Immigration Reform 2013 News: Obama Says Stopping Deportation of Undocumented Immigrants 'Indefensible'

Stopping the deportation of undocumented residents would be a posture "very difficult to defend" juridically, President Barack Obama said on Tuesday.

The Obama administration's task is to comply with the law, which is why extending the measure that prevents the deportation of certain undocumented students to all illegal immigrants would be indefensible, he explained.

"If we begin to expand this, then essentially, I would be ignoring the law in a manner that would be difficult to defend with legal arguments. This is not an option," Obama said in an interview, according to Univisión.

In a heated moment in which activists and undocumented residents protested vocally in favor of immigration reform, President Obama expressed his worry about meeting the demands of these groups, which include enactment of administrative measures that offer benefits while immigration legislation is defined.

"There's a way to achieve this, and it's through Congress. And right now, everyone should be focused on making sure that the law project approved by the Senate arrives at the House of Representatives," the president said. 

These declarations come a few days after the Dream Act Coalition, which is comprised of DREAMers -- or undocumented immigrants younger than age 30 who benefit from the Deferred Action program -- called for a phone conference Wednesday, in which its leaders will attempt to pressure Obama towards issuing another similar administrative measure taken last year when the Obama administration granted a stay of deportation to thousands of young immigrants that came to the U.S. as minors.

Reform Still Held in Congress

For the moment, Congress has kept immigration reform frozen. According to Univisión, the Republican majority in the House of Representatives has been unwilling to debate the legislation approved by the Senate in June, which gives undocumented residents in the U.S. a pathway to citizenship and proposes stronger security measures along the U.S.-Mexico border.

President Obama said the only obstacle that immigration reform has is House Speaker John Boehner, who has previously indicated that he would not place the bill before the House for a vote without a majority of House Republicans willing to approve the measure.

"He shouldn't be afraid of majority opinion on this thing," Obama said. "If in fact the overwhelming majority of the American people think we need to do something on immigration - we've got a bipartisan bill - why not go ahead and let it come to the floor of the House and let's see what happens?"