President Obama is angry. Following a year of trying to convince Congress to pass an immigration reform law, President Obama vented his fury today in a scorching White House speech, saying it's time for him to act alone on the issue.
"The failure of House Republicans to pass a darn bill is bad for our security, it's bad for our economy and it's bad for our future," he said. "If Congress won't do their job, at least we can do ours."
Obama explained that he would begin with refocusing immigration enforcement on the Mexican border following an avalanche of children illegally crossing the Mexican border from Central America.
"I take executive action [order] only when we have a serious problem, a serious issue, and Congress chooses to do nothing," Obama said. "And in this situation, the failure of House Republicans to pass a darn bill is bad for our security, it's bad for our economy and it's bad for our future."
The president's declaration comes two years after he circumvented Congress to modify administration policy for young people who have lived in the U.S. since before the age of 16, among other requirements.
The president's 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals executive order directed immigration officials to desist deportation of young people who had lived in the U.S. continuously since 2007 and had no criminal record.
Republicans claim is was Obama’s unilateral action in creating DACA that has led to the present humanitarian crisis on America's Mexican border. Unaccompanied minors have been slipping through our border ever since DACA went into effect.