The future of the Dream Act and of the DACA community remains uncertain as, by one account, the president changes his mind every hour. While he more often than not ties a Dream deal to “the border wall,” neither Democrats nor Republicans knows whether that means “wall components” (Republican Senator Lindsey Graham’s guess) or the 30-foot high, 2,200-mile-long structure that Trump touted during the campaign, and sometimes still seems to demand. In exchange for some kind of Dream Act, Trump sometimes demands not only “the wall,” but also other immigration restrictions and changes.
Today, January 4, Republicans are meeting with Trump on DACA. Yesterday, three former DHS secretaries warned that the window for protecting DACA recipients is closing fast. The three are Janet Napolitano and Jeh Johnson, who served under President Barack Obama, and Michael Chertoff, who served under President George W. Bush. From their letter to the New York Times:
“We write not only in strong support of this legislation, but to stress that it should be enacted speedily, in order to meet the significant administrative requirements of implementation, as well as the need to provide certainty for employers and these young people,” the letter said. “For these reasons, the realistic deadline for successfully establishing a Dreamers program in time to prevent large-scale loss of work authorization and deportation protection is only weeks away, in the middle of January.”
DACA tensions roil GOP (The Hill, 1/3/18) Trump’s hard line on DACA pleases Republicans like Iowa’s Steve King, but others in the caucus disagree.
“At the start of December, 34 House Republicans signed a letter to Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) calling for a vote before the end of 2017 on legislation to protect DACA recipients.
“The need for a fix is felt especially strongly among members from more diverse or competitive districts. Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) joined Democrats in voting against a short-term spending measure just before the Christmas recess.”
Two Trump policies that make Republicans vulnerable in midterms (Washington Post, 1/3/18)
“Next is Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, in the event DACA recipients are not protected — or even if a DACA fix passes over the objections of Republicans. There are plenty of states with already at-risk Republicans in states with a high percentage of Hispanic voters. Contrary to Trump’s ludicrous tweet (“Democrats are doing nothing for DACA – just interested in politics. DACA activists and Hispanics will go hard against Dems, will start ‘falling in love’ with Republicans and their President! We are about RESULTS”), there is only one party that is united in support of a DACA fix.”
And in other news
From the Immigration Prof blog, a good summary of the past year in U.S. immigration news, concludes with
“In sum, President Trump in his first year in office has made immigration enforcement a high priority in ways that President Obama did not. The Obama administration embraced enforcement as a tool to help persuade Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform, including a path to legalization for the eleven million undocumented immigrants who live in the United States. Enforcement thus was a necessary “evil” to secure long-term benefits for immigrants. In contrast, President Trump pursues enforcement as an end in itself (and to keep campaign promises) and seeks to increase enforcement at every turn. He also embraces measures such as the RAISE Act, which would reduce overall levels of immigration to the United States. Vigilance is necessary as the Trump administration likely will continue to pursue its goals of increasing immigration enforcement while reducing legal immigration.”
Trump ICE Chief Wants To Prosecute Politicians Who Won’t Lock Up More Immigrants (Huffington Post, 1/3/18) Thomas Homan, acting director of ICE, is Trump’s nominee for the permanent position.
“Homan’s plan is likely unconstitutional, legal experts say. And the acting director’s argument that sanctuary cities are protecting hordes of dangerous criminals isn’t backed up by his agency’s own data. Recent reports from the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, show the Trump administration itself is increasingly cracking down on petty offenders, not violent felons.”
Motel 6 routinely gave guests’ information to immigration officials, Washington attorney general says (Los Angeles Times, 1/3/18) Motel 6 said the practices uncovered in Arizona last year were limited and local. Washington state attorney general’s office investigated and found the same practices there.
“Washington’s state attorney general sued Motel 6 on Wednesday, accusing the hotel chain of illegally giving information on thousands of guests to immigration enforcement officials who did not have warrants and who scrutinized guests with Latino-sounding names….
“‘It was not isolated to two motels in Phoenix, not by a long shot. The company’s actions were methodical. They trained their new employees on how to do this,’ Ferguson said. ‘We’re going to find out who at Motel 6 knew what, and when they knew it.’”
Opinion: Trump’s war on immigration caseworkers needs to end (The Hill, 1/3/18) Former Congressmember Steve Israel describes the onerous new restrictions and then a specific case his office handled, where these restrictions would have put a four-year-old boy at risk.
“An email sent late last month by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced several new requirements, “including a handwritten and notarized signature, even if the immigrant is overseas,” before a congressional office can accept a “privacy release” that allows it to contact federal agencies. This isn’t simply a case of more paperwork clogging up an already backlogged system. This is an unnecessary measure that can put lives at risk.”
Immigration news 