Also on Obama's plate: an immigration bill
By Julia Preston


New York Times

Posted: 04/08/2009 09:15:00 PM PDT


While acknowledging that the recession makes the political battle more difficult, President Barack Obama plans to begin addressing America's immigration system this year, including looking for a path for illegal immigrants to become legal, a senior administration official said Wednesday.

Obama will frame the new effort — likely to rouse passions on all sides of the highly divisive issue — as "policy reform that controls immigration and makes it an orderly system," said the official, Cecilia Munoz, deputy assistant to the president and director of intergovernmental affairs in the White House.

Obama plans to speak publicly about the issue in May, administration officials said, and over the summer he will convene working groups, including lawmakers from both parties and a range of immigration organizations, to begin discussing possible legislation for as early as this fall.

Some White House officials said immigration would not take precedence over the health care and energy proposals that Obama has identified as priorities. But the timetable is consistent with pledges that Obama made to Latino groups in last year's campaign.

He said then that comprehensive immigration legislation, including a plan to make legal status possible for an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, would be a priority in his first year in office. Latino voters turned out strongly for Obama in the election.

"He intends to start the debate
this year," Munoz said.

Polarizing issue

But with the economy seriously ailing, advocates on different sides of the debate said immigration could become a polarizing issue for Obama in a year when he has many other major battles to fight.

Opponents, mainly Republicans, say they will seek to mobilize popular outrage against any effort to legalize unauthorized immigrant workers while so many Americans are out of jobs.

Democratic legislative aides said opening a full-fledged debate this year on immigration, particularly with health care as a looming priority, could weigh down the president's domestic agenda.

The White House is calculating that public support for fixing the immigration system, which is widely acknowledged to be broken, will outweigh opposition from voters who argue that immigrants take jobs from Americans. A groundswell among voters opposed to legal status for illegal immigrants led to the defeat in 2007 of a bipartisan immigration bill that was strongly supported by President George W. Bush.

Administration officials said Obama's plan would not add new workers to the American work force, but that it would recognize millions of illegal immigrants who have already been working in the United States.

Opponents of legalization legislation were incredulous at the idea that Obama would take on immigration when economic pain for Americans is so widespread.

"It just doesn't seem rational that any political leader would say, let's give millions of foreign workers permanent access to U.S. jobs when we have millions of Americans looking for jobs," said Roy Beck, executive director of NumbersUSA, a group that favors reduced immigration. Beck predicted that Obama would face "an explosion" if he proceeded this year.

In broad outlines, officials said, the Obama administration favors legislation that would bring illegal immigrants into the legal system by recognizing that they violated the law, and imposing fines and other penalties to fit the offense. The legislation would seek to prevent future illegal immigration by strengthening border enforcement and cracking down on employers who hire illegal immigrants, while creating a national system for verifying the legal immigration status of new workers.

Many details remained to be debated.

Building support

Opponents of a legalization effort said that if the Obama administration maintained the enforcement pressure initiated by Bush, the recession would force many illegal immigrants to return home. Dan Stein, the president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, said it would be "politically disastrous" for Obama to begin an immigration initiative now.

Anticipating opposition, Obama has sought to shift some of the political burden to advocates for immigrants, by encouraging them to build support among voters for when his proposal goes to Congress.

That is why Rep. Luis Gutierrez, a Democrat from Chicago, has been on the road most weekends since December, traveling far outside his district to meetings in Latino churches in San Francisco and elsewhere, hoping to generate something like a civil rights movement in favor of broad immigration legislation

What is wrong with this president???????  Everything it seems

He has lost it completely.  Big whoop if latinos supported him.  BS

The illegals came into the U.S. and the VERY VERY FIRST thing these people did upon coming into the U.S. is BREAK THE LAW.  They BROKE THE LAW, BROKE THE LAW BROKE THE LAW.

Might as well ask this president if perhaps this country should abolish laws all together.  Why should we even have laws if there will be no punishment for breaking the law?

So now, the socialist president wants to reward all these people with making them legal which then in turn entitles them to all the handouts taxpayers are obligated to provide.

