Barack Obama has done much to decrease immigration enforcement as he panders for Democrat votes. His executive actions in 2014 were a gross violation of Rule of Law that even he previously admitted he had no authority to do. But never mind that; he’s going to enforce (or not) the laws of his choosing. And it’s having real-world consequences. According to Marc R. Rosenblum of the Migration Policy Institute, “By comparing the new enforcement priorities to earlier DHS removal data, this report estimates that the 2014 policy guidance, if strictly adhered to, is likely to reduce deportations from within the United States by about 25,000 cases annually — bringing interior removals below the 100,000 mark. Removals at the U.S.-Mexico border remain a top priority under the 2014 guidelines, so falling interior removals may be offset to some extent by increases at the border.”

In related news, a new CNN poll shows that 56% of the American people in general favor policies providing a path to legal status for those who have jobs and are otherwise law-abiding. But 64% of Republicans prefer deporting illegals as they’re caught. If there was a statistic that showed why Donald Trump has gained steam in the polls, that’s it. He’s tapping into frustration among the Republican base about a hot-button issue. Yet those same voters likely forget that Trump has been all over the map on the issue — he most recently proposed a merit-based system for allowing some illegals to stay. The bottom line is that immigration is a complicated problem made more difficult by pandering politicians.