Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced today that he will push the DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors) forward before the end of this year. In a statement, Senator Reid told reporters that he would consider pushing the DREAM Act as a separate piece of legislation this fall instead of including it in a broader comprehensive immigration reform package.
Even though the DREAM Act enjoys bipartisan support, many Republicans may not be willing to support broader immigration reform measures in an election year. The majority leader has stated that he would not consider immigration reform if he did not have 60 votes in the senate to pass a comprehensive reform package. But today, Reid told reporters that he plans to push immigration reform legislation this fall in a comprehensive way, and that if there is not support for a broader package, he would “take a real strong look at the DREAM Act” as a standalone piece of legislation. If enacted, the DREAM Act would serve as an important step towards comprehensive immigration reform.
Some Democrats seem to be divided on the political strategy. House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi expressed her concern that taking out the parts that had broad support would “diminish the prospect for comprehensive immigration reform.”
Senator Dick Durbin, the bill’s sponsor, said he was open to the idea of separating the DREAM Act from larger reform efforts. In an interview with The Atlantic Monthly, he said “if there is an opportunity to move the bill as a standalone piece of legislation, we’ll certainly consider that option.”
Executive Director of America’s Voice, Frank Sharry, complimented Senator Reid for “doing the right thing.”
“We all know that comprehensive immigration reform is the only way to fix our nation’s dysfunctional immigration system once and for all. But the fact is, not one Republican is currently willing to work with Democrats on a comprehensive proposal because of election year politics. Senator Reid’s support for the DREAM Act – an immigration reform measure authored by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) that would allow thousands of young people to earn legal immigration status and eventually citizenship if they go to college or serve in the military – gives the measure new momentum that could lead to its enactment this year.”
For the past two weeks, youth activists from across the country have lobbied senators in Washington D.C., urging them to co-sponsor and support the DREAM Act as a standalone bill. Many of these undocumented youth risked arrest and deportation as they protested in the Nation’s capitol.
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On the other end of the spectrum, Arizona legislator Russell Pearce says babies born in the U.S. to illegal immigrants should not be citizens even though the Constitution says they are.
I’m with Harry Reid.
David
The founders did not mean what you think. They put that in or the children of slaves not for children born of non citizens.
As a faculty member, I say Pass the DREAM Act NOW! Get these deserving, hard working young Americans out of harm’s way. They are the solution, not the problem.
Our students and I see life in terms of semesters. Haters in Arizona will go to ridiculous lengths and obscene costs to keep DREAMers out of school. Even if our DREAMers take only one class, it keeps them connected, and prevents them from becoming Anne Franks as the result of the fear mongering. Staying in school is very empowering for them. Take the Arizona Taliban out of office. Stop the hate, dishonesty, the waste, and ignorance.
When will we learn that children are our currency, regardless of who they are or where they come from. Honestly, Baby Boomers, how many of you would really prefer your own children (how many did you have?) as you come to need assistance? If you consider quantity and quality of care, of any kind, you will do everything possible to keep these kids in school. As long as they do not go over 6 credits, for under $300, you can keep a kid enrolled, in a community college class, in Maricopa County.
Pass the DREAM Act NOW! Get out of their way, and let us get the process started immediately, before the start of another semester!
Laurita, you can write a comprehensible sentence!
“Our students and I” ???
You certainly don’t put forward a compelling argument.
Laurita,
Your paycheck depends on increasing student enrollment, regardless of whether the workforce needs more workers.
The U.S. economy has an oversuply of workers. These students need to go back to their own countries and develop those countries. it is the right thing for them to do.
Laurita if you are a teacher then you SHOULD BE FAIR. There are lots of other illegals ( professionals) that have already contributed to the US and are waiting for a chance. The Dream ACt students have not contributed yet. SO there should be a CIR AND NO! DREAM ACT BY Itsef!! it IS UNA<Merican!! Tell me I have been paying my taxes for 10 years, given 15 patents to the US, studied here and graduated with Honors. I lost my job 2 years ago because of my lawyer. Now I am illegally here and you are telling me A dream Act student has the right away before me!!?? YOU ARE WRONG THIS IS NOT RIGHT!! CIR FIRST AND THE DREAM ACT WITHIN IT
I hope this goes forward and is not sacrificed to get broader support “comprehensive immigration reform”. Get what you can while you can.
