White House Responds To 'Deport Bieber' Petition

The nearly 274,000 people who signed a White House petition to deport Justin Bieber finally have their response. Unfortunately, it’s probably not the response they were looking for. On Friday, the Obama administration essentially refused to answer demands that Bieber be kicked out of the country, citing a clause in the petition platform that allows the White House to avoid addressing issues that fall under the jurisdiction of other federal agencies.

Anybody can create a petition on the “We The People” website, and the administration has agreed to issue a statement on any petition that gathers a requisite minimum amount of signatures. In the past, the platform has been used to compel responses from the White House on medical marijuana, animal cruelty and federal protections for same-sex couples.

A petition was created earlier this year demanding that Bieber, a Canadian citizen, be deported from America. The signatories cited Bieber’s consistently obnoxious behavior, which they claimed paint the U.S. in a bad light. But the White House isn’t biting, and instead used the occasion to call for comprehensive immigration reform.

The Whtie House statement reads, in part:

Sorry to disappoint, but we won’t be commenting on this one.

The We the People terms of participation state that, “to avoid the appearance of improper influence, the White House may decline to address certain procurement, law enforcement, adjudicatory, or similar matters properly within the jurisdiction of federal departments or agencies, federal courts, or state and local government in its response to a petition."

So we'll leave it to others to comment on Mr. Bieber’s case, but we’re glad you care about immigration issues. Because our current system is broken. Too many employers game the system by hiring undocumented workers, and 11 million people are living in the shadows.

Apparently, Bieber will have to do more than just be a jerk before Obama sends him packing.