By Kent Hoover | Phoenix Business Journal
If immigration reform is enacted, Janet Napolitano won’t be around to enforce it.
That’s the political upshot of Napolitano’s decision to step down as Homeland Security secretary to become president of the University of California system.
The Department of Homeland Security enforces the nation’s immigration laws, both at the border and at workplaces around the nation. The Senate’s immigration reform bill dramatically boosts the agency’s role. For example, it would double the number of Border Patrol agents.
With Napolitano leaving, Congress doesn’t know who will lead the agency in the future. That could give House Republicans even more reasons to act slowly — if they act at all — on immigration reform.
