Governor Brewer throws a temper tantrum, gets it wrong on Obama immigration policy

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The woman who got elected governor by wrapping her arms around SB 1070 and fostering hatred for brown people, Jan Brewer, clearly gets her news from The Drudge Report and FAUX News fraudcasting where they just make shit up.

This sad, pathetic woman seems to be under the delusion that President Obama granted "amnesty" to the brown people she hates. He did not.

The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports Brewer decries Obama “backdoor amnesty” policy:

Gov. Jan Brewer decried President Barack Obama’s new DREAM Act-style immigration policy as “backdoor amnesty” intended to undermine SB1070 and bolster his political support for his re-election bid.

Speaking to reporters during a rare press conference in the Executive Tower, Brewer, one of Obama’s most nationally prominent critics on immigration and border security policy, said the president’s announcement set a dangerous distraction from the need to secure the border.

“Most importantly, this unilateral act was a preemptive strike against the United States Supreme Court and its decision on Senate Bill 1070, which may come as early as this Monday,” she said. “It doesn’t take a cynic to recognize this action for what it is: blatant political pandering by a president desperate to shore up his political base.”

* * *

“The crux of Senate Bill 1070, of course, is documentation. And what he has done by his announcement today is that he’s going to give documentation to nearly one million people who have arrived into our country illegally and not by the rule of law,” she said.

Obama’s announcement comes just three days after Brewer issued an executive order reiterating her 2010 call for law enforcement to be properly trained in the enforcement of SB1070. Once the Supreme Court rules on the law, Brewer said the state will “have to really drill down and look at exactly what they are about to embark upon.”

“We’ve got a lot of work on our plate,” she said.

However, Brewer wouldn’t say whether she believes the DREAM Act should be passed, saying only that she believes in the rule of law and that anyone who enters the United States illegally should be apprehended. When asked directly whether illegal immigrants who were brought to the country at a young age should be deported, she said, “I don’t know. I believe that we need to address that issue.”

I will repost a portion of what I posted this morning from Suzy Khimm at Ezra Klein's WonkBlog, who explained, No, Obama didn’t hand out a get-out-of-deportation-free card:

Last June, Obama’s immigration chief, John Morton, issued a memo instructing federal immigration agents, lawyers and others to make the deportation of certain classes of immigrants — particularly those who had strong ties to the United States — a lower priority. The memo instructed officials to use new criteria to decide which deportation cases to pursue and which ones to lay aside for the time being.

Such “prosecutorial discretion” is exercised on a case-by-case basis. In other words, it isn’t a get-out-of-deportation-free card, but it effectively makes the deportation of certain immigrants less likely by deferring action.

Obama’s new policy is an extension and expansion of what has been happening under Morton’s memo, essentially prioritizing a subset of immigrants who were already covered by last year’s policy shift. The 2011 memo extended potential deportation relief to a huge swath of immigrants: the elderly, caretakers of the disabled, college graduates or students, and those who’ve made “contributions to the community.” Since then, nearly 300,000 deportation cases have been reviewed using the new criteria, and about 7 percent of them — totaling more than 20,000 — were indefinitely removed from the docket.

The administration’s latest policy singles out certain members of this group for additional protection and opportunities: young college students who came to the United States illegally as children. These immigrants will have their deportation cases deferred for two years, “subject to renewal,” according to the White House memo. They, of course, are the immigrants who’ve been the poster children of the DREAM Act. Like other immigrants whose cases have been deferred, they don’t receive lawful immigration status.

* * *

The White House’s new policy should make the use of prosecutorial discretion “more robust because of the clarity of guidance out there,” she said.

What’s more, the policy change allows young immigrants whose deportation cases have been deferred to apply for work authorization. Previously, only immigrants who were “widows and orphans” were invited to apply for such work permits, according to Giovagnoli. Now immigrant students whose deportation cases have been deferred will be offered the same opportunity.

There is no official path to citizenship, but indirectly, it could help illegal immigrants in their case for a green card.

“Deferred action is a temporary status that gives you the chance to work, go to school, etc.

Got that Jan? it ain't amnesty no matter how much you stomp your feet and wave your boney finger in a temper tantrum crying that is.

And what would Saint Ronnie Reagan have to say to our Jan Brewer? Here is is Ronaldus Magnus Reagan on Oct. 28, 1984, in his debate with Walter Mondale:

"I believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and lived here, even though sometime back they may have entered illegally."

Reagan's 1986 Immigration Act did, in fact, grant amnesty to undocumented immigrants, the last president to do so.

UPDATE: The Arizona Republic reports Obama: Immigration policy 'not amnesty':

At a speech at the Rose Garden of the White House Friday, Obama said the change was spurred by Congress's failure to pass the Dream Act. He blamed Republicans for blocking it.

"It makes no sense to expel talented young people who for all intents and purposes are Americans," Obama said. "They have been raised as Americans, understand themselves to be part of this country."

The immigration policy change "is not amnesty" Obama added, and is part of earlier changes that direct immigration officials to use their discretion to resources on deporting criminals.

"This is a temporary stop gap measure that let's us focus our resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and hope to talented driven patriotic young people. It is the right thing to do," Obama said.

Under the new policy — effective immediately — undocumented immigrants who can prove they came to the country under the age of 16 and already have lived here at least five consecutive years would be allowed to stay in the country without fear of being deported. The young people who might be allowed to stay cannot be older than 30 and must be either still in school or graduated from high school or obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, the Homeland Security Department announced.

The policy change also would extend to young immigrants who are honorably discharged military and Coast Guard veterans. It would not apply to undocumented immigrants with felony or egregious misdemeanor criminal records or who "otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety," the department said.

The "deferred action" lasts for two years.