A reporter for a conservative news website heckled Obama as he announced his new immigration policy on Friday, clearly angering the president.

During Obama's speech, Neil Munro, an Irish-born reporter for the Daily Caller, yelled: 'Why do you favor foreigners over American workers?'

The president, who was speaking in the White House's Rose Garden, stumbled before placing up his hand in Mr Munro's direction and responding: 'Not while I'm speaking.'


When he finished the speech, Obama told Munro his plan - which will allow 800,000 young illegal immigrants to remain in the country - 'was the right thing to do for the American people'.

But Munro was not content and continued to yell at the president. Frustrated, Obama added: 'I didn't ask for an argument. I'm answering your question.'

Munro, who is originally from Ireland and studied at university in Dublin before marrying an American, reportedly yelled out that he was an immigrant and walked away from the press pen.

On his way, Munro was heard shouting, with a distinct Irish accent: 'What about American workers who are unemployed, while you employ foreigners?'

Asked afterwards who he was, Munro simply said: 'I'm just a reporter asking questions you should be asking.'

In a statement on the Daily Caller's Web site, Munro said he believed the president had almost finished speaking when he asked his question.

'I always go to the White House prepared with questions for our president,' he wrote. 'I timed the question believing the president was closing his remarks, because naturally I have no intention of interrupting the President of the United States.

'I know he rarely takes questions before walking away from the podium.'

On his Twitter page, Munro describes himself as: 'Born Irish, then became a Cold War bridegroom. I worked at Defense News, Washington Technology, then 10 years at National Journal, and now at TheDC. Lucky me.'

Another online bio claims he received his U.S. citizenship a month before 9/11.

On his LinkedIn profile, Munro states he has a Bachelor of Arts in Politics, History and Economics from University College Dublin as well and an MA in Military History from King's College in London.

After the broadcast, former George W. Bush spokesman Tony Fratto tweeted: Reporters don't interrupt presidential statements. Period. @NeilMunroDC should be banned from [the White House]'.

But the Daily Caller praised Munro, who has worked at the website for two years. 'We are very proud of, @NeilMunroDC for doing his job,' the online publication posted to its Twitter feed.

Obama had been announcing that the Department of Homeland Security will stop deportations and grant work permits for students from oversees who meet certain requirements.

The change will affect those who arrived in the U.S. before turning 16, who have been in the country for at least five years, and are under 30.

The President's decision to allow up to allow up to 800,000 young illegal immigrants to remain in America has divided Republicans and was met with silence by his 2012 opponent Mitt Romney for nearly six hours.

The Obama administration's announcement that it would stop deporting and begin granting work permits to younger illegal immigrants who came to the US as children and have led law-abiding lives caught Romney by surprise.

Eventually, Romney came out and said in almost conciliatory language that he believed Obama had addressed an 'important matter' with a short-term measure but the way it had been done 'makes it more difficult to reach that long-term solution.

He said that he supported a statement by Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who had been working on a proposal that Obama appeared to have hijacked.

Romney's belated and muted reaction underlined just what a bind Republicans had been placed in.

Speaking in the Rose Garden about the announcement, Obama said it was a 'just' thing to do but not a permanent solution to the immigration issue. 'This is not amnesty. This is not immunity. This is not a path to citizenship. It is not a permanent fix.'

By bypassing Congress and acting via executive order, Obama's move is designed to tie Romney to an unpopular Capitol Hill as well as courting Latino voters, a key bloc in swing states like Florida, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and Colorado.

With some conservative sympathetic to Rubio's proposal, not yet formally presented, and other against it, the Obama administration's surprise announcement laid bare a split in the Republican party.

In a measured statement, Rubio, of Cuban parentage and a leading vice-presidential candidate for the Romney ticket, said it was 'welcome news for many of these kids desperate for an answer' but Obama was guilty of 'ignoring the Constitution and going around Congress'.

Obama's executive order was a 'short term answer to a long term problem', he added. 'There is broad support for the idea that we should figure out a way to help kids who are undocumented through no fault of their own, but there is also broad consensus that it should be done in a way that does not encourage illegal immigration in the future.

'This is a difficult balance to strike, one that this new policy, imposed by executive order, will make harder to achieve in the long run.'

Rick Santorum, runner up to Romney in the Republican primaries blasted Obama. 'Here we are again on a Friday afternoon on a quiet summer weekend with no one paying attention and President Obama announces yet another abuse of power - a decision to stop deporting and grant work permits to nearly one million immigrants who entered or remained in the United States illegally as children,' he said.

Representative Steve King of Iowa, a favourite among conservative hardliners, said the change in the law 'signifies to potential illegal aliens that border agents will turn a blind eye'.

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, said via twitter: 'President Obama's attempt to go around Congress and the American people is at best unwise and possibly illegal.' He added: 'This type of policy proposal, regardless of motivation, will entice people to break our laws.'

Obama's order bypasses Congress and partially achieves the goals of the so-called DREAM Act, a long-sought but never enacted plan to establish a path toward citizenship for young people who came to the United States illegally as children but who attend college or join the military.

It came a week before Obama's address the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials' annual conference in Orlando, Florida. Romney is due to speak there on Thursday.

Under the administration plan, illegal immigrants will be immune from deportation if they were brought to the US before age 16 and are younger than 30, have been in the country for at least five continuous years, have no criminal history, graduated from a US high school or earned a GED, or served in the military.

They also can apply for a work permit that will be good for two years with no limits on how many times it can be renewed.

Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security Secretary, said in a memorandum: 'Many of these young people have already contributed to our country in significant ways, Prosecutorial discretion, which is used in so many other areas, is especially justified here."

The policy will not lead toward citizenship but will remove the threat of deportation and grant the ability to work legally, leaving eligible immigrants able to remain in the US for extended periods.