we see what he’s going to do, it is difficult to say whether he is violating a civil statute or violating a criminal statute.”
The president isn’t going to be impeached, or be sent to jail for five years. But he is definitely going to upset a lot of Republicans.
National Review’ Johah Goldberg:
Here’s the problem. This is the way this president and his fans always sell his policies. They mock, ridicule, snark, smirk, wink, and guffaw at any notion he’s a radical or an ideologue when the action he wants to take is under debate. It’s just a modest this, a pragmatic that, an incremental the other thing. But once it’s a fait accompli, it’s a Big F’ing Deal — to borrow a phrase from the vice president. Right now, what Obama wants to do is par for the course for every president. Why, it would be weird if he didn’t give 5 million people amnesty. But I have no doubt that in the minutes, days, or, at the most, weeks to come I will be getting emails from the DNC telling me this a bold, historic, revolutionary piece of
legislationexecutive action. And if not the DNC, then Salon & Co. will make that case for the DNC.Obamacare was sold under similar circumstances. It was “modest,” “reasonable,” “incremental,” right up until it was passed. Then, suddenly, it was proof positive Obama delivered on his promise to fundamentally transform America.
In other words, everyone is an idiot for thinking Obama is doing anything radical right up to and until he does it. Then, suddenly, it’s “All Hail Obama for His Great Leap Forward!”
Andrew Sullivan’s piece needs to be read in FULL. Here’s a chunk of it:
Did he make the case that a mass deferral of deportations was the only option for him? Not so effectively. His strongest point was simply the phrase: “pass a bill.” Saying he is doing this as a temporary measure, that it will be superseded as soon as a law reaches his desk, gives him a stronger position than some suppose. There is more than one actor in our system…..
At the same time, he did not press the Reagan and Bush precedents. And his description of the current mess as a de facto amnesty was not as effective as he might have hoped. His early backing of even more spending on the border, his initial citing of the need for the undocumented to “get right with the law” by coming out of the shadows to pay back taxes, among other responsibilities, was a way to disarm conservative critics. It almost certainly won’t. But it remains a fact that the speech – in classic Obama style – blended conservative stringency with liberal empathy in equal parts.
Objectively, this is surely the moderate middle. Obama’s position on immigration – as on healthcare – has always been that. It’s utterly in line with his predecessor and with the Reagan era when many conservatives were eager for maximal immigration. His political isolation now is a function, first and foremost, of unrelenting Republican opposition and obstructionism. From time to time, then, it is more than good to see him openly challenge the box others want to put him in, to reassert that he has long been the reasonable figure on many of these debates, and to remind us that we have a president whose substantive proposals should, in any sane polity, be the basis for a way forward, for a compromise.
They are not, of course. And this act of presidential doggedness, after so long a wait, may well inflame the divisions further. I still have doubts about the wisdom of this strategy. But I see why this president refuses to give in, to cast his future to fate, to disappoint again a constituency he has pledged to in the past, and why he is re-stating his right as president to be a prime actor rather than a passive observer in the last two years of his term. That’s who many of us voted for. And we do not believe that the election of a Republican Senate in 2014 makes his presidency moot. Au contraire.
The branches are designed to clash and to jostle over public policy. And the Congress has one thing it can do now that it has for so long refused to do. It can act. And it should. The sooner the better.
Enjoy the historical moment. Then document the atrocities.
I can’t wait for President Scott Walker to unilaterally order all federal agencies to stop withholding union dues and refuse to enforce mandatory fees because Congress hasn’t acted on PEU reform quickly enough or to his satisfaction. Unions can then thank Obama for setting the precedent of presidential authority on Walker’s behalf.
So far, however, the signs point to a dramatic, high-stakes political showdown in the wake of the president’s announcement. Republicans have floated obstructing Obama’s nominations, bringing lawsuits and even pushing for impeachment as possible responses to his plans.
One advantage that the administration may have in the post-announcement era is that the new deferred action program is likely to be fee-based, which will render it safer from attacks through the congressional appropriations process. But Republicans may still try to stop it through funding bills or any other means necessary.
“I’m pretty sure I had a good feel for how the debate would have essentially subsided after legislation [passed],” said Marshall Fitz, director of immigration policy at the Obama-allied Center for American Progress, in reference to the Senate’s immigration reform bill that stalled in the House. “It would have been all about implementation. This, though! Given the gauntlets that the Republicans have been throwing down — they open their mouth and they are throwing down a new gauntlet — I don’t know what they do.”
Along with fighting back GOP efforts to derail the president’s action, immigration advocates will be working to protect those left out. Relief is not expected to be included for parents of the undocumented young people commonly referred to as Dreamers.
Lorella Praeli, policy director for the advocacy group United We Dream, said Dreamers are proud of how much their work has contributed to this day. Even after many received their own relief through DACA, they began pushing for Obama to protect their families and others in their community, and Thursday’s announcement is a validation of that. But it also falls short of what they wanted, Praeli said.
