Our elected leaders have no excuse not to compromise in the short term, and over the long haul, on immigration reform. And the simplest part of the process should be the beginning. Their options are literally staring back at them, from the pages of a bill that passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, only a few short years ago.

Much of the discussion regarding the recent immigration changes focuses on those who are unlawfully in the country.  Deferred status will allow these people to be freed from the fear of immediate deportation, and provide work authorization.  However, there is also a group of people who are in the...

In the weeks after President Barack Obama presented his immigration executive action, many have voiced their opinions on the policy changes. Republican lawmakers have spoken out against the action as being illegal and bad policy. Some immigration activists have criticized the action for not going far enough. However, the country at large remains very divided on the issue.

Republican lawmakers have been speaking out against President Barack Obama’s immigration plans since they were announced over a month ago, but so far have taken no meaningful action against the policy changes. Instead, it was Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio who has attempted to strike the first blow against the immigration executive actions. Now his lawsuit against the immigration orders has seen its first day in court.

Immigrant detention centers have faced harsh criticism from immigrant advocates, and human rights groups for their harsh conditions. As one temporary facility in New Mexico is shuttered early, a new center opens in Texas. The Texas detention facility will be for immigrant families, and will be the largest of its kind in the country. However, the harsh conditions at the facility and past claims of abuse continue to follow the private prison operator who will take over the new detention center.

Despite all the complaints aimed at one of the least productive Congress’ in history, in the last days before leaving for the holidays the Senate has managed to pass a budget and confirm a couple Obama appointees. One of those appointees is the new head of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. For the first time in the history of the office, the head of ICE will be a Latina.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is no stranger to controversy. He has been the subject of numerous lawsuit, often finding himself on the losing end. He was also the first Arizona official to file a lawsuit against President Barack Obama’s executive actions enacting immigration policy reforms. Now Sheriff Arpaio has agreed to dissolve his controversial immigration raid squad.

Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s lawsuit challenging President Barack Obama’s executive action awaits review. As does the larger lawsuit backed by more than 20 states, including Texas and Arizona, which argues the president has overstepped his constitutional authority in authoring the executive orders. Yet a federal judge in Pennsylvania has already chimed in on the issue, with an order declaring Obama’s executive actions unconstitutional. However, that order will have little impact aside from garnering headlines.

Just days ago, we questioned how the coming immigration reform changes would affect Tucson and southern Arizona. It appears the Tucson Police Department had the same questions, and came to a similar conclusion. In spite of the Arizona state laws, which have not yet changed in light of the coming executive actions, the police will no longer question all those they encounter about their immigration status.

It did not take long after President Barack Obama’s announced immigration policy changes before his challengers took to the courts to stop the executive actions. One of the most fervent anti-immigration figures in the country, Maricopa County sheriff Joe Arpaio filed a lawsuit challenging the immigration changes within hours of the November 20th announcement. In response to the first of the coming lawsuits, the Justice Department has sought to dismiss the lawsuit brought by Arizona sheriff Arpaio.

The recurring issue of Arizona’s anti-immigrant laws finding themselves at odds with federal laws and constitutional guarantees is again rearing its head. After Arizona’s law barring those who qualify Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) from getting driver’s license was blocked, and reconsideration denied, there was one place left for a final ruling. Now, Governor Jan Brewer is asking the nation’s highest court to take up the issue.

The immigration policy changes announced by President Barack Obama will go into effect over the course of the next year. However, it remains unclear to what extent those changes will impact Arizona and the Tucson area. State law SB 1070 may stand at odds with the new executive action on deportation priorities. The new immigration priorities focus on criminals and national threats, while SB 1070 requires police to question the immigration status of all those they suspect to be in the country illegally.

Millions of immigrants rejoiced at the recently announced changes in the country’s immigration policy. President Barack Obama’s executive action has created a form of deferred deportation relief for additional childhood arrivals as well as the parents and spouses of citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs). With more than 30,000 immigrants detained on a daily basis, this newly created deferred status may offer many of them a chance at freedom.

President Barack Obama’s announced immigration policy changes have provided a way for millions of immigrants in the country to be afforded some relief from deportation. The expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) will defer deportation and provide employment authorization. However, some people are taking this opportunity to take advantage of immigrants, and scam them out of money while providing useless or even harmful services.

During a tense hearing on Capitol Hill, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson was pressed on immigration policy changes. Johnson said he was comfortable with the legal basis for the president’s executive actions. During the hearing, Arizona Representative Ron Barber asked Johnson to return to southern Arizona, to hear the concerns of the people who live along the border.

President Barack Obama continues to face heavy criticism from Republicans for his recent announced immigration policy changes. At the same time, immigrant activists have voiced disappointment for the president not going far enough to extend deportation deferral to a greater number of immigrants. Meanwhile, a number of mayors from across the country are gathering in support of the president’s executive action on immigration.

Losing legal challenge after legal challenge does not seem to have deterred Arizona Governor Jan Brewer from opposing the federal government's immigration policy changes. Just this last week, Brewer was denied a reconsideration of her executive action which denies driver’s licenses to DREAMers. Now, Arizona has joined with Texas and a number of states to sue the Obama administration over the executive immigration orders.

While the national focus has been on President Barack Obama’s recent executive action on immigration reform, local Arizona immigration policy has lost another challenge. A federal appeals court denied Governor Jan Brewer’s request to reconsider a ruling which blocked the state’s denial of driver’s licenses to those with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status. With the recently announced expansion of those who will fall within DACA criteria, this latest ruling could result in driver’s licenses for millions of immigrants across the country.

There has been no shortage of criticism to President Barack Obama’s decision to reform immigration policy through executive action. Some of the loudest voices speaking out against the president have come from Republican lawmakers. In the days before the president made his immigration announcement, Republicans warned the president against taking such unilateral action. Now, nearly two weeks later, Republicans remain unsure on how to respond in opposition to the executive actions.

Arizona has been at the center of the country’s discussions of immigration and immigration reform. While some of the state’s harshest anti-immigrant laws and policies have recently been struck down by the courts, it remains a divisive issue. Despite the publicity surrounding this past summer’s surge in immigrant children and families from Central America, the number of undocumented immigrants in Arizona has actually decreased in the past few years.

With President Barack Obama’s recent announcement of his executive actions on immigration reform, millions of undocumented immigrants may now seek some form of relief from deportation. This includes additional childhood arrivals under DACA, as well as the spouses and parents of citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs). However, one significant group of immigrants has been left out of the reforms, and those are the parents of DREAMers.

As a result of President Barack Obama’s immigration policy reforms, the program previously known as Secure Communities, will be discontinued. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson has issued a memorandum on the Secure Communities program. The new program will be known as the “Priority Enforcement Program” (PEP). The following is a summary of the DHS memorandum.