Obama administration to implement major change in immigration policy- without Congressional authority

President Obama has made the poltiically-charged decision to stop deporting young illegal immigrants- unilaterally, without consulting Congress.

Mr. Obama once denied that he had the authority to do such a thing.

Since the plan closely resembles one advanced by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla), who is widely believed to be the front-runner for the Republican vice-presidential nomination and is himself an Hispanic, there may not be much upside for the President- except to the degree that local Democratic leaders can convince voters who have difficulty with English that it is his plan and that the Republicans oppose it. Four years ago, I remember seeing a network news interview in 2008 from the Little Village neighborhood in Chicago- the neighborhood where I grew up, and which has now been been predominently Hispanic for half a century- that President Bush opposed immigration reform, when in fact he had alienated large sections of his own party by supporting it.

If Rubio is Mitt Romney's running-mate- and I'd say the chances just improved dramatically- the boost Mr. Obama will receive from this move among Hispanics will be muted. On the other hand, the outrage among non-Hispanic whites- a demographic the president is already in deep trouble with- will dig that hole even deeper.

This is a dramatic move, of the type Mr. Obama will have to make if he's going to win this November. But its reduced effectiveness against a Romney-Rubio ticked and its double-edged character increase the impression I'm getting of a campaign whose initiatives just don't seem to work.

I know this may be wishful thinking to some extent, since I'm for Romney. But while the Obama campaign hasn't quite sunk to Carter-like levels of ineffectuality, it's beginning to send off vibes as a campaign that just can't catch a break.

If that isn't reversed soon, it's going to start smelling like a loser.

HT: Drudge