Boehner has long insisted that he, personally, wanted to enact immigration reform. Boehner slams Obama's 'raw politics'

President Barack Obama’s move to delay executive actions on immigration is sure to soothe Senate Democrats fretting about a voter backlash but gave Republicans another chance to paint the White House as politically calculating.

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) swiftly criticized Obama’s decision to hold off until the end of the year, which came after an increasing chorus of Senate Democrats sounded alarms about the prospect of the White House acting on its own to stem deportations just months ahead the competitive midterms. The House’s top Republican said there is never a “right” time for Obama to sidestep Congress on immigration and “declare amnesty by executive action.”


“But the decision to simply delay this deeply-controversial and possibly unconstitutional unilateral action until after the election - instead of abandoning the idea altogether - smacks of raw politics,” Boehner said in a statement Saturday. “The American people deserve honesty, transparency, and accountability - and any unilateral action will only further strain the bonds of trust between the White House and the people they are supposed to serve.”

( Also on POLITICO: Obama punts on immigration until after election)

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) also panned Obama’s decision.

“This is clearly not decision-making designed around the best policy—it’s Washington politics at its worst,” McConnell said. “The president is required to take care that the laws are faithfully executed, not—as he has admitted—make them up as he sees fit.”

White House officials said earlier Saturday that Obama will delay plans to issue an executive order on immigration until the end of this year, following a rising cry of concerns from Senate Democrats who feared a political backlash following any sweeping administrative action on deportations.

The announcement marked a remarkable reversal from forceful comments Obama made in the Rose Garden in June promising to act on his own on immigration because Republicans are unable to move legislation through Congress. The Democratic-led Senate passed a sweeping immigration overhaul bill in June 2013 that included a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants in the United States.

( Also on POLITICO: Obama, Hill leaders to huddle)

The reversal enraged immigration advocates, who have pressured the Obama administration for months to shield millions of undocumented immigrants from being deported – but the White House had quick public support from at least some Democrats on Capitol Hill.

“I know that the president is determined to act,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Saturday. “When he does, I support a broad use of his authority to fix as much of our broken immigration system as he can through executive action.”

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), who recently suggested that Obama should hold off until after the November elections, said Saturday’s move was the “correct decision by the president.”

“There’s no way anybody was going to listen to an informed debate on immigration while House Republicans are scared of tea party members before the election,” Nelson said.

( Also on POLITICO: Dems urge immigration order delay)

In a phone interview Saturday, Rep. Joe Garcia (D-Fla.) said “obviously, I’m disappointed” in the delay but he said he understood that Obama was working within the parameters of what was politically feasible.

“I think the president’s heart is in the right place,” Garcia said. “The president is signaling that he’ll do something before the end of the year, and I take him at his word.”

Still, Obama’s decision is sure to drive a rift through the Democratic Party. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said in a CNN interview on Friday — before the delay was announced — that he disagreed with fellow Senate Democrats who have urged the Obama administration to hold off. Obama called Menendez on Friday night to discussion executive action on immigration, an aide said.

Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.), the rare senator in a competitive re-election bid who has endorsed executive action on immigration, said Saturday: “I’m disappointed that President Obama has now delayed action to help keep families together.”

Colorado is one of the few states with high-profile Senate races where the Latino vote could play an influential role in November.

“Taking action to keep families together, which is necessary only because of the House’s failure to act on the U.S. Senate’s bipartisan immigration reform bill, will target resources to deporting criminals and those who pose a safety threat to our communities or our national security,” Udall said.

But the calls from vulnerable Senate Democrats continued to get louder, as the influx of unaccompanied migrant children at the Texas border this summer upended the politics of immigration.

Democratic Sens. Kay Hagan of North Carolina and Mark Pryor of Arkansas – two top targets of Republicans this fall – said in July that Obama should not act on his own to slow deportations. But in recent days, other Senate Democrats up for reelection in 2014 – such as Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Al Franken of Minnesota – urged the Obama administration against executive action.

Despite the White House delay, the issue is unlikely to disappear from the 2014 campaign trail. Former Sen. Scott Brown, who is seeking to unseat Shaheen, immediately criticized the Democratic senator over Obama’s decision to hold off on executive action – even though Shaheen said she opposed Obama going at it by himself on immigration.

“Make no mistake: President Obama plans to grant amnesty,” Brown said in a statement. “It’s just that he will cynically wait until after the election so as not to harm Senate Democrats like Jeanne Shaheen.”

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