President Obama orders review of US deportation practices

[cal04]

Last edited Thu Mar 13, 2014, 09:58 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: AP

The White House says President Barack Obama has ordered a review of U.S. deportation practices to see whether immigration enforcement can be more humane.

Obama met Thursday with leaders of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to discuss efforts to overhaul the U.S. immigration system.

The White House says Obama told the lawmakers he's deeply concerned about the pain families feel when they are separated because of the broken immigration system.

Obama has asked Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to perform an inventory to see whether enforcement can be conducted more humanely while adhering to the law.

Read more: http://www.wxow.com/story/24968817/obama-orders-review-of-us-deportation-practices

---

Obama Considering New Immigration Enforcement Changes
http://blogs.rollcall.com/218/obama-considering-new-immigration-enforcement-changes/

In a meeting with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus leadership Thursday evening, President Barack Obama said he’s considering more changes to the enforcement of immigration laws.

“The President emphasized his deep concern about the pain too many families feel from the separation that comes from our broken immigration system,” the White House said in a readout of the meeting. “He told the members that he has asked Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson to do an inventory of the Department’s current practices to see how it can conduct enforcement more humanely within the confines of the law.”

The readout continued, “The President thanked the Members of the CHC for their work on these challenging issues, and expressed his strong desire to work together to put pressure on Congressional Republicans to pass bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform as soon as possible.”

Obama met in the Oval Office with Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairman Ruben Hinojosa, D-Texas, CHC Immigration Task Force Chair Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., and House Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra of California.


Rep. Gutierrez's statement after meeting with President Obama
http://gutierrez.house.gov/press-release/guti%C3%A9rrez-meets-president-discuss-deportations-and-immigration

(snip)
“Just as important, Republicans should step up to the plate and take action on immigration reform and not abandon the American people on this important issue. And in the absence of action by House Republicans, administrative action is imperative.

“It is clear that the pleas from the community got through to the President. The CHC will work with him to keep families together. The President clearly expressed the heartbreak he feels because of the devastating effect that deportations have on families.

“This began a new dialogue between the CHC and the White House that had been dormant for too long. The CHC Members who met with the President were adamant that the President needed to act. I agree with the President that the ultimate solution and responsibility for fixing our broken immigration system rests with the Republican majority in the House of Representatives and we will work together to demand Republicans take action.”

[MyNameGoesHere]

1. Immigration reform?

Kleenex at deportations?

[ForgoTheConsequence]

2. Good, but weird.

Just a few days ago people on this board were saying that there was nothing that Obama could do, they said his hands were tied and it was solely up to congress.

[Cha]

5. Haven't you noticed.. President Obama has been by-passing Congress very

recently. He's obviously had it with their bullshit. Read something about the teabagger House just passed something declaring Obama a dictator or something.

[okaawhatever]

7. He can ask for a review and make recommendations but he can't change the law. That does

require Congress. The DOJ can prosecute cases of abuse by border guards, but they need a prosecutable case to even begin. I'm glad Obama is doing this, but it won't change the laws, and that's what most of us recognize. That's why we don't make petty comments.

[ForgoTheConsequence]

9. You're right, he cannot change the laws.

But he does have leeway when it comes to how laws are enforced and how laws and their enforcement are prioritized.

See: Marijuana legalization in Colorado, the deportation of undocumented workers, ACA, etc.

[ReRe]

3. The Immigration system is broken.

Why is it that more illegals have been deported during PO's administration? He didn't order it to be done. It's the law. Does anyone know anything about deportation law? Or about the immigration system, in general? The law definitely needs to be changed. Isn't that totally apparent with 2 million deported in the last five years? Does that fact not stick out like a sore thumb?

This is one of the reasons it is so important that we win Congress back this fall.

[jwirr]

12. I am wondering if the whole damn government is not broken. Just in my family we have a food stamp

application that is 2 months late, energy assistance applications that are over 3 months getting processed, a veterans claim that is over a year old and waiting and a social security application that is also taking forever.

These are agencies that should have some kind of time limitations and yet they are giving the excuse that they are all over worked. Yes, I know that we have a lot more problems with the economy and they all have more applications but then why not hire extra help.

