Immigration reform "next year" says Obama

[J. Mujica]

Obama Pushes Immigration Reform to 2010, Jokes About Being Called “an
Illegal Immigrant”
By Diego Graglia, FI2W web editor
Another Friday afternoon statement from the White House means another
bit of bad news for immigration reform advocates. This time, President
Barack Obama met with correspondents from Hispanic media outlets and
said he expects Congress to deal with immigration early next year.
The new statement pushes Obama farther away from his commitment to
deal with the issue during his first year in office — a promise he
made to Latino voters he badly needed to carry some swing states in
the 2008 election.
On Friday, Obama met with a group of 10 reporters including
representatives of wire services Notimex (Mexico), Reuters and EFE,
and from Los Angeles newspaper La Opinión. Although he said he didn’t
know if the bill would get enough votes, he said he expects Congress
to deal with immigration reform by “early next year.”
For this, Obama said a bill should be drafted by the end of 2009.
“Now, will we be able to mobilize the votes to pass something? That I
can’t predict,” he said, according to Notimex.
According to Reuters, Obama said Homeland Security Secretary Janet
Napolitano will meet with lawmakers regularly to work through the more
controversial measures, like legalization for an estimated 11 to 12
million undocumented immigrants and how to prevent illegal immigration
in the future.
“We have convened a meeting of all the relevant stakeholders, and
Secretary Napolitano is working with the group to start creating the
framework for a comprehensive immigration reform,” Obama was quoted by
Reuters.
The wire service reported Obama even joked about the so-called
“birthers,” a fringe group who accuse the president of being unable to
prove he was born in U.S. and who claim his actual birthplace is
Mombasa, Kenya, making him ineligible to be president.
Asked if an immigration bill would have enough votes to pass Congress,
Obama said he did not know. He also noted as a further complication
that next year is an election year.
Obama joked that his opponents had another reason to block his
immigration reform effort: “There are many members of the Republican
Party who think now that I am illegal immigrant,” he said.
After hearing about this latest postponement, those in the pro-
immigration camp –including reform activists, Hispanic advocates and
progressive Democrats in general– are probably not in the mood for
jokes.
“The deadlines for immigration reform seem to get farther and farther
away,” wrote La Opini n reporter Antonieta Cádiz, “especially now,
after (the president) said openly … he expected the bill to be
introduced next year in Congress.”
“First there was talk of getting a draft ready by the summer recess;
then the chairman of the (Senate) Immigration sub-committee, Charles
Schumer, mentioned Labor Day as a deadline to have a proposal ready.
“A few days ago, the lawmaker told La Opinión that by that deadline he
would only have a ‘broad draft, with no legislative language.’ And now
the president stated that in the fall he will see ‘what progress has
been made’ (…)”
Cádiz reported that Obama told the reporters that there are many
issues on his agenda and that health care reform –which will probably
take “a couple of months”– will be his main focus after August, and he
also has to deal with reforming the financial system.
Obama added he can’t get immigration reform passed on his own. “It’s
important that people realize that things don’t happen because the
President snaps his fingers. I can’t do all this by myself,” he said.
He asked that grassroots groups continue to organize and mobilize for
reform and that members of Congress face the political risks involved.
When the La Opinión reporter pressed him about his continuation of
President George W. Bush’s immigration enforcement policies, Obama
said his administration is “less concerned with making criminals out
of people who are simply looking for a job.” He defended the decision
to extend the 287 (g) program which allows immigration enforcement by
local authorities, saying that there is a “new set of priorities and
rules” for it.

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EU descarta por ahora reforma migratoria

Sergio Javier Jiménez y Silvia Otero
El Universal
Guadalajara
Domingo 09 de agosto de 2009

Asegura el embajador de México en Estados Unidos, Arturo Sarukhán, que
en la agenda del Congreso de ese país están primero otros temas, como
la reforma en materia de salud y la seguridad energética

Hasta el momento no hay las condiciones para que en el Congreso
estadounidense se aborde el tema de una reforma migratoria con México,
reconoció el embajador de México en Washington, Arturo Sarukhán.

Al conversar con la prensa sobre la reunión bilateral entre el
presidente Felipe Calderón y su homólogo estadounidense, Barack Obama,
el diplomático dijo que la agenda de los legisladores de Estados
Unidos están primero en otros temas, como la reforma en materia de
salud y los relacionados con la seguridad energética.

Por ello en tercer punto está el tema migratorio.

Sin embargo, con el gobierno canadiense se amarró la ampliación del
programa de trabajo temporal, que se ampliará como en programas piloto
a los campos de la industria de la construcción y del turismo, según
informó Francisco Barrios, embajador mexicano en Canadá.

Incluso, informó que hay disposición de las provincias de Québec,
Ontario y Alberta para que se abran otros programas en industrias como
la lechera y el empleo en ranchos ganaderos de esos lugares.

El embajador Sarukhan informó que la Reforma Migratoria Integral en el
vecino país del norte podría presentarse entre noviembre de 2009 y
marzo del 2010.

Con información de Notimex