Reply #20: Congress writes the laws, the Executive enforces the laws, and Courts resolve disputes [View All]

about the meaning of the laws. The President isn't some American version of His Royal Highness, the King: he simply is the chief Executive charged with the Administration of the government, according to the states enacted by Congress. The whole principle of "Government of Laws, not of Men" means that one expects the laws to be enforced impartially, without regard for mere personal preferences. In matters of immigration law, the process is governed by existing statute and regulation, with a professional bureaucracy trained to interpret those statutes and regulations in some regular fashion

The short answer is: it would usually be inappropriate for the President to attend to the details of a particular immigration case, and it would usually be improper for the President to attend to the details of an immigration case involving an acquaintance or relative. In this case, Obama himself recognized that in a public statement (quite a while ago) indicating he would not get involved