Pelosi writes: "That didn't take long. No sooner had President Barack Obama announced his decision to suspend deportations of peaceful DREAMers than Republicans responded with calls for his impeachment."
An immigration protester carries a child on his shoulders during May Day demonstrations in Los Angeles, California in this file photo taken May 1, 2012. (photo: Jason Redmond/Reuters)
A Time to Choose: DREAM or Impeach?
16 June 12
hat didn't take long. No sooner had President Barack Obama announced his decision to suspend deportations of peaceful DREAMers than Republicans responded with calls for his impeachment. The president acted within his executive and prosecutorial discretion and the Republicans know it. But they have to admit that to their fervent followers. Will they choose to DREAM or impeach?
The Obama administration announcement itself is a courageous and common sense move toward immigration reform. For years there has been bipartisan consensus that children of illegal immigrants who have come here through no fault of their own, worked hard and played by the rules deserve a fair shot at education or military service. Today the president acted as chief executive law enforcement officer to prioritize deportations by putting violent criminals first and otherwise law-abiding children last -- a decision well within Barack Obama's executive and prosecutorial discretion. As a former sex assault and child abuse prosecutor, I want the violent criminals especially those who kill, rape or assault children deported first, and believe most Americans would agree with that law enforcement priority. Deciding to allow temporary status for immigrants is also within the president's discretion and happens on a case-by-case basis in every jurisdiction. What changed today was the sweeping scope of those decisions.
Of course there can be disagreement on the policy -- but that doesn't make the policy illegal. However, well before the president spoke in the Rose Garden, the backlash began. I was on radio with Geraldo Rivera defending President Obama to a caller wanting to impeach him for helping DREAMAct kids. OK, I thought, maybe this is a one-off. But I took to Twitter and a simple search revealed that a vast number of self-identified Republicans, Tea Party activists, and/or Romney supporters were calling for impeachment. Not Congressional action to undo the decision or to pass their own version of immigration reform -- but Congressional action to impeach the President of the United States for refusing to deport the noncitizen children of illegal immigrants.
The blogoshpere was replete with calls for impeachment over President Obama's "illegal" action. Then one by one GOP lawmakers and Romney supporters came out with statements calling the president's decision "illegal" -- a dogwhistle to the impeachment crowd. Whether this immigration reaction was as coordinated as the Republicans' "defeat all things Obama" inauguration night dinner plot or merely coincidence we don't yet know, but what we do know is that this fight comes down to what makes a person an American.
One self-described "conservative tea party anti-establishment gun nut" tweeted me this: "If you're here illegally, you aren't an American, got that?" Actually, I don't get that. I agree with President Obama who said "these are young people who study in our schools, they play in our neighborhoods, they're friends with our kids, they pledge allegiance to our flag. They are Americans in their heart, in their minds, in every single way but one: on paper. They were brought to this country by their parents, sometimes even as infants and often have no idea that they're undocumented until they apply for a job or a driver's license or a college scholarship."
The president provided a clear choice -- he is with the DREAmers. I'm not sure where Mitt Romney stands or how many positions he will take on. In this campaign he supported "self-deportation" during the debates and had two positions today -- his advisors saying the president's move was "illegal" (that dog whistle word again) and then the governor's own written Marco Rubio-esque statement acknowledgement that something must be done but this prevents Congress from passing a law to do it. (Actually, it doesn't, because Congress could bring up the DREAM Act on Monday). Letting DREAMers stay -- under Rubio's plan or Obama's is the opposite of self-deportation, so it will be interesting to see whether the conservative media that heckled the president for keeping his word will do to Romney for breaking his word.
The same Romney supporters who oppose the DREAMers, who want to amend the 14th amendment to take out "so-called "anchor babies" are now urging impeachment -- not mere electoral defeat -- of the president. This is another step down the road of illegitimacy from the birthers who claimed he should not be elected, to the heckler who thought he shouldn't be able to speak in his own White House, to the impeachers who don't want to wait for an election to resolve their differences with President Obama. This devolution is a danger to immigrants who should not be scapegoated for American's economic challenges. We need to be creating jobs and ladders of opportunity for all Americans, not dividing by race or national origin. We need to connect with millions of Americans who support helping kids who are here illegally through no fault of their own get a chance to work hard play by the rules and get a fair shot. We must stand up for the president against the calls for his impeachment and urge the press to ask Romney whether he agrees with his supporters that the president committed an impeachable offense or whether he disagrees.
What do you believe? Whose side are you on? It is time to take a stand, as the president did today, about who is an American. It is time to choose: DREAM or impeach?
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What lawless act are you referring to? Dictator in the 20th century is quite different than dictator in Greek times.
Choas will come when the 99% really get tired of being enslaved.
But the whole point is that the President's action, no matter how unpopular with right-wingers who think dark-skinned illegals (AND this president) should be burned at the stake, was not illegal.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kohlberg%27s_stages_of_moral_development
You had better read it.
In short, what is right and what is legal are often very different things. What the Nazis did was all legal by the laws they passed. What the Israelis do to Palestinians is mostly legal by their laws. Every dictatorship passes laws to legalize what the dictators do.
The whole point of civil disobedience is to oppose laws which are wrong. Just following laws does not necessarily lead to either chaos or dictatorship, but may, in fact be just the opposite: following bad laws can lead to those things.
Better get Joe Biden to beef up security; the right wing is going to try to take Obama out; I can see the writing on the Wall as the rhetoric and "hate Obama" clamor grows more and more shrill, and gets crazier by the hour, as the Right Wing see they can't beat him by means fair or foul: The Secret Service better double their security on the President: round the clock...I know whereof I speak: and so does Joe Biden...
