President Obama has made his move on Immigration Reform, and Republican lawmakers are not happy about it. On Thursday, President Obama addressed the nation in a televised speech held at a high school in Las Vegas. The President announced he would be taking Executive Actions to pass his version of immigration reform, which includes plans to soften deportation laws for millions of immigrants whom have entered the country illegally. Reactions to the plan have been mixed, to say the least, with the public having grown weary of near-ceaseless political gridlock and partisan battles, and Republicans vowing to fight the President on issuing Executive Action.
Opponents of the President’s plan say he is offering virtual amnesty to millions who have entered the country illegally, a plan Republicans have traditionally rejected. Republicans also say Obama is abusing his power by side-stepping Congress in order to pass the new law, and they have sworn to investigate every potential avenue in order to stop the President from acting. Obama, answering to Republican’s barbs, said he was forced into Executive Action when House Speaker John Boehner refused to bring an immigration bill up for vote in the house.
“I told John Boehner, ‘I’ll wash your car, walk your dog, whatever you need to do, just call the bill,” Obama said. “And he didn’t do it.”
Everyone knows the immigration system in this country is broken, but the fight over how to fix it has become one of the hottest political debates since the Obamacare battle. As with the healthcare law, Republicans are contemplating withholding a funding bill in Congress, which would effectively shut down the federal government…again. Americans seem to be at their wits end with Washington’s inability to lead, and it seems the President — in issuing Executive Orders — has also reached his breaking point.
We’ll wait to see what happens with this one, but we suggest you settle in and get comfortable — it’s going to be a long fight.
