Fil-Am journalist: No concrete action from Obama on immigration issue

United States President Barack Obama may have tackled the issue of immigration in his State of the Union Address (SOTU) but he has not taken any concrete action on the matter, undocumented Filipino journalist Jose Antonio Vargas said on Wednesday (United Kingdom time). In a commentary published by British news outfit The Guardian about the SOTU, Vargas was part of a panel that weighed in on Obama’s SOTU. Vargas, a Pulitzer Prize winner, said Obama and the US Congress have turned immigration into “yet again… another campaign issue.”   Vargas said immigration—a staple in Obama’s addresses—“got its customary section in last night’s address,” hitting “all the predictable notes” then linking it to the economy before promising to “sign right away” a law that gives undocumented students and young professionals “a chance to earn their citizenship.”   Obama addressed “all the various groups that needed reassuring in this election year,” he added.   “We’ve heard this before. Overhauling immigration was one of Obama’s top priorities upon arriving in the White House. He has not delivered. Nor has Congress. Immigration, yet again, becomes another campaign issue,” he said in the commentary.   He acknowledged, however, that Obama knew “the fact that, as president, he can only do so much.”   On Twitter, Vargas (@joseiswriting) tagged the official accounts of Obama (@BarackObama) and the White House (@whitehouse), saying: “Innocent young undocumented Americans are still getting deported. Tragic. #immigration #dreamact”    ‘I will sign it right away’   On Tuesday (US time), Obama addressed the US Congress for the 2012 SOTU, where he called on both Republicans and Democrats to agree on a comprehensive immigration reform that will give “hundreds of thousands of talented, hardworking students” a chance to thrive in the US.    “Send me a law that gives them the chance to earn their citizenships. I will sign it right away,” he said, but did not mention the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, the decade-old piece of legislation that can secure citizenship for undocumented students brought to the US as children. Obama said it “doesn’t make sense” to send these students—who he described as “American through and through”—back to their supposed countries of origin when they could help in boosting the US industries.   “Let’s at least agree to stop expelling responsible young people who want to staff our labs, start new businesses, and defend this country,” he said. “You see, an economy built to last is one where we encourage the talents and ingenuity of every person in this country.” - VVP, GMA News