The general public would like to think that once our elected officials get into office they are focused on the job at hand and making an effort to resolve our problems as efficiently and as effectively as possible. However, in “Democrats Blame GOP for Obama Immigration Delay” by Leigh Ann Caldwell, she proves that for politicians it’s more important to let a problem linger to help get constituents in office rather than facing the problem and trying to resolve it promptly. Caldwell explains, “The President’s delayed action could protect democrats in competitive senate races in conservative states like Louisiana, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky and North Carolina.” (Caldwell). By leaving the problem of immigration unattended and blaming the Republican party it allows Democrats running for office in these states to attain the votes of the majority of the minorities in all of these states.

The fact that Obama and the democrats are not trying to push the issue of immigration now because they know it will help their constituents is a problem. The underlying issue is the fact that our elected officials put reelection over trying to solve the problems they were elected to solve. From gerrymandering district dimensions to insure that a certain party wins, to making citizens show to picture ids to exploit minorities, the elderly or the poor and in this specific case of letting the immigration issue go unattended.

While a congressman might argue that the reason why he or she looks out for their seat and their party more than the policy that they campaign on is because their term is too short to really get anything done and the problems they face will take more than their term to solve. Consequently they have to keep a mind on their re-election so they can accomplish their goals long term. However the recent stalemate in congress is enough to show that focusing on reelection over the problems at hand is not conducive to a productive government.

Government approvals rates have been on a steady decline since 2001 (see link http://www.gallup.com/poll/5392/trust-government.aspx), the youth has not been very mobilized in any election accept the presidential election. When politicians criticize their citizens for not going out and voting they have no one to blame but themselves. When people open up the paper and read about senators and congressman exploiting their power or getting involved in shady politics, it makes people feel like their vote is just a wasted one. Whoever gets put into office once they get in are just looking out for themselves and there party, not the people that elected them into that position in the first place. If our elected officials were truly only focused on doing their job once in office instead of trying to insure their reelection or their party members, maybe problems in this country would be resolved much quicker and with more shrewdness.

Caldwell, Leigh Ann. "Finger-pointing over Immigration Delay Begins." Cnn.com. September 8, 2014. Accessed September 10, 2014.