We are currently in a financial crisis in this country and around the world.  This is probably worst next to the great depresssion.  Citizens, citizens by birth who have lived every day of their lives in this country, have paid taxes, have paid high taxes, are paying high taxes, citizens are losing their jobs, losing their homes and this president wants all these illegals made legal so they can continue to keep those jobs rather than American citizens by birth who have paid taxes all their lives are denied these jobs that the illegals have.

So, while we Americans are losing our jobs, having to pay higher taxes, many losing our homes, we are now going to have to start footing the bill for the illegals who, once made legal by Obama, will be entitled to take more money from us hard working people.  

Obama will surely say, their only "crime" is that they wanted a better life for themselves and their families so they came here illegally.  Well, we citizens by birth want a better life for our families too.  We have paid into the system for decades as did our parents and grandparents.  And in return for paying into the system, we lose our jobs, homes, and shirts.  But the illegals are rewarded.

This pres is NUTS

he is doing this to help the people who are poor so WAKE UP AND SUPPORT OUR PRESIDENT AND STOP BEIING AGAINST THE USA YOU TRAITORS. WHERE ARE YOU FROM THE INDIANS ?

obama has to hurry up and push this through so his aunt tootie can stay in the country....

speaking like that of the president is scurilous and trouble-some

Go ahead make them legal.....but, repeal the minimum wage requirements....I need a housekeeper for $2.00/hour.......

we have a chance to make up for the many wrongs we did over here to all the people of the earth including this matter of the warming and pollution that kills so so so many babies around the earth

If they think the tea party protest was the end....it will just be the beginning if he even tries to pass this immigration bill. obama has already won. He surely doesn't need the votes.

I guess actually listening to what Obma said is asking too much -

" This is not going to be a free ride. It's not going to be some instant amnesty, "What's going to happen is you are going to pay a significant fine. You are going to learn English. You are going to go to the back of the line so that you don't get ahead of somebody who was in Mexico City applying legally. But after you've done these things, over a certain period of time you can earn your citizenship "

Quoted from Sombody

I guess actually listening to what Obma said is asking too much -

" This is not going to be a free ride. It's not going to be some instant amnesty, "What's going to happen is you are going to pay a significant fine. You are going to learn English. You are going to go to the back of the line so that you don't get ahead of somebody who was in Mexico City applying legally. But after you've done these things, over a certain period of time you can earn your citizenship "

So, that means the illegals will be on the waiting list for perhaps 10 years?  And until then, what happens?  Can they stay here?  Can they stay here while we pay for their childrens education?  Can they stay here so we will be paying their health costs?

We are not talking about citizenship.  This is about making them legal aliens, resident aliens, that state that people come hear legally are until such time as they want to become citizens.

I couldn't agree with you more MC.

Quoted from 332

obama has to hurry up and push this through so his aunt tootie can stay in the country....

Thanks Yankee-you made my day! Auntie Tooty-Fruity. lol!

    This is all about filling the voter rolls with millions of Democrats so we can never get them out of power. They are power crazy and once elected almost impossible to remove. Example City School Bored-example County Legislature.

Quoted from benny salami

Thanks Yankee-you made my day! Auntie Tooty-Fruity. lol!

    This is all about filling the voter rolls with millions of Democrats so we can never get them out of power. They are power crazy and once elected almost impossible to remove. Example City School Bored-example County Legislature.

Do you think  Obama is thinking  about Aunt Zeituni Onyangco?  You should get up to speed boys because-

At her hearing, , Federal Immigration Judge Leonard I. Shapiro agreed to continue her controversial case until February 4, 2010.
She is represented by top immigration law firm, Margaret W. Wong Associates. Must be expensive, no?
She was escorted by four agents from Federal Protective Service, which is under Homeland Security Dept.

Quoted from Sombody

Do you think  Obama is thinking  about Aunt Zeituni Onyangco?  You should get up to speed boys because-

At her hearing, , Federal Immigration Judge Leonard I. Shapiro agreed to continue her controversial case until February 4, 2010.
She is represented by top immigration law firm, Margaret W. Wong Associates. Must be expensive, no?
She was escorted by four agents from Federal Protective Service, which is under Homeland Security Dept.

So are you saying that aunt tootie is getting a pass because of obama? If that is the case, it doesn't sit too well with me, no matter who she is.

Of course she is ... she's in the "family"