Obama's Immigration Policy: Enforcement First, Reform Later, but Don't Hold Your Breath

The New York Times has reported that Federal immigration officials detained nine immigrants on January 6, 2010 in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and ordered 49 more that were stopped to report to federal authorities for a determination of whether they are in the United States legally.

These arrests were part of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation and are indicative of the enforcement first policy of President Obama.  President Obama's immigration policy is virtually no different than his predecessor's, and may be worse because he has masked his policies in a veil of lies, and double talk.  At least with Bush we knew where he stood on the issue.

ICE spokesperson Paula Grenier has openly acknowledged that when the agency's fugitive operations encounters an individual that may possibly be undocumented the policy is to detain them.  Whatever happened to probable cause?

Moreover, the Obama administration has adopted an openly racist national security directive in airports by specifically targeting individuals who are coming to the United States from Muslim countries.  The eight years of President Bush were difficult to endure from a constitutional perspective, but the era of Obama is more Orwellian than I could have possibly imagined.

As an immigration advocate, and activist I can no longer sit idly by and quietly endure the draconian and unconstitutional policies of this President, and his administration.  This is simply not change that I or our founding fathers can believe in.

Comments

[enoughtoil]

Obama's airport security directive, like much of what Obama does, is stupid and misguided, but it is not racist. Islam is not a race; it is a religion. While most Muslims are not terrorists, most terrorists are Muslims. In any case, a sensible airport security policy would emulate the successful model of Israel's El Al Airlines, where every prospective passenger is interviewed by security personnel with the brains and training to distinguish between harmless and harmful.

[USAUY]

WE AMERICANS DO SUPPORT YOU! OBAMA LIES ON IMMIGRATION AS HE DID ON "WAR" WE MUST GO TO THE STREETS AND ASK THAT HE CAN REPAIR THE IMMIGRATION SYSTEM AND GIVE ALL THOSE ILLEGAL PEOPLE A WAY THEY CAN COME OUT OF SHADOWS , STOP HIDING AND BE A CRUCIAL PART OF OUR SOCIETY , PAYING TAXES, CONTRIBUTE TO THIS ECONOMY BUYING CARS AND PAYING FOR INSURANCE, BUYING HOUSES ETC ETC ETC , LETS GIVE THEM AN ID SO THEY CAN GO OUT AND WORK ! AND LETS STOP RACISM!!! THIS IS THE USA, NOT WHAT MANY IGNORANT AND FULL OF PROUD PEOPLE THINK IT IS... LETS RESPECT THEIR HARD WORK...