Obama to Pitch Immigration at Citizenship Ceremony
Photo Credit: Getty Images By Darlene Superville.
President Barack Obama plans to highlight a positive side of the immigration debate by presiding over an Independence Day citizenship ceremony for service members who signed up to defend the U.S. even though they weren’t American citizens.
A total of 25 members of the Armed Forces will spend the Fourth of July as American citizens after the deputy secretary for homeland security delivers the oath of allegiance at a White House ceremony on Friday.
The group includes 15 active-duty service members from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, along with two veterans, one reservist and seven spouses, the White House said. They represent 15 countries.
The politically divisive immigration issue is earning renewed attention after the influx of tens of thousands of unaccompanied children from Central America who, under U.S. law, must be sent back across the border to their home countries. That has upset advocates of overhauling U.S. immigration policy who want Obama to allow the children to stay.
At the same time, Obama blames House Republicans for delaying action on an immigration overhaul. A comprehensive measure the Senate passed last year has been blocked by House leaders who also have done little to advance legislative proposals of their own.
citizenship ceremony
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Photo Credit: Gina Ferazzi, Los Angeles TimesProtesters gather at Murrieta to await buses of immigrants
By Tony Perry and Matt Hansen.
Protesters have gathered near the entrance to a Border Patrol facility in Murrieta, Calif., on Friday to await buses of undocumented immigrants, but whether those buses will arrive is unknown.
Unlike Tuesday when shouting, flag-waving protesters blocked three busloads of immigrants, Murrieta police Friday morning cleared the entry road.
The estimated 100 demonstrators, including those favoring the immigrants, were being restricted to a “safety zone” away from the road. Many had remained all night at the site, vowing a repeat of Tuesday’s blockade.
Authorities kept the road to the processing center clear and the protesters in check, although scuffles did break out. In total, Murrieta police arrested six people for obstructing officers including five who were detained during an afternoon altercation,
On Friday morning, one 56-year-old protester was cited for interfering with police, authorities said. Local police officers also had to step in and separate two groups of protesters who were arguing, but no one appeared to be injured or arrested following that confrontation.
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