Biodun Iginla, BBC News

Biodun Iginla, BBC News

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Obama offer to 5m illegal migrants


by Melissa Gruz and Biodun Iginla, BBC News Website

A group of immigrants from Honduras and El Salvador Sections of the Mexico border have been a magnet for illegal immigrants
Nearly five million people living illegally in the US can escape deportation under sweeping changes to the US immigration system.
US President Barack Obama will unveil his plan, which he is enacting without Congress, in a televised address.
Republicans have argued the action is beyond his authority and will fight it.
There are about 11m illegal immigrants in the US and this year unaccompanied children coming across the Mexico border prompted a humanitarian crisis.
"The president is taking an important step to fix our broken immigration system," said a White House statement before Mr Obama's speech, due at 2000EST (0100GMT).
He will pledge to to crack down on illegal immigration at the border and require certain undocumented migrants to pass a criminal background check and pay taxes in order to register to stay temporarily in the US.
More details include:
  • expanding eligibility requirements for those already subject to deportation deferment because they were brought to the US as children
  • ensuring undocumented parents of US citizens or legal permanent residents can temporarily escape deportation
  • shifting additional resources to the US-Mexico border to increase the likelihood of apprehending illegal crossers
  • streamlining the immigration court process to address the backlog of pending cases
  • directing government enforcement activities to national security threats, serious criminals and recent border crossers as highest priorities for removal from the US
Overall, the action could lift the threat of deportation for up to five million undocumented migrants, the White House said.
The plan reflects "the guidance [Mr Obama] has received from the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General about everything he could do under the existing law", a senior administration official said on Thursday.
"It's entirely consistent with the way previous presidents have exercised their executive authority."
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Analysis: Thomas Sparrow, BBC Mundo
School children are seen at a residential centre in Kansas City, Texas, on 10 September 2014 Some detained immigrant children are housed in residential centres in Texas
Immigration reform is a topic that has nearly always come up when I have spoken to Hispanics in the United States.
This is obviously not the only topic that worries them - many are also concerned about jobs or healthcare - but there is no doubt that immigration is an issue that affects them personally and in many cases very deeply.
A recent poll highlighted that a majority of Hispanics knew an undocumented migrant in their social circle, and another survey described how a quarter of Latinos knew someone who had been deported or detained for immigration reasons.
This comes to show that far from being just an issue that is being debated among politicians in Washington, president Obama's announcement will be keenly felt in the Hispanic community throughout the country, as the threat from deportation is lifted from many families.
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Mr Obama has pledged for months to take steps on immigration after the Republican-led House of Representatives blocked a bipartisan immigration bill passed by the US Senate in 2013.
But Republican House Speaker John Boehner has said Mr Obama is "playing with fire" if he moves ahead with his immigration plan.
On Thursday, Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell - soon to head the Congressional chamber after conservatives gained control in the 4 November mid-term elections - vowed to retaliate.
"If President Obama acts in defiance of the people and imposes his will on the country, Congress will act," he said in a speech on the Senate floor, declining to offer further details.
President Barack Obama meets with Congressional leaders in the Old Family Dining Room of the White House in Washington. From left are, House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, Obama 7 November 2014 Mr Obama says he has been forced to act alone
Mr Obama's plan does not go as far as a Senate bill that would have provided a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants but it was never passed by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
The president has said he would still like to work with Congress on a comprehensive bill.

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