Thread: Deportation waiver process becomes campaign issue

Written by
Elizabeth Aguilera
12:49 p.m., Oct. 20, 2012
San Diego Union Tribune

As the federal government continues issuing its first round of deportation waivers to certain unauthorized immigrants, supporters and critics of the much-debated program are weighing presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s pledge to halt the program if he wins office.

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program grants a two-year reprieve from deportation to eligible applicants, with possible renewal, and allows them to seek a job permit. People must be 18 to 30 years old and have arrived in the U.S. before they turned 16. They also must have graduated from high school or college, have no criminal record and meet other criteria.

An estimated 1.3 million individuals nationwide could qualify, including more than 400,000 in California — the highest count of any state.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said it had received nearly 180,000 applications and approved 4,591 as of Oct. 10, the most recent tally available. The agency does not provide regional breakdowns, but several immigration lawyers in San Diego County said some clients have gotten their exemptions.

In recent days, Romney has said that as president he would cancel Deferred Action but honor work permits already granted by the Obama administration. Some Republicans back his proposal, others want him to continue the program amid a Congress deadlocked on immigration issues and still others urge him to not only end the program but also rescind all approvals.

Deferred Action “is still a bad idea,” said Peter Nunez of San Diego, a former U.S. attorney here and a vocal opponent of allowing any residency reprieve for people who are in the United States without permission. “Nothing that Obama or (Gov. Jerry) Brown have done changes the reality that they are rewarding illegal immigration, the worst part of which is that it encourages more illegal immigration.”

Last month, Brown signed legislation allowing those who receive Deferred Action waivers to obtain driver’s licenses in the state.

In downtown San Diego, immigration attorney Lilia Velasquez said she has filed about 90 Deferred Action applications and that a handful have been approved.

She and some other lawyers are encouraging people who seem to meet all the requirements and want to apply to do so as soon as possible.

“Students who have clean cases should not wait until the end of the year, just in case Romney is elected,” Velasquez said.

Pedro Rios of the American Friends Service Committee in San Diego said the group’s staff is contacting people on a waiting list from its August workshop session about Deferred Action — to see how many of them still need help.

The nonprofit organization is stopping short of advising potential applicants to file sooner or later.

“If there is significant concern, then perhaps it might be best to wait,” Rios said. “I think they have to be as well informed as they can be and decide for themselves if it makes sense.”

President Barack Obama announced the Deferred Action program in June, and the application period began in mid-August. The evaluation time is running one to two months, but immigration experts and federal officials expect the process to take longer once more applications are filed.

Immigrant advocates have lauded the program as a sign of progress after Congress repeatedly rejected the DREAM Act. That legislation would have provided legal residency and a pathway to U.S. citizenship for young people who meet certain restrictions, while Deferred Action does not allow naturalization.

Critics of Deferred Action have said Obama was wrong to bypass Congress in what they saw as a political move to gain Latino votes in the November election. They are pushing for more comprehensive changes to the nation’s immigration laws, including measures to further increase security along the United States’ borders and bolster programs to find and deport the undocumented.

Deportation waiver process becomes campaign issue | UTSanDiego.com

In recent days, Romney has said that as president he would cancel Deferred Action but honor work permits already granted by the Obama administration. Some Republicans back his proposal, others want him to continue the program amid a Congress deadlocked on immigration issues and still others urge him to not only end the program but also rescind all approvals.

ALIPAC's official position is that we are glad Mitt Romney has agreed to end Obama's dictatorial and unConstitutional deferred action amnesty which contradicts many of our existing federal laws ratified by the US Constitution.

However, we point out that these authoritarian and unpopular measures by Obama are not 'work permits', nor are they laws, nor are they official Executive Orders. They appear to be some new form of autocratic governance for American citizens that are outside of the traditional methods of public policy.

It would be best if Mitt Romney were to speak out in public during the campaign taking issue with Obama's divergence from American Rule of Law and Constitution on this matter and better yet if he would agree to cancel any deferred action agreements made by Obama citing their unlawfulness and breach with the Congress and Constitution.

The fact that Mitt Romney has not mentioned the Constitution and authority of the President being abused is cause for worry for Americans that have tired of autocratic rule under BushObama.

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Critics of Deferred Action have said Obama was wrong to bypass Congress in what they saw as a political move to gain Latino votes in the November election.

Obama has bypassed congress and trampled the Constitution repeatedly, it is time for him to leave the White House. Romney is not perfect but he is definitely a big step up from Obama.