On September 26, 2011, 19 U.S. Senators are questioning the Obama
administration's Immigration policies that "go beyond the scope of the law and
allow people who have broken our laws to remain in the country."
The Senators are demanding that the Obama administration stop the bypassing of
Congress with regard to immigration policies that circumvent Congressional
jurisdiction and authority.
In a letter sent to President Obama, the Senators cite a June 17th memo and an
August 18th directive which outline and encourage increased use of prosecutorial
discretion and administrative closure of cases pending before the courts.
See full text of the letter here
http://grassley.senate.gov/judiciary/upload/Immigration-09-26-11-letter-to-Presi\
dent-on-Backdoor-Amnesty.pdf
Leading the charge is Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who said, "The administration
has repeatedly ignored and dismissed our reservations with its policies that
circumvent Congress and provide a safe-haven for illegal immigrants. Its
policies ignore the rule of law and take the powers provided to the
administration to an entirely new level,"
"We write to express serious concern about your immigration policies and ask
that you require the Department of Homeland Security to overturn recent
directives regarding the increased use of prosecutorial discretion. We also
request that the Administration halt any initiative, whether through regulation
or otherwise, that circumvents Congress or aims to ensure that illegal
immigrants are afforded every possibility to remain in this country," the letter
begins.
"After the release of the June 17th Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
memorandum, which called for the increased use of prosecutorial discretion,
several members of the Senate wrote to Assistant Secretary John Morton. While
prosecutorial discretion is justifiable in certain cases, this initiative may
result in an impermissible intrusion on Congress's plenary authority over
immigration law. Accordingly, we asked Assistant Secretary Morton to rescind the
memorandum outlining ICE's prosecutorial discretion policies. That request has
been ignored," the letter continues.
"We are also concerned that the initiative announced by Secretary Napolitano on
August 18th will result in the administrative closure of an untold number of
cases currently pending before our immigration and federal courts. In
combination with the June 17th ICE memo, these new policies send the message
that your Administration is turning a blind eye to those who have broken our
immigration laws. We are also concerned that these policies appear to be a
direct attempt to categorically legalize those who are unlawfully in the country
and to allow undocumented individuals to remain in violation of the law without
fear of apprehension or deportation. The security of our country depends on our
ability to prevent unlawful entry and to respond when such criminals have
overstayed their visa or avoided inspection. These policies have the potential
to undermine the rule of law and threaten our nation's security," the Senators
declared.
The letter states the Executive Branch is not entitled to bypass… Congress by
administrative fiat.
"While we appreciate Secretary Napolitano's assurances that these initiatives
will not provide categorical relief for any group, we remain concerned about
statements being made by certain advocates and members of Congress. For example,
in a September 20th speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate, Senator Dick Durbin
stated that these initiatives "pave the way" for DREAM Act students. He further
stated that "[the Administration] said recently that those eligible for the
DREAM Act, good moral character, graduates of high school and pursuing college
degrees are not going to be their targets." The United States Senate and the
American people have rejected the DREAM Act and the Executive Branch is not
entitled to bypass that determination by administrative fiat"
Obama has been quoted saying, "Believe me, the idea of doing things on my own is
very tempting. I promise you not just on immigration reform. But that's not how
our system works,"
The letter addresses that statement: "…in a recent speech before the
Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Congressman Luis Gutierrez stated:
"[President Obama] said, `But I can't bypass Congress,' and people in the
audience said, `Yes you can,' and you want to know something? They were right –
he could and he did." Such statements will only create a rush to the border and
encourage the undocumented population to come forward in hopes of receiving a
benefit."
The Senators ask Obama to correct the path this policy is on. "We request that
you promptly rescind these initiatives, dismantle the working group designed to
identify "low priority" cases before our immigration and federal courts, and
direct the agencies within the Department of Homeland Security to abide by our
Nation's immigration laws. We also ask that you make Secretary Napolitano
available to members of the Senate for questioning about the Department's
immigration enforcement policies, including granting parole, deferred action,
and prosecutorial discretion to keep unlawful immigrants in this country."
"It is unjustifiable for the Administration to sidestep Congress to implement
policies that are contrary to the law and the wishes of the American people,"
the letter states.
