Plan to release illegal immigrants on path to residency comes amid ICE push to deport criminals

The Obama administration is moving to release thousands of illegal immigrants detained at facilities across the country if the immigrants have a potential path to legal residency.

The move could affect as many as 17,000 immigrants who entered the country illegally or overstayed their visas, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. It comes amid a push by ICE to focus on illegal immigrants who have committed crimes, rather than seek to deport all illegal immigrants. Officials say that the shift is needed to reduce massive clogs in the nation's immigration courts - where detainees wait for months or years before their cases are decided - and to use deportation as a tool for public safety.

"ICE is dedicating unprecedented resources to the removal of criminal aliens," said Richard Rocha, deputy press secretary at the immigration enforcement agency. "The focus now is clearly on criminal aliens. . . . We want to ensure convicted criminal aliens are not only removed from the community, but from the country as well."

Rocha said that the deportation of criminals accounts for about half of all removals, an all-time high. If the immigrants released under the new policy have their applications for legalization turned down, ICE will resume removal proceedings.

Full story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/27/AR2010082704427.html

Hmm, I smell a bit of immigration reform. I agree with the ICE that non-citizens convicted of crimes shouldn't be allowed to stay in the US. Those with clean records should pay a fine and back taxes, learn English if needed, and get legal residency/green cards before full citizenship.

just enforce the fucking law that is based upon our US Constitution and an elected Congress.

If you (govt) can't enforce the law then what is the purpose of our government? I don't see where illegal immigration or immigration is that complicated unless a wink and a nod to benefit the rich and the US Chamber of Commerce should take precedence.

Elected officials should state their position and they should be elected (or defeated) based upon what the populace thinks.

I do not agree with a government that is run for the rich or politician. It needs run for us.