Obama To Delay Action On Slowing Deportations Until After Election

The president had said he would act at the end of the summer, but political concerns changed the calculation.

Alex Wong / Getty Images

Obama administration officials announced Saturday morning that the White House will delay executive actions on immigration that were expected at the end of the summer because of political concerns over the November midterm elections.

"The reality the president has had to weigh is that we're in the midst of the political season, and because of the Republicans' extreme politicization of this issue, the President believes it would be harmful to the policy itself and to the long-term prospects for comprehensive immigration reform to announce administrative action before the elections," a White House official said in a statement.

Obama announced an administration-wide review of immigration and deportation policy earlier this year, after Congressional inaction on the topic and months of pressure from immigration activists on the record number of deportations.

Republicans have sharply opposed the prospect of executive action similar to ones Obama took in 2012, which granted legal status to certain young undocumented immigrants. But some Democrats have also quietly opposed announcing the actions before the midterm elections; Democratic control of the Senate depends on a handful of vulnerable senators in mostly conservative states hanging onto their seats.

The president reportedly made the decision to delay the executive actions, which were announced earlier this year, during his flight back to the United States over night.

The move will surely infuriate activists who have been calling for relief after a record number of deportations by the administration. Immediately following the announcement, the activist group United We Dream went live with an online splash blasting the president's decision.

from BuzzFeed - Breaking http://ift.tt/1tAQYdi