Obama not really helping immigrants

Philip Cohen, Las Vegas

Monday, July 2, 2012 | 2:02 a.m.

During candidate Obama’s campaign in 2008, he said that in his first year in office he would pass comprehensive immigration legislation. After he won the election, that was the last we heard of it. Although he had absolute majorities in both houses, he didn’t once offer immigration legislation.

Last year, there was an effort to pass the Dream Act. The president said he’d sign the bill, but never put any effort into getting it passed. When the bill failed, the president publicly said he had no way to make the legislation happen.

Now, we’re five months away from an election and suddenly, immigration reform is a hot topic. The president knows he needs the Hispanic vote. It seems he only is thinking about this politically, not really from the perspective of the people it will affect.

First, the executive order implementing the Dream Act is good for only two years. A new president could cancel it. Second, someone taking advantage of it has to register. As some people have already pointed out, registering may put family members like parents at risk. And what happens in two years if nothing changes? They will have told immigration officials exactly where to find them.

So this is really a hoax. It’s a purely political stunt that is possibly unconstitutional, and worse, it puts those it’s supposed to help at risk.