Mr. President, please use your office and all the powers associated with it to do the things we need done in America...run on positive actions and drop the negative attacks...
Show the country that you are a progressive leader working for the common people.
Keep it simple.
I agree his policies have not been progressive.
Over 40% of our young adults can't afford to attend college,can't afford to pay back their loans and can't find a job because of NAFTA an outsourcing wet dream for corporations using slave labor.
This is a new record for lack of opportunities for our future citizens. The nation is now facing over a trillion dollars in student loan debt. .Obama just changed student payback to be 10% of their income.
The Dream Act is an investment in our future. It is also humane.
Every other developed nation realizes the importance of a well educated population.
There are tens of billions monthly for a vast number of corporations and our over bloated spy matrix that Richard Clark just pointed out. BUT not enough to invest in the future of our nation.
Ask yourself why corporations are so interested in beating Obama.
Because Obama is the better person to continue. It is naive to think that a first term president can change the game from top to bottom when so much damage has been done. in only 4 yrs!!!! The dream act can only help more people be successful.
Romney is the loser from MA. He is Rove's puppet and beholden to the Tea Party and Boehner the guy who said "NO JOBS SO BE IT."
That said, there is a real divide across the border states between Mexican US citizens and Mexican Nationals. Mostly is is about ill treatment from the rich free trade zoners who come across the border to buy hard goods and take it back to Mexico most of the time not paying any duty on the goods. Not as cut and dried as the GOP/TP would have you believe.
Then there is the moment when even the GOP/TP may rock back on their heals when lettuce is $15 a head! Guess they'll blame that on labor too.
Yeah, so do I.
Funny that it doesn't seem to be as much of a problem when the "American" they hire to do their yard work shows up supervising a whole crew of Mexicans.
There's a lot of hypocrisy.
Ya think? In reading what the president said on this decision, he mentioned among the illegal immigrants who came here as children, those who had ALREADY served in the military!
This is the point that everyone is ignoring. These illegals were allowed to join the military and risk their lives, swearing to defend the U.S. Constitution.
In being allowed to do that, and in doing so, they are Americans, paper or no paper that says they are. The military said they are just by letting them serve, dare I say "recruiting them" to serve.
Impeach Obama over this? Don't make me laugh. He did nothing illegal or impeachable, as Christine aptly pointed out.
Can some of these Republiscum, so-called lawmakers say the same? Time to take a closer look at their actions and turn off the sound when they speak.
You know, where were these congressional sickos when Obama tried to present a Jobs Act? Busy blocking it. Where is their immigration bill? Too busy going after "all things Obama." WTF?
Impeach them!! Recall the whole lot of the incendiary bastardos!
OUST THE RepubliBUMS!
N.
The folks that would never impeach a President for an illegal war want to impeach one for compassion in enforcing our laws. Shame on them. our laws. Legal also evolves. I assume that the NYC Councel President routinely breaks the laws that used to govern gay sex along with her wife. My son is married to a brown skinned woman which was once a crime. My wife votes which violates the original intent of our founding fathers. Let's enshrine a principle of justice and compassion for all.
On my mother's side, my family has been here since the 1600s, but I'm still a descendant of immigrants.
Some repuglicans cannot read and, this cycle's campaigning seems rather desperate - does it not?
Would not a far better question be: Can they impeach an impostor?
Though denial is not a river in Egypt, it may as well be.
WHAT???
ALL EYES ON FLORIDA THIS COMING MONDAY. http://www.wnd.com/2012/06/watch-florida-eligibility-hearing-live/
AND
http://www.wnd.com/2012/06/sheriff-joe-challenges-eligibility-in-florida/
Apparently it ain't over until the warbling of the proverbial 'fat lady' songstress?
Even the "Native Americans" are descendants of immigrants.
Some of my ancestors came over on the boat. Others walked the long way around across the Bering land bridge.
Interesting concluding statement considering the fact that Obama is not and never will be a real American himself! Everything he does is supportive of big money and the international banksters. Creating a new block of voters appears to be the reason behind this fraud against the American people.
Is Christine Pelosi by chance related to Nancy Pelosi, the woman who promised not to impeach Bush if she became speaker of the house?? Hmmmmmm! I think she is!
There are horrible usurpations afoot...the criminals have been planning and working this at least since the late forties. Ask yourself sometime..."Why did a man who worked directly for Joseph Stalin in the thirties, and his sons ever since, put so much money into think tanks and promote subversive organizations to denigrate the Constitution and push Americans back to feudalism?" and then look up the biography of Koch, the father of the fathead sons who built the right-wing conspiracy...
Yes - Obama has shown himself to be a fairly weak leader, he has not been the inspirational president his speeches "promised". He has let the bully pulpit battery run down from lack of use.
Certainly the Repub. thugs threw up roadblocks every millimeter of the way - no question.
So who should be thrown in jail? Hmmm - let's see. How about a few RINOS, a few banksters, and others in power who swore their allegiance to the American people with their fingers crossed behind their back. These are criminals.
Mr. President - I hope you locate your spine and speak the truth for a change. Or are you simply going to let Romney and his masters take over the country and screw us all? Do you hear your inner leader calling? ElliotH
If we get in an argument with right-wings and ignoramuses that is the question to ask them.
Let’s not get into the discussion about the so-called illegality of some immigrants.
Let them explain what’s illegal about the President’s action.
Maybe it will help them to see that they actually know nothing and are just repeating what big brainwasher Fox and consorts blast in their ears.
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