Read at
http://libertynews.com/2011/09/29/19-senators-tell-obama-to-stop-bypassing-congr\
ess/
administration's Immigration policies that "go beyond the scope of the law and
allow people who have broken our laws to remain in the country."
The Senators are demanding that the Obama administration stop the bypassing of
Congress with regard to immigration policies that circumvent Congressional
jurisdiction and authority.
In a letter sent to President Obama, the Senators cite a June 17th memo and an
August 18th directive which outline and encourage increased use of prosecutorial
discretion and administrative closure of cases pending before the courts.
See full text of the letter here
http://grassley.senate.gov/judiciary/upload/Immigration-09-26-11-letter-to-Presi\
dent-on-Backdoor-Amnesty.pdf
Leading the charge is Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who said, "The administration
has repeatedly ignored and dismissed our reservations with its policies that
circumvent Congress and provide a safe-haven for illegal immigrants. Its
policies ignore the rule of law and take the powers provided to the
administration to an entirely new level,"
"We write to express serious concern about your immigration policies and ask
that you require the Department of Homeland Security to overturn recent
directives regarding the increased use of prosecutorial discretion. We also
request that the Administration halt any initiative, whether through regulation
or otherwise, that circumvents Congress or aims to ensure that illegal
immigrants are afforded every possibility to remain in this country," the letter
begins.
"After the release of the June 17th Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
memorandum, which called for the increased use of prosecutorial discretion,
several members of the Senate wrote to Assistant Secretary John Morton. While
prosecutorial discretion is justifiable in certain cases, this initiative may
result in an impermissible intrusion on Congress's plenary authority over
immigration law. Accordingly, we asked Assistant Secretary Morton to rescind the
memorandum outlining ICE's prosecutorial discretion policies. That request has
been ignored," the letter continues.
"We are also concerned that the initiative announced by Secretary Napolitano on
August 18th will result in the administrative closure of an untold number of
cases currently pending before our immigration and federal courts. In
combination with the June 17th ICE memo, these new policies send the message
that your Administration is turning a blind eye to those who have broken our
immigration laws. We are also concerned that these policies appear to be a
direct attempt to categorically legalize those who are unlawfully in the country
and to allow undocumented individuals to remain in violation of the law without
fear of apprehension or deportation. The security of our country depends on our
ability to prevent unlawful entry and to respond when such criminals have
overstayed their visa or avoided inspection. These policies have the potential
to undermine the rule of law and threaten our nation's security," the Senators
declared.
The letter states the Executive Branch is not entitled to bypass… Congress by
administrative fiat.
"While we appreciate Secretary Napolitano's assurances that these initiatives
will not provide categorical relief for any group, we remain concerned about
statements being made by certain advocates and members of Congress. For example,
in a September 20th speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate, Senator Dick Durbin
stated that these initiatives "pave the way" for DREAM Act students. He further
stated that "[the Administration] said recently that those eligible for the
DREAM Act, good moral character, graduates of high school and pursuing college
degrees are not going to be their targets." The United States Senate and the
American people have rejected the DREAM Act and the Executive Branch is not
entitled to bypass that determination by administrative fiat"
Obama has been quoted saying, "Believe me, the idea of doing things on my own is
very tempting. I promise you not just on immigration reform. But that's not how
our system works,"
The letter addresses that statement: "…in a recent speech before the
Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Congressman Luis Gutierrez stated:
"[President Obama] said, `But I can't bypass Congress,' and people in the
audience said, `Yes you can,' and you want to know something? They were right –
he could and he did." Such statements will only create a rush to the border and
encourage the undocumented population to come forward in hopes of receiving a
benefit."
The Senators ask Obama to correct the path this policy is on. "We request that
you promptly rescind these initiatives, dismantle the working group designed to
identify "low priority" cases before our immigration and federal courts, and
direct the agencies within the Department of Homeland Security to abide by our
Nation's immigration laws. We also ask that you make Secretary Napolitano
available to members of the Senate for questioning about the Department's
immigration enforcement policies, including granting parole, deferred action,
and prosecutorial discretion to keep unlawful immigrants in this country."
"It is unjustifiable for the Administration to sidestep Congress to implement
policies that are contrary to the law and the wishes of the American people,"
the letter states.
Read at
http://libertynews.com/2011/09/29/19-senators-tell-obama-to-stop-bypassing-congr\
ess/
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