Obama's immigration orders aims to bring undocumented out of shadows

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The immigration reform plan that U.S. President Barack Obama plans to outline on Thursday will shift enforcement focus to deporting undocumented immigrants deemed risks to national security or public safety, but will aim to protect families, the White House said. The plan, laid out by senior White House officials in advance of Obama's 8 p.m. (0100 GMT on Friday) speech, will emphasize the need to deport terrorism suspects, violent criminal and gang members. Law enforcement resources will be shifted from the U.S. interior to the southern border with Mexico. People who have crossed the U.S. border this year will not qualify for relief from deportation. Obama's order to protect undocumented parents of U.S. citizens from deportation will apply to immigrants who have been in the country for at least five years, the White House said. People will have the opportunity to request temporary relief from deportation and get permission to work for three years at a time if they come forward and register, submit biometric data, pass background checks, and pay fees, the White House said. Obama believes his immigration plan can sustain a legal challenge threatened by Republicans, based on similar past presidential actions going back to Dwight Eisenhower's presidency in the 1950s, senior administration officials said. (Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Sandra Maler)