Gutierrez: Delayed immigration executive action dampens enthusiasm among voters

Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-Ill.) said Wednesday that President Obama’s decision to delay issuing an executive action related to immigration until after the midterm elections makes it harder to gin up Democrats to vote.

“It makes the job harder for me to generate enthusiasm among Americans to vote at all, let alone enthusiasm for voting for Democrats, when there are members of my own party asking the president to hold his pen and his phone in abeyance until after voters vote,” Gutiérrez said on the House floor.

{mosads}He said the president should have issued an executive action as soon as possible instead of waiting until after Nov. 4.

“From a policy standpoint, every week we delay is bad for the country. From a humanitarian perspective, deporting the parents of U.S. citizens is not in our national interest,” he said.

The Illinois Democrat suggested Obama’s executive action might spur Congress to pass an immigration reform bill. He said the result might be the reverse of Republicans’ warnings that they could only consider an immigration overhaul if Obama assured them he wouldn’t act on his own.

“I don’t think the president and the Democrats will fall for that again. I don’t see the president saying he will act if you do not act, as we have been saying for two years,” Gutiérrez said.

“If the Republicans are so inclined, they can take legislative action,” Gutiérrez added. “But it will no longer be accepted as a delaying tactic for action by the executive branch. It will be a response to presidential action.”