STEALTH AMNESTY: GOP ATTEMPTS TO HINDER OBAMA'S ILLEGAL ALIEN AGENDA


Jim Kouri
Published 07/13/2011 - 4:39 p.m. CST

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) yesterday introduced the Hinder the Administration’s Legalization Temptation (HALT) Act (H.R. 2497), legislation to prevent the Obama administration from abusing its authority to grant massive administrative amnesty to illegal immigrants.

Senator David Vitter (R-LA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Border Security and Enforcement First Immigration Caucus, will introduce the companion in the Senate this week.

Over the course of the last year, the Obama administration has sought to circumvent Congress and use executive branch authority to allow illegal immigrants to remain in the United States. Last month, Administration officials caved to pressure from their liberal base and announced changes to Secure Communities, GOP lawmakers have stressed.

The Secure Communities program keeps neighborhoods safe by identifying illegal and criminal immigrants in police custody who have been arrested and fingerprinted, police officials told the Law Enforcement Examiner.

They claim the changes made by the Administration could open the door to allow millions of illegal and criminal immigrants avoid current immigration laws.

Specifically, the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, issued two memos to agency officials on how to exercise “prosecutorial discretion,â€