[ReRe]

15. Republicans or Republican lites have been...

... running this country since Ronald Reagan and before. Yes, it's broken. It's their MO. Downsizing EVERYTHING IN SIGHT. They've tried their best to break everything in sight. Go around the Constitution. Go around International Law. And then privatize everything they broke. Read Hedrick Smith's Who Stole the American Dream?". If you can't find a copy at your library, DU mail me with mailing info and I'll send you my copy. (That is, if you're truly interested in finding out why everything is broken.) I hope everything starts coming thru for you, jwirr. Seems like we all have to have the patience of Job to live in this country anymore.

[QuestForSense]

4. Might explain why repugs have been dragging their feet on immigration -- they don't want it changed.

Numerous commentators note that Obama’s administration has deported more people in five years than where deported in all eight years of Bush II and more than all previous administrations going back to 1892 (!!) :

According to current figures from Immigration and Customs Enforcement — the federal agency responsible for deportations — Obama has removed 1.4 million people during his 42 months in office so far. Technically, that’s fewer than under George W. Bush, whose cumulative total was 2 million. But Bush’s number covers eight full years, which doesn’t allow an apples-to-apples comparison.

If you instead compare the two presidents’ monthly averages, it works out to 32,886 for Obama and 20,964 for Bush, putting Obama clearly in the lead. Bill Clinton is far behind with 869,676 total and 9,059 per month. All previous occupants of the White House going back to 1892 fell well short of the level of the three most recent presidents.

http://orgtheory.wordpress.com/2013/10/29/obama-the-deportation-president/

[okaawhatever]

8. And what that fails to mention that anyone not trying to push an anti-Obama agenda knows is

that the increased deportations are a direct result of increased policing of borders, new technological advances in catching border crossers, massive increase in border guards and border security as a whole these measures were largely put in place in the 2004+2007 time frame. It's a distortion of the relevant facts and sad that someone would post things like that her on DU.

[Cha]

6. It's time.. thank you, President Obama.

[L0oniX]

10. The king of deportation is only trying to help Dems win ...

and the Hispanic's are not that stupid. They will see this for what it is. This is too little and too late to change the effects of his deportation policy on Hispanic voters IMO.

[JoePhilly]

13. Yea, Hispanics will never vote for Obama's 3rd term now.

[Dem4ever27]

11. Our deportation policies are cruel.

Undocumented immigrants just want a better life for themselves and their families. Turning any of them back when they are in such desperate need is cruel in itself. Besides, our economy needs these people to do the jobs that Americans won't do. Gradually the immigrants from Mexico and H1b visa holders from Asia will be able to enjoy the same jobs and positions as "native" Americans (i.e., people born in the US), and that will benefit all working people by increasing competition for jobs and thus providing an incentive for us to improve our skills so we can be more job-worthy.

[hughee99]

16. Sorry, can you run this logic by me one more time?

ALL working people benefit by increasing competition for jobs?

More competition drives wages down. How does this benefit workers?

As far as the benefit of "providing an incentive" this is a "stick" incentive not a "carrot" incentive. Workers will have to do more work to get the same job at a lower wage. How does that benefit all workers?

I definitely see how it benefits all EMPLOYERS, but I'm a little sketchy on how the WORKERS come out ahead.

[treestar]

14. Obama may be concerned about the pain

but those Republicans are not.

[woo me with science]

17. Yet his 2015 budget continues mandatory quotas for private prison beds

that are overwhelmingly filled by immigrants.

Tell President Obama to remove the private prison bed quota from his budget
http://www.presente.org/campaign/tell-obama-remove-quota-from-his-budget/

Obama Administration Includes Arbitrary Number of Detention Beds in Fiscal Year 2015 Budget #endthequota
http://detentionwatchnetwork.wordpress.com/2014/03/04/obama-administration-includes-arbitrary-number-of-detention-beds-in-fiscal-year-2015-budget-endthequota/

Obama Budget: $236 Million Increase for Bureau of Prisons
http://www.crewof42.com/cbc-2/obama-budget-requests-236-million-increase-for-bureau-of-prisons/