Obama was frequently attacked as the “deporter-in-chief” by immigration activists during the 2020 campaign. Biden, of course, was guilty by association. Is the accusation fair?
Not really. The deportations were an attempt to build credibility with the GOP in the legislative process; strict border enforcement was offered in exchange for votes for comprehensive immigration reform. It almost worked; a reasonable bill passed the Senate with the requisite GOP votes. The problem, unfortunately, was timing; the Democrats had lost control of the House in the meantime, and the Hastert Rule was applied by the House GOP leadership to prevent a vote on the Senate bill. Once it became clear that the bill was dead, Obama completely switched gears on enforcement, and the rest is history.
What does this mean for Biden’s chances for a comprehensive bill? More on that issue in my next post.