Wednesday morning amnesty for illegal aliens?

Atty. Emmanuel Samonte Tipon 

President Obama announced on Saturday that he plans to put off executive action on immigration until after the midterm elections on Tuesday, November 4. “Executive action” means the President will enact immigration rules and regulations by himself without congressional action.

So on Wednesday morning, November 5, expect the President to unveil (unleash?) his “executive action”. Many believe that he will grant amnesty to the estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the United States. Of course he will not call it “amnesty”. That word generates strong negative reaction from law abiding citizens. He will probably call it “path to citizenship,” or “deferred action for humanitarian reasons” or something palatable.

Why will the President do that? Politics. Imagine 12 million new Democratic voters. The Democrats will control the country.

Why is the President postponing his “executive action”? Politics. If he does it before the November midterm elections, the majority of the American people who are against amnesty will be so angry that they will go to the polls to vote against the Democratic senatorial candidates. Republicans will thus win at least 6 senatorial seats thereby enabling them to control the Senate.

Can the president grant amnesty to illegal aliens? This President can do anything he wants. Who can challenge him? He has already demonstrated the power of “executive action” in the field of immigration when, after Congress refused to grant amnesty to children brought here illegally by their parents, he told his underlings to create a program called “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” (DACA), thereby defying congressional will. Under DACA such children can remain in the United States, get work permits, study, get driver’s licenses, Obamacare and welfare benefits, and do everything that a lawful permanent resident can do. The President’s backers call it “prosecutorial discretion”. Under this theory, the prosecutor, in this case the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), can exercise its discretion whether or not to prosecute or deport such illegal aliens. But prosecutorial discretion is to be exercised on a case by case basis based on national interest and on the equities presented by the alien, not on a wholesale basis. In DACA, prosecutorial discretion was exercised on a wholesale basis. That is abuse of discretion.

If the president uses the DACA model to give “amnesty” to the 12 million illegal aliens, they will not be deported but will also be given work permits, Obamacare benefits, welfare benefits, driver’s licenses, and enjoy other benefits that lawful permanent residents have. If you have all those things, who cares about status, who cares about citizenship?

If that happens, woe unto the Filipinos, especially in Hawaii who are working in such jobs as hotel housekeepers, landscapers, and in similar jobs. The amnestied aliens will swarm Hawaii with its good weather and beautiful scenery and compete with them. Employers are likely to hire these amnestied aliens because they will accept lower pay.

If I were president (I am not going to say “If I were Obama” because I do not want to be like Obama), and I really cared about immigrants, especially those who abide by the law, like most Filipinos, I would –

• allow the over-aged children of lawful immigrants to enjoy the same priority date as their parents and immigrate with them to the United States.

• allow beneficiaries of approved immigrant visa petitions who are waiting for the availability of their visa numbers (many for over 20 years) to come to the United States as non- immigrants and wait for their immigrant visas to become available.

• include the Philippines in the visa waiver program so that Filipinos can come to the United States without a visa for six months, visit relatives and friends, see the United States, spend money and improve the economy.

But as pointed out by a Filipino habitue at the daily “kapihan” at Jack in the Box in Honolulu, the Obama administration seems to care more about illegal aliens than legal immigrants.


(Atty. Tipon has a Master of Laws degree from Yale Law School and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines. He specializes in immigration law and criminal defense. Office: 800 Bethel St., Suite 402, Honolulu, HI 96813. Tel. (808) 225-2645. E-Mail: filamlaw@yahoo.com. Websites:  www.MilitaryandCriminalLaw.com. He is from Laoag City and Magsingal, Ilocos Sur. He served as an Immigration Officer. He is co-author of “Immigration Law Service, 1st ed.,” an 8-volume practice guide for immigration officers and lawyers. Listen to the most funny, interesting, and useful radio program in Hawaii on KNDI at 1270 AM dial every Thursday at 7:30 a.m. This article is a general overview of the subject matter discussed and is not intended as legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is established between the writer and readers relying upon and/or acting pursuant to the contents of this article.)