President Obama is set to announce the scale of his plans to enact immigration reform through his executive authority today. The televised address will be screened this evening, according to a new video posted on social media site Facebook.
Up to five million undocumented immigrants could be freed from the threat of deportation by the president’s actions. Josh Earnest, the White House spokesman, told reporters yesterday that the president intends to turn undocumented immigrants into people who can fully contribute to American society for the benefit of the entire nation. Administration sources say that some parents of legal permanent residents and those with US citizenship will be among those given a reprieve from deportation.
“So what I’m going to be laying out is the things that I can do with my lawful authority as president to make the system work better even as I continue to work with Congress and encourage them to get a bipartisan, comprehensive bill that can solve the entire problem,” Obama says in the video.
Obama’s plans are also expected to include retaining high-skilled foreign workers and tightening border security; however, a backlash from members of the Republican party seems to be inevitable at this point. Many Republicans in Congress are already pledging to stop Obama, with Congressman Paul Ryan and house speaker John Boehner’s spokesman Michael Steel saying that such actions will destroy the president’s relationship with Congress.