“Clearly, the urgent task facing your administration is to improve immigration enforcement, not to look for new ways to weaken it,” the senators said. The signers doubled down on this statement by not only disagreeing with the approach of relaxing current laws, but also reprimanding the administration for issuing directives that nullify established enforcement guidelines — “to the point that unless individuals in the country illegally are apprehended, tried, and convicted for a felony or other serious offense, they are free to live and work in the country.”
Bowing to pressure from amnesty advocate groups, President Obama and his administration continue to waver on enforcing the law when it comes to immigration policies. The president has been decried as the “deporter-in-chief” by those who usually support him, like Janet Murguía, president of the National Council of La Raza. And this pressure has led to some terrible policy decisions.
According to data released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) earlier this year, the Obama administration accounted for a record number of deportations in 2012. Though DHS Chief Jeh Johnson confirms these are inflated figures, the administration appears determined to seek ways to undercut current law, electing for what it calls a more “humane” process. So is this the right approach? Several senators disagree.
In a letter addressed to President Obama, 22 Republican senators conveyed their “grave concerns” over the administration’s announcement.
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