DACA Decision
President Trump right to reverse likely illegal policy
President Donald Trump has gotten a lot of flack over his decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy and send the matter back to Congress for further consideration.
DACA, as it’s known, has its roots in the DREAM Act, which gave illegal immigrants brought here as children a path to citizenship providing they met certain qualifications. The DREAM Act failed to pass muster in the Senate both in 2007 and 2011, so in 2012 President Barack Obama implemented DACA without congressional input.
DACA gave those who came to the U.S. before the age of 16 and before June 2007 the ability to stay in this country without the risk of deportation and to qualify for work visas, provided they met other qualifications, such as a clean criminal record and certain educational or military service requirements. There is a $495 fee and documents must be renewed every two years. Those covered by DACA are also allowed to travel overseas under certain conditions and return to the U.S. for an additional fee.
Republican leaders have maintained President Obama misused his power in implementing DACA. And even some Democrats admit that might be the case. U.S. Sen. Nancy Feinstein of California said Tuesday on MSNBC that DACA might be on shaky legal ground.
Some states threatened legal action against DACA, but so far no court has ruled on whether the policy is legal or not. And now some states are threatening legal action against President Trump for rescinding DACA.
But let’s be clear. President Trump did not just dump DACA and put an estimated 800,000 young folks at risk for immediate deportation.
No, he allowed a six-month window for Congress to act. In other words, he rescinded what is possibly an illegal policy and told Congress to handle it. Now it’s up to Republicans and Democrats to work together and handle this thing.
Illegal immigration is a hot-button issue and many have strong opinions about it, one way or the other. And many Americans have some sympathy for those brought here as young children. What should be done about them is a matter of opinion and what will be done is now up to Congress. But whatever they decide will be done legally, not arbitrarily.
President Trump did nothing wrong here. He is trying to right a wrong. Republicans have been critical of DACA from the start and Democrats have ignored the legal implications. It’s time for both parties to show they can do better.