Contrary to what many people claim, executive orders granting deferred action or similar immigration benefits are very old. In the 1960’s over 600,000 Cubans and 300,000 Southeast Asians were granted parole by the President. In the 1970’s President Reagan granted deferral of deportations to 200,000 Nicaraguans. In 1987 President Reagan granted deferral of deportations to children under the age of 18 who lived with parents that were legalizing under the 1986 amnesty. In 1990 president George H.W. Bush expanded the deferral of deportation to cover also spouses of persons who were legalizing under the 1986 amnesty. This measure protected close to 1,500,000 undocumented immigrants, over 40% of the total number at that time. More recently President Clinton granted Deferred Enforced Departure for Haitians present in the United States before 1995, and President George W. Bush granted deferred action for foreign academic students affected by Hurricane Katrina, and deferred enforcement departure for Liberians whose TPS had expired. These are just some examples, but the list is longer.

Most important, in Arizona v. United States, the United States Supreme Court held that “[a] principal feature of the removal system is the broad discretion exercised by immigration officials. … Federal officials, as an initial matter, must decide whether it makes sense to pursue removal at all. Discretion in the enforcement of immigration law embraces immediate human concerns. Unauthorized workers trying to support their families, for example, likely pose less danger than alien smugglers or aliens who commit a serious crime. The equities of an individual case may turn on many factors, including whether the alien has children born in the United States, long ties to the community, or a record of distinguished military service”. 132 S.Ct. 2492, at 2499 (2012).