Paul J. Richards, AFP / Supporters brave the cold outside the White House to celebrate Obama's executive action on immigration.

US President Barack Obama’s sweeping move to shield millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation has drawn enthusiastic praise from Latin American leaders and galvanized Hispanic voters disappointed by years of stalling on the issue.

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Obama's landmark plan, unveiled on Thursday, eases the threat of deportation for some 4.7 million immigrants without legal documents and allows many to work legally.

It also refocuses deportation efforts on criminals rather than undocumented families.

In a passionate address from the White House, Obama told Americans that deporting millions is “not who we are” and cited Scripture, saying, “We shall not oppress a stranger for we know the heart of a stranger we were strangers once, too.”

His far-reaching executive actions followed months of gridlock in Congress, where Republican Representatives have blocked attempts to pass a bipartisan bill on immigration reform.

Predictably, Thursday’s announcement electrified supporters and left furious and fractious Republicans mulling possible retaliatory moves.

“To those members of Congress who question my authority to make our immigration system work better, or question the wisdom of me acting where Congress has failed, I have one answer: Pass a bill,” Obama said.

Defying the wintry chill, supporters gathered in front of the White House waving US flags and carrying signs that read "Gracias, Presidente Obama”.

The next day, as the president defended his controversial move at a rally in Las Vegas, the largely Hispanic-American crowd broke into chants of "Si se puede" -- the Spanish version of the famous 2008 campaign slogan “Yes we can”.

Hispanic advocacy groups have largely welcomed Obama’s move.

The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) described it as "a positive first step in putting our nation on a path that will benefit all Americans".

Youth organization Voto Latino launched a petition on its website urging people to say “¡Muchisimas Gracias!” to the president.

Others stressed the need for a durable legislative solution to the problem, pointing out that Obama’s executive action covered less than half the country’s estimated 11 million undocumented migrants.

Many lamented the fact that the president’s move did not offer a path to citizenship.

'Solidarity with Latin America'

The sweeping reforms drew a similar response across the United State’s southern border.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto praised Obama for his executive orders, which he described as the "most important measures taken in several decades."

Pena Nieto said in a speech that Obama's plan was “an act of justice which recognizes the large contributions that millions of Mexicans have made to the development of our neighbor.''

Mexicans are believed to account for more than half of the migrant population living in the US without authorization.

In Honduras, President Juan Orlando Hernandez said Obama’s move “benefits Honduras and tens of thousands of families”.

More than a million Hondurans live in the United States, most of them illegally, the president said in a statement.

“This decision makes the United States stronger and will send a powerful message of solidarity with Latin America,'' Hernandez said.

Guatemalan President Otto Perez also applauded the plan, saying it would benefit roughly 100,000 Guatemalans in the United States.

But Perez urged Guatemalans not to fall for misinformation spread by people smugglers or “coyotes”.

Rumors of a US amnesty for mothers and children helped drive a surge in minors arriving from Central America at the US border last summer, sparking a political crisis in the United States.

The Honduran and Guatemalan presidents warned that both countries would need billions of dollars in US aid and investment to stem the tide of migrants heading north.

There was also praise from El Salvador's foreign minister, Hugo Martinez, who said Obama’s move would provide “temporary relief for many of our countrymen”.

All Latin American leaders were united in urging US Congressmen to find a permanent solution for the country’s illegal immigrants, in a message largely aimed at the Republican Party, which now controls both chambers in the Capitol.

Judging by the chorus of criticism coming from the Grand Old Party (GOP), their pleas are unlikely to be heard.

Republican quandary

On Friday, Republicans were united in blasting Obama's move but divided on how to respond.

House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, who refused to let his Republican members vote on broad immigration legislation passed by the Senate last year, said Obama's decision to go it alone “cemented his legacy of lawlessness and squandered what little credibility he had left”.

GOP lawmakers have raised options including lawsuits, a shutdown of federal government, and even a bid to impeach the Democratic president.

But party leaders have warned that a second government shutdown in as many years could backfire and anger voters ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Crucially, Republicans are in a bind over immigration, fearful of alienating a rapidly expanding Hispanic electorate.

While they pummeled the Democrats in this month’s midterm elections, it was certainly not thanks to Hispanic voters, who chose Democratic candidates by 2 to 1.

Failure to act on America's immigration problems could cost them dearly in the race for the White House, when Hispanic voter turnout is traditionally higher.

As the Boston Globe put it, Obama’s “unilateral action threatens to put the GOP on the defensive by placing focus on the party’s lack of a reform plan”.

Hillary Clinton, the Republicans’ most likely opponent in 2016, rushed to back Obama’s move on immigration, saying: “I support the president’s decision to begin fixing our broken immigration system and focus finite resources on deporting felons rather than families.”

Her swift response suggested Obama’s move had placed immigration at the forefront of the looming presidential contest.

So far, the Republican answer has been to blast the president’s “unconstitutional power grab”.

But critics warn they will need a plan of their own when they take on a different Democrat in two years’ time.



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