News Update - January 30, 2010
By Alan Lee, Esq.†‡
President Obama’s State of the Union Address and What It May Mean for Immigration Reform
In President Obama’s first State of the Union address on January 27, 2010, he briefly touched upon immigration saying in the entirety:
We should continue the work of fixing our broken immigration system — to secure our borders, enforce our laws and ensure that everyone who plays by the rules can contribute to our economy and enrich our nation. In the end, it is our ideals, our values that built America - values that allowed us to forge a nation made up of immigrants from every corner of the globe, values that drive our citizens still.
What is to be made of the fact that although immigration was mentioned, unlike economy or jobs or health care, it was one of the last topics towards the end of the speech and only briefly addressed. Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) was never mentioned. Specific mention was made of border security and enforcing our laws. His phrase “ensure that everyone who plays by the rules can contribute to our economy and enrich our nation” speaks to legal and not illegal immigrants.
Does this mean that CIR has been put on the backburner? In this climate where economy, jobs and health care appear to be the top concerns, one can only hope not. There are many millions of Americans who supported Mr. Obama in his pledge of CIR, and while they may be cognizant of Mr. Obama’s present quandary, they may not remain patient in this mid-term election year and may stay away from the polls if his Administration does not begin to move on his promise.
|