By Aaron Chelliah
Opinion Editor
President Barack Obama’s landmark executive order this November addressed the country’s broken immigration system in light of Congress’ continued failure to act on the issue. Obama’s action will enable the nation to benefit from the back taxes immigrants must now pay to remain in the U.S. and provide immigrants with an opportunity to “get right with the law.”
Currently, the Pew Research Center has established that there are roughly 11 million illegal immigrants residing in the United States. Democrats and Republicans in Congress have failed to reach an agreement on this issue for many years, and multiple previous presidents, including Ronald Reagan, used executive orders to address this issue.
Last year, the Department of Homeland Security reported that the Obama administration deported 369,000 illegal immigrants, the highest number in the history of the United States. Even at this pace, it would take over 30 years to deport all 11 million illegal immigrants. Both Democratic and Republican leaders agree that this would be a costly and impossible endeavor for the U.S. government and is, therefore, not a feasible plan of action. Obama’s executive order will allow 4 million immigrants to come out of the shadows by paying their taxes, a crucial step to begin fixing this broken system.
According to the Migration Policy Institute, 3.71 million illegal immigrants have children who are legal U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. Much of this illegal population is living in a complicated legal scenario where half the family is legally operating in American society, and the other is supporting the immigrants’ children while trying to avoid detection. Obama’s executive order enables immigrants to join regular society and provides a measure of stability for these hard-working families.
Obama’s unilateral action is not a blanket pardon or amnesty for these 11 million illegal immigrants, for it only guarantees deferred deportation for four years. During this grace period, the order provides a chance for illegal immigrants to fairly take part in the naturalization process just like all legal immigrants. This practical compromise of opportunity and accountability demonstrates the beneficial and well-constructed nature of Obama’s action.
From 2007 to 2014, the number of illegal immigrants in the United States has actually declined from 12.2 million to 11.3 million, according to the Pew Research Center. This is largely due to the Obama administration’s strong-handed deportation policy, demonstrating that the president has not been ‘soft’ on illegal immigrants. Rather, his policies and executive orders reflect a level of pragmatism that is necessary for the nation’s survival.
Obama’s executive order will also strengthen border protection services, and, therefore, effectively address a root of the problem by reducing the number of illegal immigrants entering the country.
Many Republicans have been infuriated by what they consider Obama’s blatant ‘arrogance’ and ‘imperialism,’ yet as he stated, he is only doing what they have continuously failed to do: take meaningful action. A joint Senate immigration bill was proposed to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, yet here this embodiment of compromise was quickly struck down by a split Republican vote. Obama’s actions are both legal and warranted, and although action from Congress would be ideal, it has proven impossible due to the current partisan impasse.
Obama’s executive order, although controversial, is a practical and beneficial step for our nation. This action has legal precedent, and has been taken by previous presidents of both parties.
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