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President Obama flew to a red state with a growing immigrant population Tuesday to sell his controversial actions delaying deportation for millions of people living illegally in the U.S. as a "net plus" for local economies and communities.

In a small, packed room at a community center, the president acknowledged the heated debate over his move and argued that cities like Nashville would benefit from the youth, vitality and diversity that immigrants bring.

"Generation after generation, immigrants have been a net plus to our economy and a net plus to our society," Obama said. "We can't deport 11 million people, and it would be foolish to try as well as, I think, wrong for us to try."

The visit was Obama's third stop in recent weeks on a campaign to promote his plan to temporarily ease the threat of deportation for nearly 5 million people, about half of the 11 million or so people in the U.S. illegally. The president's tour has a dual purpose: shoring up his program against critics who've dubbed it an abuse of power and ensuring the program gets off the ground without the sort of self-created troubles that dogged last year's launch of his landmark healthcare law.

In the series of speeches, the White House is returning to its preferred political strategy of going outside the Washington Beltway to try to rally backing from community leaders.

In Nashville, Obama highlighted Mayor Karl Dean's efforts to incorporate new arrivals through a new city Office of New Americans, noting he'd created a White House task force with a similar aim.

Obama argued he was pushed to take executive action after months of delay on immigration legislation in Congress. He pitched his plan as a boon to the economy, even in communities far from the immigrant hubs of Los Angeles, New York and border towns. Nashville has seen thousands of immigrants from Latin America, Southeast Asia and Africa settle here in recent years, drawn by the region's relatively strong economy and affordable housing. Foreign-born residents now make up about 12% of the population in the Nashville area.

Obama's trip Tuesday offered a flavor of the impassioned debate he is diving into. As Obama spoke at Casa Azafran, an outreach center that assists immigrants with social services, supporters outside held a large banner reading, "Gracias Obama." Steps away, protesters waved signs reading, "Defund amnesty" and "Obama is killing America."

"More than 200,000 Tennesseans remain out of work, but rather than prioritize their plight, the president is putting the interests of those who have broken our laws ahead of them," U.S. Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.) said in a statement before Obama's arrival. "This is wrong, and the president does not have the authority to change our immigration laws without Congress."

Obama acknowledged his critics, at times casting them as misguided and fearful of change or brushing off their concerns with a few lighthearted jokes.

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Obama takes immigration reform campaign to Nashville