America Can’t Wait for this Congress to Act

Barack Obama performed a well-choreographed bit of political theater yesterday. Days before he and rival Mitt Romney are scheduled to appear before Hispanic officials in Florida, President Obama took executive action removing the fear of deportation for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.

The policy makes sense – many of the immigrants impacted by the action are hard-working people who are contributing and will continue to contribute to the strength of our country.

Politically, the Obama move was brilliant.

Mitt Romney whose stance on immigration has been evolving since January when he said immigrants should “return home, apply and get in line with everyone else,” now finds it difficult in the general election to oppose the merits of a plan such as the one Obama initiated. Romney and friends know winning support from Hispanic voters will dim significantly if Republicans are seen as advocates for the forcible removal of children, college students and young adults who are law-abiding members of the American community.

But, of course, the often-silly game of modern American politics makes it impossible for opponents to applaud the other, even if they agree.

Fear not, team Romney found something to indignantly huff about. They say the President’s action, which is not an executive order but a memo from the Department of Homeland Security to its agencies, is an overreach of executive authority – actions like these should be left to Congress.

Yes, they are suggesting we wait for Congress to act – a Congress so overwhelmingly dominated by out-of-touch partisans from both parties, little of what happens in the marble edifice on the hill these days rises above puerile political sniping.

When asked in 2010 to define the Republicans’ main job in Congress, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said, “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”

Outrageous and destructive statements are made by Democrats, too. A disquieting chorus of “to Hell with making America better or doing something productive – we only care about winning elections” echoes through the Capitol these days.

Sorry, Mr. Romney, we can’t wait for Congress to lead. This group of self-interested political hacks is inept and disinterested in working for our country.

Today’s political campaign trail is chock full of candidates vying to score political points with tough sounding sound bites and jabs meant to weaken the opposition. Americans long for candidates who stand for something greater than election. We want leaders committed to building a better America. Sometimes, this will mean agreeing with the guy from the other party. If Congress needs to act, pressure them to do so. If the President’s actions are correct, praise him and explain how you intend to build upon his progress should you come to office. “Yeah, but…” needs to become, “Yes, I agree and I promise to do even better.”

We Americans need to think long and hard about whom we elect to Congress. The current Congress is a failure. Their inability to address the immigration issue is just the tip of the iceberg. There was a positive step taken on immigration yesterday. Let’s work together to take a few more.

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Graham Gillette can be reached at grahamgillette@gmail.com 
This entry was first published as a Des Moines Register online essay.