Trump Stalls on Immigration Reform [OPINION]

The first thing that attracted me to the idea of a Trump presidency was his promise to finally deliver on immigration reform. That promise included a "big, beautiful wall" and an end to catch and release, chain migration, birthright citizenship, and sanctuary cities.

To date, there is little progress to report. Trump needs to step it up.

Granted, Trump inherited this mess and has had little to no help from his own party in addressing these issues, so he must act on his own.

Breitbart's John Binder points out that the continuing resolution signed into law last month by Trump actually expands catch and release in spite of claims by Trump during his CPAC speech on Saturday that "we're fixing it." Binder also points out that the expansion appears to have the solid support of the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen.

Binder also reminds us that Trump promised to sign an executive order last October to end birthright citizenship but has yet to follow through. Progress towards withholding federal funds from sanctuary cities has been painstakingly slow and the matter remains bogged down in court.

The battle for securing money to build a border wall has been uphill, and efforts to declare a state of emergency to free up funds for wall construction have run into solid opposition in Congress. Trump can go around Congress but would certainly face another court challenge.

Trump can either wait for the elections in 2020 to see if the American people will send him the help he needs to succeed in Congress or he can go it alone. Barack Obama reminded us that he didn't need Congress, just a pen to advance his agenda by executive order. Trump needs a pen.

Waiting for 2020 to address the immigration crisis could cost Trump his job. The people want immigration reform and they want it now. The time for talk has passed. It is time for Trump to show true leadership on immigration reform, even if it means going it alone.

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.