Obama barks commands while in the lap of luxury

By Nancy Thorner and Ed Ingold 

Obama wants "comprehensive immigration reform," and admonishes the House to "get it done" while he suns himself in Hawaii. By inference, we should likewise ignore the disaster unrolling under Obamacare.

Although the Obama administration is quick to point out that deportation of illegal immigrants has greatly increased, Fox Newsreported on Thursday, December 19, that during the 2013 fiscal year, which ended on September 30,  the Obama administration deported just 1% of illegal immigrants living within the interior of the U.S.  Moreover, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported 25% less illegal immigrants in 2013 they did  in 2012, during which time the estimated number of illegal immigrants grew to 11.7 million.

On the same day (December 19) a federal judge in Texas accused the Department of Homeland Security of hand-delivering children smuggled into the United States to their illegal immigrant parents.  Not only are the illegal immigrant children being put in danger, but this dangerous practice is effectively aiding human traffickers and particularly the drug cartels, which run many of these operations.  

We understand and sympathize with the humanitarian and virtual amnesty part of reform, but have serious questions aboutenforcement. First of all, immigration enforcement doesn't stop at the border, not that it ever really began. Effective enforcement extends throughout the country, both rural and metropolitan. At present, there are about 600 ICE agents assigned to that task, about one per 20,000 people in this country illegally. The rest are patrolling our borders, especially where the illegal immigrants are not. 

The key to immigration reform is immigration control. This will take hundreds if not thousands of additional agents patrolling the interior, and effective control of the borders, north, south, east and west. What are the chances these agents would be effectively deployed, when the administration selectively ignores any laws or directives from Congress deemed politically inexpedient? How do we impose the will of the people's representatives on the Executive branch?

In short, immigration reform starts at the top. It starts in 2014, then 2016, and thereafter. Getting the "job" done starts with electing men and women who put the interests of the nation ahead of their desire for a career in public office. 

One such legislator at the top is Majority House Republican leader, John Boehner, who has recently been vocal in his desire to deal with immigration reform in 2014.  Boehner's seriousness in moving something through the House has was duly noted by his hiring of Rebecca Tallent, a longtime advocate for immigration legislation, and one who worked many years for Sen. John McCain on immigration reform.

Somewhat encouraging is that the majority of Americans, according to a recent Rasmussen Report, do not believe the deportation of illegal immigrants living in the United States is aggressive enough. Also on the side of the American people is that a majority of them want a secure border before any kind of path to citizenship is granted for the millions of illegal immigrants already living in the United States.

Will legislators listen to the American people?  Most often they seem to be tone deaf, doing what is in their best interests to stay in power. It doesn't help that the President and CEO of the United States Chamber of Commerce, Thomas Donohue, a traditional ally of Republicans wants immigration reform and has promised to help Boehner get the votes to pass a series of bills to provide comprehensive reform, including a pathway to citizenship.

Then too, might Obama, as he is now doing with regularity, issue an Executive Order declaring it is so by going around Congress to accomplish immigration reform?  Who will stop him?  Republicans seem frozen in place unable to push back even when our Constitution is under assault.

A pox on both parties.  Republicans want cheap labor, and Democrats are all about swelling their ranks with new voters, but where does that leave the American people?