One of the highly criticized points of the two-term administration of President Barack Obama has been the high number of immigrants who have been deported and removed from the United States. In 2013, for example, the Pew Research Center indicated that more than two million deportations had taken place since President Obama took office for his first term in 2009. Thankfully, this is a trend that has been slowing down over the last two years.
According to a recent report from the Associated Press (AP), deportations have been gradually decreasing since 2012. This deceleration coincides with bipartisan efforts to introduce comprehensive immigration reform, a political feat that not even President Obama and his closest allies have been able to get past Republicans in Congress. Nonetheless, those efforts have clearly managed to reduce the pace of deportations.
The AP report indicates that 127,000 deportation and removal proceedings have taken place from October 2014 to March 2015, which is the lowest number seen since 2006. It is important to remember that the high number of deportations corresponds with legislation and rulemaking passed during the administration of former President George W. Bush, and many of the measures associated with record numbers of deportations are related to the Patriot Act.
For more than 10 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., the possibility of being deported has decreased thanks to White House initiatives such as the proposed DREAM Act and the Executive Actions on Immigration. Although these initiatives are virtually frozen due to political wrangling, they have helped to reduce the number of deportations.
At this time, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is changing its enforcement focus; instead of indiscriminately processing all undocumented immigrants, officials are now paying attention to known criminals charged with serious offenses and those who have recently entered the country illegally.
The White House initiative to improve the conditions of immigrant families are giving hope to undocumented foreigners who have lived in the U.S for a few years. The same goes for immigrants whose relatives live in this country. These initiatives make it easier for San Diego immigration law firms to help their clients avoid deportation and removal; to this effect, undocumented immigrants should consider retaining a professional San Diego immigration attorney now instead of waiting for the dreaded deportation letter or detention.
If you have other questions about immigration reform, filing appropriate paperwork, or need assistance with a specific case, check out these helpful immigration links or call (858) 874-0711 and schedule a free immigration consultation with the professional lawyers at KS Visa Law. We specialize in immigration law and are more than happy to answer questions about your specific case. We look forward to hearing from you.
