More voters than ever think the United States should be more stringent about deporting illegal immigrants, according to a Rasmussen poll released Monday, in contrast to several liberal mayors who are calling on a federal court to allow President Obama’s executive amnesty to take effect.
The poll suggests an ongoing disconnect between voters’ preferences on immigration policy and some politicians’ efforts. The growing dissatisfaction with policies comes in spite of President Obama’s effort to halt deportations for five million through an executive action. The amnesty program was halted earlier this year by a federal court in Texas, which ruled Obama’s actions violated the Administrative Procedure Act. (RELATED: Federal Judge Blocks Obama’s Amnesty)
Rasmussen found that 62 percent of likely voters said the government isn’t aggressive enough in deporting illegal immigrants, up from 56 percent last November when President Obama announced his amnesty plan. Just 16 percent think the government is overly aggressive in deporting those here illegally.
Notably, 51 percent now think that illegal immigrants with American-born children should not be exempt from deportation — a key part of Obama’s executive orders — up from 42 percent in November. Thirty-two percent support the exemption.
Just over half of voters said they worry that attempts to identify and deport illegal immigrants could end up violating the rights of U.S. citizens. Most overwhelmingly, however, Rasmussen found that voters support restricting welfare to legal immigrants only. Eighty-three percent said they support requiring people to prove they are legally present before they can access local, state or federal government services.
While voters may be increasingly negative about Obama’s proposed immigration reform, a group of mayors led by progressive stalwarts New York mayor Bill de Blasio and Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti announced Monday that it will ask the federal court to end its delay of Obama’s executive action.
The group, Cities United for Immigration Action, says it has the support of 70 mayors of cities across the country and will file an amicus brief with the Texas court arguing that “the national public interest is served clearly and overwhelmingly by implementing immigration relief by executive action without delay.”
The group touts that its participating mayors serve jurisdictions that encompass 43 million Americans.
The lawsuit in question was filed by 26 states, led by Texas, against President Obama’s unilateral actions. (RELATED: Poll: 1-in-5 Americans Strongly Back Obama’s Amnesty)