President Obama Set To Speak About Immigration In Nashville On Tuesday

President Obama will speak in Nashville on Tuesday about his recent action on immigration. Credit: Whitehouse.gov

President Barack Obama will be speaking in Nashville on Tuesday to talk about last month’s executive action on immigration.

Recently, a White House staffer approached Rep. Jim Cooper about the possibility of having the president visit Nashville. Cooper encouraged the idea and gave some recommendations. Among them: Caza Azafran on Nolensville Road. There, Conexion Americas and nine other groups work with the city’s migrant community with services dealing with housing, immigration status and helping families understand matters of personal finance.

On Wednesday night, an email from the White House popped into the inbox of Renata Soto, who leads the non-profit Conexion Americas.

“I did scream, and jump and dance, you know, my daughter wished she would’ve taken a video of my reaction when I read the news that they had decided that Caza Azafran was going to be the place,” she said.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters on Thursday that Nashville leaders and activists have “actively worked to welcome new Americans.”

Last month, Obama announced an executive action expected to shield up to five million undocumented immigrants from deportation and put them on the path for work permits, not to mention bring them into the tax system. Critics accuse the president of exceeding his authority by not seeking approval from Congress.

Without question, though, the White House chose to drop by Tennessee to talk about national immigration issues because the state’s migrant growth is considerably stronger than many other parts of the country.

Tennessee’s foreign-born population is around 4.5 percent, nearly double what it was a decade ago, according to the Migration Policy Institute. In particular, the state’s Hispanic population is growing faster than any other state, Pew found recently.