Obama’s Executive Amnesty: What You Can Do
• Understand there are limitations until the next president is elected.
This is just the sad truth and it can’t be glossed over. While our Constitution is clear about the limitations of the president’s power, it does not spell out what remedies can be taken against a chief executive who violates his oath of office. That said…
• Pay attention and get involved.
Gallup polling recently revealed that immigration now ranks as the top concern for Americans, so rest assured that you’re not alone. However, it remains to be seen just how many folks will actually act on their concern. Write letters to the editor and op-eds for your local newspapers detailing how the president’s actions are undermining not only the integrity of our immigration policies, but our constitutional form of government. Contact FAIR’s National Field team for help forming a citizens’ group in your area. By the way, the business lobby and the illegal alien advocacy groups are hard at work pressuring the president to “go big” on immigration, while cowing members of Congress into acquiescing to a broad (and unconstitutional) executive amnesty. Sit on the sidelines at your own peril.
• Hold your candidate’s feet to the fire.
2014 is an important mid-term election year so there are town hall meetings taking place and ample opportunities to express opinions and ask questions of public officials and candidates such as, “how will you respond if the president abuses executive power by ordering a massive amnesty for millions of illegal aliens?” “What is the true purpose of immigration and what will you do to achieve it?” Demand clear, specific answers because waffling on the immigration issue is no longer acceptable.
• Take preventive steps at the state level.
If by imperial edict, Obama were to announce large scale amnesty, it would fuel even more flows of illegal immigration, just like it did in the aftermath of the 1986 amnesty. That’s why it’s vitally important to continue to fight against local policies that shield and reward immigration lawbreakers. These include sanctuary policies, the issuance of driver’s licenses, in-state tuition and other benefits to illegal aliens. Activists must fight against anti-detainer bills that shield illegal aliens from federal officials and push hard for mandatory E-Verify state-by-state and nationwide.
Finally, if it’s any reassurance, Americans have learned some valuable lessons in the past few years which they are unlikely to forget:
- Immigration matters. It affects literally every aspect of life and too much of it is expensive and detrimental to our jobs, education, health care, budgets, safety, the environment and our overall quality of life.
- Actions have consequences. Unsecured borders, lax interior enforcement and the availability of benefits such as jobs, free education, health care, social services and instant citizenship for children born on U.S. soil are powerful magnets that attract tens of millions of illegal aliens.
- Special interests corrupt the system. Americans who want a fair and sensible immigration system that serves their interests must be the architects of our policies, not business and political lobbies who abuse immigration policy for their own financial and electoral greed.
Click here to download a printable version of this activist brief.