“We’re at this moment where we see the fruits of so much sacrifice and so much hard work, but it doesn’t feel complete at the same time,” Praeli said. “We’re sad because there are many people who are here who won’t qualify, because there’s not specific language for parents of DACA recipients. But we won’t let the disappointment overshadow the fact that this is a tremendous victory and that we got us to this moment.”
The plan is not quite as disastrous as I was expecting. But it’s bad, and you can be certain it is going to get even worse in the implementation..
Barack Obama: If you like your illegal immigrant, you can keep your illegal immigrant …
So this is the way that Barack Obama starts on his promise of wanting to work with the GOP following the Democrat midterm election butt kicking? Tonight, Barack Obama went there and played with matches. Obama started his speech by saying, “Today our immigration system is broken and everybody knows it.” Obama should know it is broken, he helped break it by not enforcing current laws on the books. Tonight, Obama tried to play the emotion and guilt card on Americans saying, let’s be honest, tracking down, rounding up and deporting millions of people isn’t realistic. Anyone who suggests otherwise isn’t being straight with you. It’s also not who we are as Americans.” Actually, Americans are people who believe in the rule of law and the US Constitution. Obviously, Barack Obama does not.
One has to ask themselves, why now? If this was such an important issue and so vital to America and Latinos, why didn’t he do it back in 2009-2010 when Democrats had control of both the House and the Senate? Why didn’t he do it in 2012 before his reelection? Why didn’t he make this speech and put forth this executive order before the 2014 midterm elections? I think we all know the answer. Sorry to be so cynical, but this president has lost all right to be trusted. Especially when Obama has said over and over gain that he did not have the legal authority to do so. But suddenly … tonight he has the legal authority. So does that mean he had been lying all of the time in the past? Like I said previously, Obama has zero credibility.
The president’s authority to make this unilateral move rests on the idea of prosecutorial discretion—the federal government has limited resources to implement laws so it must prioritize them accordingly. Prosecutorial discretion, though, is not enough by itself to justify Obama’s actions. He also most ensure that he is upholding Congress’s priorities in creating immigration law, which includes deterring law-breaking and ensuring the system is transparent and fair. If he fails to do so, his actions will cross the line into lawmaking—that’s the sole duty of the legislative branch. But the president has crafted his action careful to the legal limits of his office. DACA 2.0 does not cross the line.
Obama’s critics believe otherwise, arguing that he’s overstepping his constitutional authority and violating political norms. In a pre-buttal to Obama’s move Wednesday, Senator Ted Cruz lashed out at the president. “It is lawless. It is unconstitutional. He is defiant and angry at the American people,” Cruz wrote in Politico. “If he acts by executive diktat, President Obama will not be acting as a president, he will be acting as a monarch.” The Texas firebrand and likely Republican presidential candidate has proposed using the government funding bill, which must be passed by December 11, to block the president’s action. That option has gained popularity among the right wing in recent weeks, potentially setting up another government shutdown fight in early 2015.
Just about every Republican—and some Democrats, like Senator Joe Donnelly—shares Cruz’s opinion, although much of the GOP leadership is hesitant to risk another shutdown after the politically toxic 2013 shutdown. The saving grace for soon-to-be Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker John Boehner is that a shutdown is not necessarily a bad political move for the Republican Party this time, as it clearly was last year. Polls show the more Americans are opposed to Obama’s action than support (though a majority supports a pathway to citizenship, with conditions). And unlike in 2013 when Democrats were unified in their opposition to defunding Obamacare, the GOP will likely receive some support from congressional Democrats. If the president vetoes a funding bill to protect the deferred status of millions undocumented immigrants, he could face a serious public backlash.
Still, it’s hard to imagine Obama curtailing or undoing this program under any circumstance. For one, the politics aren’t good: It would infuriate the Hispanic community and win him few supporters among Republicans. But Obama also believes deeply in improving the lives of the millions of undocumented immigrants in the country. The executive action, which Obama will sign in Nevada Friday, will do just that. It may go down as the greatest domestic policy achievement of his second term—and one of the greatest of his entire presidency. He’s not going to relinquish that lightly.
Lots of poison, huh? That Congressional cyanide well will sure be full to the brim after this, huh? Keeping families together! Strengthening border enforcement! Giving business more foreign STEM employees! IMPEACH! As one of the officials noted, “In the past several years, Republicans have voted over 60 times to undermine the president’s signature achievement, and not once did the president complain about ‘poisoning the well’.” True. Republicans are world-class whiners, dumping tons of cyanide into that well as they whine about pretty much anything the president does.
The Christian Science Monitor:
Exercise the power of the purse! That’s been the battle cry from some Republicans in Congress who strenuously oppose President Obama’s executive order granting temporary deportation relief to millions of illegal immigrants.
They want Congress to exercise its authority over the budget-making process to starve Mr. Obama’s new directive of funding.
But guess what? In this particular instance, it turns out there is no power of the purse.
That’s because the primary agency that would carry out the president’s anticipated order is funded by fees collected from applications – not by funds appropriated by Congress, Jennifer Hing, spokeswoman for the GOP-controlled House Appropriations Committee explained to reporters on Thursday.
