Good:
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/...
Senate Democratic leaders wrote a letter on Monday pledging strong support for President Barack Obama using his executive authority to temporarily shield some groups of undocumented immigrants from the threat of deportation.
The move sharpens the battle lines between Democrats and Republicans, who are debating whether to use a government funding bill to block Obama's moves, at the risk of a government shutdown.
"Because House Republicans have not acted, we fully support your decision to use your well-established executive authority to improve as much of the immigration system as you can," the Democrats wrote to Obama.
The letter is signed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (NV), Majority Whip Dick Durbin (IL) and Sens. Chuck Schumer (NY), Bob Menendez (NJ), Michael Bennet (CO) and Patty Murray (WA). Schumer, Durbin, Menendez and Bennet are the Democratic members of the "gang of 8" which co-wrote the Senate-passed immigration bill; Murray is No. 4 in party leadership. - TPM, 11/17/14
You can read their letter here:
https://www.documentcloud.org/...
And here's why it's a good idea for Obama to take cation:
http://www.nytimes.com/...
Asserting his authority as president to enforce the nation’s laws with discretion, Mr. Obama intends to order changes that will significantly refocus the activities of the government’s 12,000 immigration agents. One key piece of the order, officials said, will allow many parents of children who are American citizens or legal residents to obtain legal work documents and no longer worry about being discovered, separated from their families and sent away.
That part of Mr. Obama’s plan alone could affect as many as 3.3 million people who have been living in the United States illegally for at least five years, according to an analysis by the Migration Policy Institute, an immigration research organization in Washington. But the White House is also considering a stricter policy that would limit the benefits to people who have lived in the country for at least 10 years, or about 2.5 million people.
Extending protections to more undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children, and to their parents, could affect an additional one million or more if they are included in the final plan that the president announces. White House officials are also still debating whether to include protections for farm workers who have entered the country illegally but have been employed for years in the agriculture industry, a move that could affect hundreds of thousands of people.
Mr. Obama’s actions will also expand opportunities for legal immigrants who have high-tech skills, shift extra security resources to the nation’s southern border, revamp a controversial immigration enforcement program called Secure Communities, and provide clearer guidance to the agencies that enforce immigration laws about who should be a low priority for deportation, especially those with strong family ties and no serious criminal history.
A new memorandum, which will direct the actions of enforcement and border agents and immigration judges, will make clear that deportations should still proceed for convicted criminals, foreigners who pose national security risks and recent border crossers, officials said. - New York Times, 11/13/14
Reid, Bennet and Murray are all up for re-election in 2016. Sounds like the Democrats might be learning a lesson from delaying action. You can click here to sign CREDO Action's petition to tell Obama to go bold on immigration reform:
http://act.credoaction.com/...