Smith's hopes were buoyed by the Obama administration's announcement in the summer of 2011 of plans to use prosecutorial discretion to suspend the deportations of illegal immigrants who had deep ties in the U.S. and no serious criminal records. Surely, Smith thought, immigration officials would spare his partner, 38-year-old Isaias Rivas-Guzman, once they saw their shared address in southwest Houston, the joint bank account, the wedding photo on the beach at the Pilgrim Monument and the Massachusetts marriage certificate. Cases like Rivas-Guzman's prompted immigrant advocates and attorneys to lobby lawmakers to intercede and pressure the Department of Homeland Security to put its policy regarding same-sex couples in writing. While the government has pledged to give gays and lesbians the same consideration as heterosexual couples when it comes to deciding which deportation cases to suspend, it does not give their U.S. citizen partners an avenue to apply for legal status on their behalf. Obama administration officials have publicly questioned the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act, which bars the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages, giving many advocates hope that the law will be overturned by the courts. [...] the idea of granting any kind of immigration benefits to same-sex couples remains highly controversial and has met with staunch opposition from immigration-control advocates and from Christian conservatives.
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