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Obama Puts Executive Action for Immigration Reform on Hold
WASHINGTON, D.C. – There is no end in sight for immigration reform as President Obama has delayed executive action on the issue until after the November midterm elections.
“When I take executive action, I want to make sure that it’s sustainable,” Obama said in a clip from NBC’s “Meet the Press” last week. “What I’m saying is that I’m going to act because it’s the right thing for the country. But it’s going to be more sustainable and more effective if the public understands what the facts are on immigration.”
This is a reversal of a promise that Obama made in June saying that he would use his executive power this summer to change the nation’s immigration system after a year long effort to enact compromise legislation failed.
The New York Times quotes a White House official as saying, “Because of the Republicans’ extreme politicization of this issue, the president believes it would be harmful to the policy itself and to the long-term prospects for comprehensive immigration reform to announce administrative action before the elections.
Immigration activists are upset over the delay that Republicans are calling a purely political move.
"Instead of doing what’s right for the economy, farm workers and the country, he broke his promise to the millions of immigrants and Latinos who are looking for him to lead on this issue in the wake of Republicans’ dysfunction and obstruction," Arturo Rodriguez, President of the United Farm Workers of America, told The Hill.
The Washington Post reports that though Obama rejected criticism that the postponement was a political move to help embattled Democrats in the midterms, several Democrats have publicly called on Obama to delay or abandon his executive action plans over the last several weeks.
In a statement, the White House vowed that Obama will act before the end of the year.
Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow as we continue to cover this complex and important issue.