I just think that with the DREAM Act it should also be included the SKILL ACT of 2010. So the legal workers in this Country and those waiting for the visa will not have any problem also. Lets finish with the backlog visas.
The SKILL act should not even come up for a vote. it is an insult to U.S. skilled workers to bring in cheap replacements from overseas to flood the market and drive down wages. Foreign guests workers visas should all be immediately revoked and those workers should return and build up their own economies.
We need a just and COMPREHENSIVE immigration reform. Enough is enough listening to racists (Governor Hitler/Brewer, Joe Gestapo/Arpaio). No human is illegal, and angry old white racists are on the wrong side of history and demographics! Tick tock, Billy Bob!
The U.S. welcomes more legal immigrants than the rest of the world combined. We need to reduce immigration in times of high unemployment of our legal permanent workforce.
A job is a blessing from God, which cannot be blocked by a law. Immigration law must not block but assist people to get to work.
Way to go Harry Reid…
There are legal immigrants with advanced Engineering degrees waiting for 10 or more years to get their green card, paying well over 30K a year in taxes and not seeing a penny of that in benefits. But who cares about them, right? These are tax paying, law abiding residents. Why would you want to worry about them?
Let’s reward people who BROKE the law and hold people who abide law as hostages. I cannot be more happier for kids who were brought here by parents to get their immigration status resolved. But THEY SHOULD NOT go before people who pay taxes and contribute to the economy as a whole. Doing so is JUST WRONG.
@Tinko Binks
that’s what you come up with? Grammar police comment? Shoot yourself.
@ We have high unemployment in the U.S.
“These students need to go back to their own countries and develop those countries. it is the right thing for them to do.”
Right. You want 18 and 21 year old kids to return to a country they vaguely remember to develop. No way are you a nut job.
Second…out of these students (some incredibly brilliant) might be the next Steve Jobs, the next ‘YouTube’, or the next Fortune 500 company ala Microsoft….and you just want to throw all that possibility away by deporting them, AND THEIR SMARTS out of America?
You stupid? You’d think that it’d be best to KEEP IT IN OUR COUNTRY SO WE BENEFIT.
@the Illegal
“Laurita if you are a teacher then you SHOULD BE FAIR. There are lots of other illegals ( professionals) that have already contributed to the US and are waiting for a chance. The Dream ACt students have not contributed yet. ”
They haven’t contributed yet because they’re being PREVENTED from doing so, smart guy. These students don’t even have a chance at many things that us citizens take for granted. Helping to amend that would be the FAIR thing to do.
And judging by your comment…the illegal professionals who have contributed….are illegal out of their own free will. The Dream Act is targeted towards those that are here illegally NOT out of their own free will.
Now if an illegal professional is contributing…and was brought here at the age of like…six….and has a clean rap sheet…and is within a certain age bracket…
then he/she should be jumping for joy out of the possibility of this passing because he/she won’t have to be in the shadows anymore and pursue other professional interests.
hello. i think the Dream Act should pass. Reason why, is many college students want to be in the process of studying for their major and maybe transfer to a 4-year university. the other reason why it should pass, it will give undocumted aliens residency if they go to college or join the army.
The Dream Act should only be for those in the top 10% of their class. The American taxpayer has been forced to provide education for 30 years. If the DREAMER did not take advantage of it, he should receive no consideration. The proposed legislation is for anyone less than 36 with a GED to receive consideration. That is ridiculous.
NO AMNESTY.
Demand that your candidate take a public stance on “comprehensive Immigration reform.”
Demand that your representative propose and support legislation that:
1) makes it a felony to trespass into our country
2) makes a felony to hire an illegal – with a 10K fine
3) defunds all entitlement benefits to illegals
4) defunds any medical treatment for illegals
5) supports the end of “anchor babies” and requires that one parent be a citizen – for the child to qualify for American citizenship
6) gives all law enforcement officials the right to arrest, deport, and detain illegals.
7) expands the role of state government in border security issues
8) fully-staffed, militarized northern and southern borders
9)defunds illegal activist organizations, such as LaRaza, LaMeCHa, LULAC, MALDEF, and Casa de Maryland
10) defunds any post-secondary educational benefits to illegal aliens
11) makes it a felony to aid and abet illegal aliens, including politicians, the president, individuals, and illegal activist organizations
12) forces the federal government to fully fund ICE and to hire those who support our rule of law and who support illegal alien law enforcement
This is the least we can do – and is to begin immediately.
can we all just get along?