I am sure President Obama has his reasons for changing his mind about fixing the immigration mess. But I think he is making a big mistake.
The President promised an executive order allowing some undocumented immigrants to emerge from the shadows and live normal lives in America. It was to be the prelude to a comprehensive overhaul of the country’s broken immigration system – some day.
But he has backed down. He says he will wait until after the midterm elections in November. Why?
Could it be that Democratic candidates in some states are afraid of the backlash from voters?
If so, he is protecting them at the expense of Democratic candidates in other districts – the heavily Hispanic ones.
This could be the blunder that gives Republicans control of Congress. Immigration activists are outraged. They feel they’ve been double-crossed. And I don’t blame them.
If the Hispanic voters stay home (I can’t imagine they would actually vote Republican), the Democrats won’t have a chance in November.
So there must be some other reason for the President’s surprise move.
Here’s how he defended his position:
What I want to do is when I take executive action, I want to make sure it’s sustainable … What I’m saying is I’m going to act because it is 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, what we’ve done on unaccompanied children and why it’s necessary.
I have no idea what he’s talking about. Do you? If there’s one thing the public should understand by now it’s that US immigration policy is unfair and cruel. We don’t need to keep talking about it. What we need is action to fix it.
Could it be that President Obama is afraid the Republicans will try to impeach him if he acts?
That would be ironic because he can be sure they will impeach him if they win control of Congress in November.
Of course, I can’t read the President’s mind. And he has access to information that I will never know. But from what I know, this decision mystifies me.
Click for more on the announcement.
