The DACA executive order has given priority to illegal immigrants over regular citizens and military personnel.
On June 15, 2012, President Obama signed a memo calling for deferred action for certain undocumented young people who came to the U.S. as children and have pursued education or military service here. Applications under the program which is called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA") begin on August 15, 2012. Individuals who arrived in the US illegally under the age of 16 and who were under the age of 31 on June 15, 2012 are eligible to remain in the U.S. for 2 years effectively granting them a 2-year amnesty. These illegal individuals who apply are processed through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. This USCIS office also processes fiancé(e) and marriage visas for fiancé(e)s and spouses of US citizens. This process has been severely hindered by the DACA.
On August 6th 2012, the USCIS received an I129F PETITION FOR FIANCE(E) from myself. I am a natural born U.S. citizen. The process for my fiancee to receive her K1 visa is supposed to take 6 to 8 months. After more than 8 months and the application had not yet moved from the California Service Center to the National Visa Center. Prior to the DACA, the process in California took only 5 months. According to the USCIS web site, no processing for K1 Visas has occurred for the entire year. The last petitions processed according to the site were received on July 18th. This date has not changed since December of last year though the site was last updated in April this year. Jorge Lowree, a staff member for immigration issues, in the office of Jared Polis confirmed this. He said, “I have discussed your case with the California Service Center. The Liaison in their office has indicated that while your case is outside of their typical processing time, they are currently dealing with a tremendous backlog of fiancé visa petitions. Therefore ... they are currently processing cases received on or before July 18, 2012.” This tremendous backlog has occurred because of the DACA.
When called my representative, Jared Polis and spoke to Jorge Loweree in charge of immigration issues, I received no help to push my petition forward. I should have not expected help from the staff of someone has signed a letter asking President Obama to give healthcare to the same individuals covered by the DACA.
Among those of us who seek a K1 visa for fiancé(e), are military and former military personnel who met their significant other abroad. It would seem that President Obama did not consider the welfare of ordinary U.S. citizens and brave military personnel in approving the DACA. Such a memo signed by President Obama gives priority to illegal immigrants over U.S. citizens and military personnel.
My fiancee has already shed many tears because of the delays. The DACA has personally hurt us and we are very upset.
This was not a law passed by Congress. The "Dream Act" failed to pass. The president issued this executive order bypassing congress. The constitution which the president has sworn to defend clearly states that congress creates laws not the president.
In overstepping his bounds as president, he has clearly hurt many citizens and military personnel who are anxiously waiting to be united with their loved ones. I have now been waiting more than 10 months when it should have taken at the most 8 months. Thank you Mr. President.
This weekend is my parent's 50th wedding anniversary. My fiancee and I had plans to be there to celebrate together and have a wedding ceremony. Thanks to the DACA, she is missing this important event. Thank you, Mr. President.
ReplyDeleteI am going through the same situation. I married my husband in Ghana in June of this year. We are expecting our baby in Feb 2014. I am so outraged by the delays. I actually wrote to Senator Grassley and I would advise you to do the same. He has been working on this issue.
ReplyDeleteObama's executive orders granting undeserved and unearned privileges of legal residency to millions of illegal alien youth and adults to age 30 is a slap in the face to all the millions of immigrants and foreign nationals who have gone through the process legally, my folks included. DACA allows those illegal aliens to go to the front of the line and bypass legitimate applications and provides DACA applicants with immediate legal residency, work permits, social security numbers and even in-state tuition college discounts. it is absurd, immoral and unconstitutional. Elections DO MATTER. go to NumbersUSa and check out your legislators record on immigation. The bottom line,...,immigration policy should do no harm to U.S. citizens and to those LEGAL immigrants who honored the process. DACA is the antithesis to that.
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