Is immigration hot news for Obama?
As we welcome President Barack Obama to the White House there is intense speculation that we could see substantial changes in the immigration laws in the US. However, interestingly many people are not sure exactly which way the changes may go because of the possibility of losing votes if the new government was to make a wrong move. So will we really see immigration changes under Obama or does he have more than enough to be going on with?
While the speculation regarding potential changes to immigration laws in America appears to centre around green cards and general immigration regulations, there would appear to be many more areas of government policy that are higher up the agenda of the new president. Of the many issues facing the new president it is highly likely that the following will be more prominent in the short term:-
The economy
Barack Obama has definitely hit the ground running with the introduction of a multibillion-dollar stimulus package and the extension of an already sizeable rescue package for the US banking system. He has played his cards very well and used his growing popularity across the country to push through his reforms with opponents conscious that they will be cast in a bad light if they hold up “the new saviour”.
However, those who underestimate the size of the new president’s task to refloat the US economy do so at their own risk. Even before he was welcomed into the White House, Obama was already being mentioned as one of the worst presidents in US history purely because he has inherited such a traumatic and potentially explosive situation in so many different areas. The economy is the one area in which he can make significant ground in the popularity stakes, if he is able to manufacture a change in direction and save the US economy.
Foreign policy
Iraq and Afghanistan were very prominent during the presidential elections in the US and many people are adamant that serious changes need to be made with regards to government policy. While he has promised to take a sensible approach, it would appear that the new president has an underlying wish to return as many troops to the US as possible in a shorter space of time without endangering the lives of those left behind or US allies.
We may see significant movement in Afghanistan before we see any significant change in Iraq, purely because Iraq would appear to be the more difficult situation and potentially explosive environment. Many of the insurgents in Iraq are trying to take advantage of a perceived change in US policy and while Barack Obama is looking to bring troops home it looks as though he will be sensible about it.
It is also interesting to see that the US government does not appear to be as close to former allies under the new regime. Whether this is a short-term situation which reflects the difficulties within the US, and a wish to sort out “their own house” before looking elsewhere, very much remains to be seen.
Worldwide trade
Those who follow the US economy and the various rescue packages which are being instigated within the financial sector and the property sector will be well aware of a new clause which has been added to these rescue packages which effectively forces everyone company in US to “buy from within the US”. This direct form of protectionism may not have received significant publicity in the worldwide press but it could turn out to be the new president’s most controversial and perhaps most popular, within the US, policy change to date.
The move has however put the country at odds with former close partners such as the UK with Gordon Brown in particular fairly critical of the move to protectionism. Historically, and the 1930 depression highlights this situation, protectionism in any one major country around the world tends to spread like wildfire and severely reduce worldwide trade. The fact that the US authorities have already taken such steps would appear to leave countries such as the UK and other governments around the world with little alternative but to look inwards and protect their own markets.
Unemployment
Interestingly there has not been a significant backlash against the significant number of “illegal immigrants” which have been based in the US for many years. While countries such as the UK are in many cases seeing a swing towards the “right wing” with many demanding “British jobs for British workers” – a phrase which was made popular by Gordon Brown. However, the US appears to be a totally different situation to the UK, where strong immigrant communities have grown over the years and represents a significant weight in the political scene.
Taxes
Taxes are also very high on the agenda of President Barack Obama although in many ways his hands are tied because he will have to increase taxes as and when the US economy starts to recover. This is another issue which could potentially put him at loggerheads with voters and could cut short his time in office and, like some have already suggested, make him potentially “the worst US President of recent times”. The budget deficit in the US has reached sky-high levels and it could literally take decades to get the US house back in order.
Conclusion
While this thread covers the potential for change in the immigration laws and regulations, this would appear to be a fairly complicated situation in the US unlike many other countries around the world. As we have pointed out above, there are more demanding issues on the table at the moment and while we may see some movement in the area of immigration there is no doubt that the economy, employment, taxes and even foreign policy appear higher up on the president’s current agenda.
Like so many presidents before him, Barack Obama has promised many changes and to give him credit he has already hit the ground running and managed to push through some significant rescue packages and stimulus programs for the US economy. Whether he can continue to ride his wave of popularity remains to be seen because he has possibly inherited the worst scenario of any US president in living history. He appears up for the challenge but immigration is unlikely to feature very high on his immediate agenda.
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I said way back he would do all he has done and I was 100% on my youtube and dailymotion predictions in this respect. !
PRES. BARACK OBAMA IS THE MAN. HE WILL UPLIFT THE US ECONOMIC SITUATION AND BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER AROUND THE GLOBE.HE IS SMART AND INTELLIGENT AND THE WORLD RESPECTS HIM AND ADMIRES HIS AUDACITY OF HOPE NOT ONLY TO HIMSELF BUT TO THE ENTIRE WORLD.I WONDER IF HE HAS MADE HISTORY OR HE IS HISTORY IN THE MAKING.WHATEVER IT IS, IT IS ELECTRIFYING.THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WILL TRY TO BLOCK HIS EFFORTS TO RESTORE AMERICA ECONOMICALLY AND RESPECT AROUND THE WORLD BUT I THINK THEY WILL FAIL.THEY [ REPUBLICANTS ]ARE LIKE FOXES THAT LIKE TO CHILL NEXT TO A CHICKEN HOUSE AND SAY THAT THEY ARE GUADING THE CHICKEN.WHEN SOMEBODY INTELLIGENT SAYS THAT THEY [REPUBLICANT FOXES ]NEED TO BE REMOVED FROM THE CHICKEN HOUSE ,THEY GIVE YOU THAT DIRTY LOOK!!!!!!!
Obama’s preformance in the three months since taking office is fantastic. He has had no help from the obstructionist Republicans. He has a well organized group of right wing AM radio shock jocks who want to see this president fail. If his policies fail so does the nation. These guys try to rewrite history and spin everything that happens on the political scene to their advantage daily to the sheep that follow their shallow presentations. These guys are not aware of the changes taking place in the population of America as was illustrated in the last election. The swing voters(Reagan Democrats)aren’t buying this christian right idea of mixing church and state. The Black’s, Latino’s and youth are no longer buying de-regulation, occupation(nation building), tax cuts for the wealthest and letting corporate America rape and pillage the middle class. We can only hope for the good of the nation the Republicans go the way of the Whigs. If they follow the Limbaugh and Hannity line and purge the party of the moderates and Rhino’s their defeat will be greater than Goldwater in 1964. May they wander in the political wilderness for another 40yrs.