So Congress has no power to block – or rescind – these funds.
Congress, she says, appropriates “zero” funds for the Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) agency. “We don’t fund their building. We don’t fund their salaries and expenses. We don’t fund anything related to CIS.”
Which leaves Republicans – who are lambasting the president for skirting Congress and acting like “an emperor” – searching for other strategies, even as the GOP leadership in both houses is greatly discouraging any talk of a government shutdown or impeachment.
A cross-section of Tweets:
On Immigration, Obama Fulfills His Promise to Progressives
http://t.co/T5nQvMBQt3
— Trina_R_Cuppett (@Trina_R_Cuppett) November 21, 2014
For 6 years many Democrats wondered if Obama was capable of fighting with Republicans. He showed them tonight.
http://t.co/a69VqVji63
— Taegan Goddard (@politicalwire) November 21, 2014
SESSIONS: Americans must 'resist this imperial decree' to 'dissolve America's borders'… http://t.co/Yz1GCfqGkL
— DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) November 21, 2014
OPINION Obama's #immigration #amnesty is a slap in the face to American voters http://t.co/BgvjhvwIyq via @fxnopinion
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 21, 2014
This is not how American democracy works. http://t.co/VHdiDZwXts #immigration #amnesty
— Speaker John Boehner (@SpeakerBoehner) November 21, 2014
Obama is acting because Speaker John Boehner won’t. http://t.co/0Bes22XcHR
— Jonathan Capehart (@CapehartJ) November 21, 2014
Obama mentions "middle class families" as a throwaway line. Massive illegal immigration of indigent workers is good for you!
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) November 21, 2014
I think I'm enjoying the Rs being against this Obama move at the same time trying to not look anti-Hispanic. Impossible trick for them.
— James Moore (@moorethink) November 21, 2014
My Hispanic people no longer have to live in fear, thanks Obama for those 4 Million opportunities ???????? #ImmigrationReform
— $TEAZY-E (@_ericdominguez) November 21, 2014
What else do you thing DICTATOR OBAMA WILL DO 2 US B 4 JAN 1ST? We NEED 2 B VERY CONCERNED HES DANGEROUS!
— Marilyn (@marilynarndt) November 21, 2014
Bush did whatever hell he wanted & he was "A DECIDER" Obama, who has most uncooperative Congress in history does same & he's "A DICTATOR."
— Aurora (@CitizenScreen) November 21, 2014
Obama is a disgrace to the American Government. You're not a king, nor a dictator, you're a President who somehow avoids checks and balances
— G. Potts (@Pottsy212) November 21, 2014
These Obama sycophants have no idea their celebrity dictator just invaded America with a flood of illegals. Just wait. #ImmigrationAction
— DJ PATRIOT (@DJSPINtel) November 21, 2014
America 1776-2014? Killed by Benito Mussolini Obama and his party of destruction. I despise anyone who voted for this traitor.
— TE (@tomuedogawa) November 21, 2014
Traitor in chief. Sells out unions. Sells out blacks. Supports socialists, homosexuals, environmental nuts and foreigners.STOP OBAMA impeach
— Landser (@stiltdw) November 21, 2014
Obama's Amnesty Started Years Ago: Released Hundreds of Illegal Aliens From Terrorist Nations http://t.co/xgxPTsRQZm #traitor #obama
— Creeping Sharia (@creepingsharia) November 21, 2014
Obama is a traitor.. that's the bottom line.. the Constitution means nothing to him.. How dare he quote scripture when he reads his koran?
— Victoria Coco (@sweet_vicky1) November 21, 2014
Thank you, Obama, for dropping truth bomb after truth bomb tonight. – Democratic Underground http://t.co/Lqnes8z19i
— Dawna (@onecaliberal) November 21, 2014
Thank you Pres Obama for your belief that this nation is great because of our diversity & respect for all @whitehouse pic.twitter.com/fVvZp3IWsq
— LeoKapakos (@LeoKapakosNY) November 21, 2014
My only regret about tonight?
That we cannot vote for him a third time.
Thank you Barack Obama, thank you. pic.twitter.com/xEHa2WcHPp
— TheObamaDiary.com (@TheObamaDiary) November 21, 2014
Satirist Andy Borowitz gives his always-unique take:
Republicans Accuse Obama of Treating Immigrants Like Humans
BY ANDY BOROWITZWASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—In a sharp Republican rebuke to President Obama’s proposed actions on immigration, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell accused the President, on Thursday night, of “flagrantly treating immigrants like human beings, in clear defiance of the wishes of Congress.”
McConnell was brutal in his assessment of the President’s speech on immigration, blasting him for “eliminating the fear of deportation, which is the great engine of the American economy.”
“Fear is what keeps immigrants working so hard and so fast and so cheap,” McConnell said. “Remove the fear of deportation, and what will immigrants become? Lazy Americans.”
FULL SPEECH ON VIDEO:
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Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.