Coburn: Obama is releasing illegal immigrants with criminal histories

Sens. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) blasted the Obama administration on Tuesday for releasing more than 600 immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, who have criminal records.

“It is baffling how an agency charged with homeland security and immigration enforcement would knowingly release hundreds of illegals with criminal histories,” Coburn said on Tuesday. “In this single action, ICE undermined its own credibility, the rule of law, and the safety of Americans and local law enforcement.”

{mosads}The senators cited a new report from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) inspector general, which revealed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) released more than 600 detained illegal immigrants who had previous criminal convictions.

“This report confirms the Obama administration’s lack of coherent leadership on immigration policy,” McCain said. “The safety of our border communities shouldn’t be put at risk because ICE officials decide to release detainees — many with criminal records — in order to solve their budget problems.”

The report blamed a lack of communication between ICE, the DHS and the White House on how to deal with the detention of immigrants in the U.S. illegally and budget problems. ICE released nearly 1,500 detainees in one weekend in 2013 without even notifying the DHS secretary.

The DHS inspector general’s report also said ICE still hasn’t developed a strategy to effectively manage its detention program.