Luke, this same bill was put before Congress last year, during Bush's presidency. Just figured I'd toss that out there for you to chew on. I'd rather this not turn into a political debate, but the fact is, Obama, nor his being our president, have anything to do with this.
As for a state by state solution...that is what will ultimately happen. Several states, including Florida have already passed MANY such laws. In fact, Florida and Hawaii have about the strictest forms of these laws, already in place. The fact is, this is a "State's Rights" issue and the Federal Govt does not have the right to pass laws that should be governed by State's Rights.