President Obama announced sweeping changes to immigration law during a primetime speech to the nation Thursday evening.

The President, who spoke for a little over 10 minutes from the East Room of the White House, announced he will bypass Congress via executive action to make changes to America’s immigration law. At the heart of the President’s plan is deportation relief to almost five million immigrants who are in the United States illegally.

“The fact is, millions of immigrants in every state, of every race and nationality will still live here illegally,” Obama said. “And let’s be honest, tracking down, rounding up and deporting millions of people isn’t realistic.”

Obama’s plan will protect up to five million immigrants who are in the United States illegally for three years by issuing work permits. The plan will protect parents of legal U.S. residents or residents who hold a green card. Obama’s plan will also include more protection for those who were brought into the country illegally as children, an expansion of the deferred action program from 2012.

“If you meet the criteria, you can come out of the shadows and get right with the law. If you’re a criminal, you’ll be deported. If you plan to enter the U.S. illegally, your chances of getting caught and sent back just went up,” Obama said, mentioning increased border security also included in the plan.

The White House also noted in a blog post that any of those eligible for relief under this plan must have been in the country for five or more years, pass a background check and pay back taxes.

“It’s a bold move,” said David Andersen, assistant professor of political science. “I think Obama is extremely frustrated with the lack of action from Congress, and he’s clearly decided that he is going to use the powers of the Presidency to make some policy accomplishments.”

Zoe Kustritz, president of the Iowa State University College Democrats, said she was glad Obama is taking action.

“I’m glad the President is taking action on this issue because it’s so important right now,” Kustritz said. “There are really not a whole lot [of lawmakers] doing anything in Congress right now. As he said in his speech, pass a bill, Congress. The ball is in your court.”

Jonathon Laudner, president of the ISU College Republicans, was not surprised about the announcement and said he expects a court challenge.

“It’s definitely a move that’s unconstitutional. It’s definitely going to be challenged in the courts and I think it’ll be struck down,” Laudner said. “During the election he said, ‘I might not be on the ballot, but my policies are.’ The people strongly rejected his policies and have for years now. His first move after the election, saying he’s going to be bipartisan, is to work against what Republicans have asked him to do and he continues with a policy that American’s are strongly against.”

Prior to the announcement, Republicans in Congress were already threatening to withhold funds in the upcoming budget so the President could not implement his plan. Other Republicans have threatened a government shutdown in a budget battle. Andersen said to expect lots of Republicans to denounce Obama’s plan and said a budget battle is likely.

“The question is what does the GOP do? When they pass the next budget bill, they could decide not to pass spending for immigration policy. That way they could tailor a law directly contradicting what Obama does,” Andersen said. “Congressional power exceeds Presidential power in this [spending] area.”

Another way the GOP could respond is to actually work on an immigration bill, Andersen said.

“[Following this announcement], I think they have to work on an immigration bill,” Andersen said. “You’re going to have to get some agreement from each chamber on what the correct course of action is going to be, and no one in Congress seems to know what the correct course is.”

Congressman Steve King, R-Iowa, who represents Ames and Iowa State in Congress and is known as a strong advocate against illegal immigration, said Congress should pass a non-binding resolution that expresses their disapproval of the President’s plan or even censure the President.

King said if there is no response from the White House, Congress should use the “power of the purse” to cut off funding to carry out the executive order.

“To those members of Congress who question my authority to make our immigration system work better, or question the wisdom of me acting where Congress has failed, I have one answer: pass a bill,” Obama said in response to Republican opposition.

Kustritz said she was disappointed in the way Congress passed a bill two years ago that was later blocked in the House. Laudner said he believes Congress will pass an immigration bill in the upcoming term, but was not sure if the President would sign it.

“I think there are definitely going to be bills passed in both houses but I’m afraid Obama will veto them as soon as they hit his desk,” Laudner said. “I hope this new Congress will pass some bills to secure our border and put some funding to make it secure. Beyond that, we need to modernize our immigration system. We need to become more modern with our visa system and be able to track people when they come in and out.”

Also included in the executive action is an increase in the number of work visas available for high-tech jobs and a change in immigration enforcement, ordering federal officials to target immigrants with criminal records or ties to gang or terrorism.

The President is expected to be in Nevada, on Nov. 21, along with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. The President is expected to speak at a high school to rally support for his immigration action.