President Barack Obama is expected to announce his long-anticipated executive actions on immigration this Friday in Las Vegas, according to a source familiar with the plans.
The plan was first reported Wednesday on Twitter by John Harwood of the New York Times and Laura Meckler of the Wall Street Journal. White House aides didn’t immediately provide any official scheduling updates.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) told Univision this week that Obama’s announcement could come “as soon as this week.”
Obama’s proposals are expected to temporarily shield up to 5 million undocumented immigrants from the threat of deportation, including parents of children who are American citizens or legal residents. The actions would follow in the footsteps of similar executive moves by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush to let certain undocumented immigrants stay in the country and work on provisional legal status.
The president initially announced in July he’ll take action on his own, saying House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) had told him he’d continue to block reform for the remainder of the year. Under pressure from Senate Democrats not to drop a bombshell before the midterms, he revealed in September he would delay the announcement until after the congressional election.
The delay sparked intense anger from Hispanic and immigrant-rights advocates, who are pushing Obama to take a big and bold action. Congressional Republicans, on the other hand, are telegraphing a major backlash that could include a government shutdown standoff or a lawsuit.
