Obama sets new tone, but immigration action far off
by Daniel González - Apr. 3, 2009 12:00 AM

President Barack Obama has begun refocusing some of the more controversial immigration practices of the Bush administration, delaying some worksite raids and shifting the focus of others from workers and onto business owners.

But with fixing the economy the top priority, Obama is not yet ready to tackle the major issue of comprehensive immigration reform, despite mounting pressure from Latino and immigrant groups.

"I think he knows that he has to keep some sort of semblance of forward motion, but in terms of actually getting something done, I think he's going to stall as long as he can," said Daniel Kowalski, an immigration attorney in Austin, who edits Bender's Immigration Bulletin, a Web site that tracks immigration news and policy developments.
In recent weeks, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has signaled a move from the high-profile immigration raids that had become a hallmark of the latter years of the Bush administration by:


• Directing federal agents to refocus worksite raids on businesses and executives.


• Delaying some worksite raids and ordering a review of a February raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement that resulted in the arrest of 28 workers in Washington state.


• Asking Homeland Security officials to look at revamping a program, known as 287(g), that trains local police to enforce federal immigration laws.

Obama faces more pressure from Hispanic, immigrant and labor groups to follow through on his campaign promise to, during his first year in office, push for comprehensive immigration reform that includes a contentious legalization plan for the nation's 12 million undocumented immigrants.

The United Farm Workers announced Thursday that it plans to hold a series of nationwide marches this month, including one on April 19 in Phoenix, aimed at pressuring Obama to press the reform issue.

Obama told the Hispanic Congressional Caucus in March that he remains committed to comprehensive immigration reform and vowed to hold a meeting this spring at the White House to get the ball rolling, said Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz.

Obama also promised other immigration changes that don't require legislation, such as devoting more resources to reducing citizenship and naturalization backlogs, Grijalva said.

Latino lawmakers left the meeting confident, but during a trip to Costa Rica this week, Vice President Joe Biden told Central American leaders that this is not a good time to push for immigration reform.

"It's difficult to tell a constituency while unemployment is rising, they're losing their jobs and their homes, that what we should do is, in fact, legalize (illegal immigrants) and stop all deportation," Biden said.

After trying and failing in 2006 and 2007 to push through reform legislation that would have included a legalization plan, the Bush administration intensified immigration enforcement through stepped-up worksite raids and deportations of illegal immigrants.

The increased enforcement was designed to gain credibility after years of lax enforcement, said Steven A. Camarota, research director at the Center for Immigration Studies, a group that supports immigration reductions. However, Camarota said, any credibility could evaporate if the Obama administration returns to lax immigration enforcement, which will make it even harder to pass comprehensive reforms.

"The administration is in a box," Camarota said.

On the one hand, Obama needs to "appease" Hispanic and immigrant-rights groups angered by stepped-up worksite raids and deportations they say are breaking apart families, Camarota said. On the other, Obama needs to convince skeptics that he is serious about enforcement. Still, some conservatives are wary.

"The Obama administration is proving that they are not serious about immigration enforcement," said Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, citing the recent shift in worksite enforcement and other changes.

Doris Meissner, senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute think tank in Washington, D.C., said that to be effective, worksite laws need to be combined with other laws that target human smuggling, labor violations and criminal enterprises, a strategy she expects the Obama administration to pursue.

"What I hear (Napolitano) saying is not backing off of worksite enforcement, but going after serious crimes, not the garden-variety crimes," Meissner said.


Reach the reporter at daniel.gonzalez@arizonarepublic.com


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