DHS Secretary: 'Deferred Action Is Not a Lawful Status'

[Janelle2002 3,865]

CNSNews.com) - Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, addressing the nation's mayors in Washington on Thursday, said the Obama administration's "deferred action" program for millions of illegal aliens "is not the same as living in the United States legally." But it doesn't matter.

"Deferred action is not a lawful status," Johnson said. "It's not like lawful permanent residence. It is temporary in nature, for a two-year period. And it basically says, for a two-year period, this individual is lawfully present in the United States."

Johnson said he expects a big turnout in May, when the federal government begins accepting applications from the undocumented parents of children who are either U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. It's part of the "Deferred Action for Parenthood Arrivals" (DAPA) program that President Obama announced in November, over the objections of Congress, which is responsible for writing immigration law.

"We will begin accepting applications in about May," Johnson said. "And we're right now in the -- in the phase of implementation. We've gone through various models. We're hiring personnel. We're acquiring real estate, because we do expect a lot of applicants to come forward in May."

Johnson said the DAPA program, like DACA before it, will pay for itself through application fees of $465 per person. And he wants illegal aliens to apply as soon as they can, to cover the costs of implementation:

"In order to pay for the additional resources we're building out now, we are looking for as many applicants to come forward as soon as possible when the gate goes up in May, so that the program will pay for itself. So we are encouraging support from mayors, members of Congress, others in the community who can assist in enrollment; who can answer questions; who can facilitate the process."

Johnson said he's urging his staff to "educate people" as quickly as possible about how to apply for the program.

People who qualify for deferred action also qualify for work authorization: "It's a separate legal authority. It's a separate act. But you qualify for both at the same time. But you can't get one before the other. That's how I anticipate it will work. That's how the DACA program works," Johnson said.

Regardless of whether people apply for DACA and DAPA, the days of detaining people simply for being in the country illegally are over.

Under the administration's new "Priority Enforcement" program -- which replaces the "legally and politically controversial" Secure Communities -- "we will only seek to have transferred to our custody from state and local law enforcement custody those who have been actually convicted of a felony, an aggravated felony," Johnson said. Priority also will be given to terror suspects, people convicted of three or more misdemeanors, or people convicted of a "significant" misdemeanor.

Under Secure Communities, "A lot of the controversy was somebody's picked up for, let's say, a broken headlight, and they are put into our immigration system," Johnson said. But that won't happen any more: "We will no longer accept where we have probable cause to believe the person is undocumented. We will no longer put a detainer on that person, which led to a lot of litigation.

"But we will make a request that you notify us that you have an undocumented who's been convicted of a crime in your jails. And then we will work to seek the transfer of that person within the period of time you are legally authorized to hold that person."

The focus will be on criminals only, which is more than enough to keep ICE agents busy:

"But otherwise, if somebody's picked up for whatever reason for a -- in a traffic stop, and they're not a priority for removal, then I don't want my enforcement personnel investing a lot of resources. And it does require a lot of resources to remove one person. It's a -- it can be a multi-year effort. I don't want them investing resources in that. I'd rather them focus on the convicted armed robbers in your jail system. Or the convicted -- those convicted of domestic violence. Or those convicted of some form of fraud or, you know, armed offense. Not the person who, you know, simply gets pulled over at a traffic stop.

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/susan-jones/dhs-secretary-deferred-action-not-lawful-status

Read the link for more information.

A bunch of crock

Edited January 23, 2015 by Janelle2002

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

"Deferred action is not a lawful status," Johnson said. "It's not like lawful permanent residence. It is temporary in nature, for a two-year period. And it basically says, for a two-year period, this individual is lawfully present in the United States."

Doublespeak. Orwell had it about right.

[Janelle2002 3,865]

Doublespeak. Orwell had it about right.

It's sort of kind of sort of like, not like that but is like that. yeah, what you said.