Kudos to President Obama for his decision to decrease deportations

You've probably heard by now the news that President Obama made the decision to stop deporting large numbers of undocumented workers in the United States for the next two years.

People who arrived illegally in the country before the age of 16 and have lived here for at least five years are eligible. They must be in school or have high school diplomas or GEDs, or must have served in the military. They must also be under the age of 30 and have clean criminal records.

The President said these undocumented workers are, “Americans in every single way but one: On paper.” This new decision will allow productive, hard-working members of our society to obtain necessary documents such as driver’s licenses.

Critics will say that this move is just Obama making a play for the crucial Hispanic vote, but regardless, we give kudos to President Obama for his stance. Deportation has steadily risen every year since he’s been in office, but this new measure will allow up to 800,000 people to remain in the country and pursue the American Dream.

This decision will likely aid the President’s reelection bid in several important states with big Hispanic populations.  Since the 2008 election, more than 2 million immigrants have become naturalized citizens of the United States, and a significant percentage of those people say immigration is the issue they find most important in the upcoming election. So this is huge news for everybody in this country and around the world.


It is by no means a solution, but it is a logical, sensible stopgap option that provides immediate relief to many of our friends and neighbors.