Partisanship is not the way to help ‘Dreamers’

I suspect the demonstrators in “Demonstrators to ‘Occupy’ Pittsburgh Congressional Offices Over End of DACA” (Sept. 6) are more self-indulgent than sincere. They claim to support President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but their actions make “Dreamer” amnesty likely.

In 2012 Mr. Obama, acting alone, instructed the Department of Homeland Security to selectively suspend immigration law as it applied to these young people. While that was a humane thing to do, it was probably unconstitutional.

Columnist Jay Cost (“Save DACA in Congress,” Sept. 10) is right: If we want to remain a democratic republic, our laws must be made by the people’s representatives “in Congress assembled,” not by one self-assured man with a pen and a telephone. President Donald Trump’s rescission of DACA correctly returns this issue to Congress.

But heightened partisan rancor in Congress will probably spur House production of a more hawkish bill. Then liberal Democrats will filibuster it to death in the Senate. We are likely to witness “Dreamer” babies getting thrown out with the partisan bathwater. Demonstrators’ partisan agitation aggravates this.

If they are serious about protection for Dreamers, the demonstrators should spend less time alienating House Republicans — whose help they’ll need — and more time schmoozing them for an acceptably moderate bill. Senate Democrats — in serving party’s agenda — are the ones more likely to torpedo Dreamers’ hopes. Thus demonstrators need to spend more time lobbying these senators to put pragmatism and humanity ahead of party.

And we all need to pressure our congressmen to dump partisanship and get this fixed. FRED ANDERSON

Ross