The immigration policy debate in this country is taking place in two distinct universes: A bizarro world where Obama is president amnesty, granting citizenship to undocumented immigrants by fiat, and planet Earth, where Obama is deporting more undocumented immigrants than ever and being stingier about deferring deportations than his predecessor.
Rep. Lamar Smith’s HALT Act is a piece of legislation that comes from bizarro world. The basic idea is that it removes the ability of the executive branch to execute discretion in prioritizing deportations. This wouldn’t actually make the administration deport more people, it would just make them less able to say, prioritize undocumented immigrants who are a threat to public safety.
One of the worst parts of the HALT Act basically undoes a key part of the Violence Against Women Act, which allows undocumented spouses and children to apply for visas. Without it, spouses and children subject to domestic violence wouldn’t have much reason to go to the authorities, particularly if the abusive spouse is an actual citizen. Even if they aren’t, the VAWA provision would grant the abused spouse the ability to get a job legally, reducing the economic incentive to remain in an abusive situation. DHS generally grants deferred action to those applicants whose petitions have been approved. No deferred action, no way for these women to stay.
Students eligible for the DREAM Act have been the primary face of the public campaign for more deferred deportations. But the HALT Act would also affect the individuals described above, because the only exception is for ” a humanitarian purpose where the life of the alien is imminently threatened.”
