CQ
By David Harrison
July 24, 2012
Democrats are keeping up the pressure to pass the DREAM Act, a longstanding effort to make it possible for some undocumented young people to become citizens.
In a pair of speeches Tuesday one on the Senate floor and the other before an advocacy group Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin of Illinois introduced a new website featuring stories of young illegal immigrants and said he would not relent in his push to get the legislation (S 952, HR 1842) through Congress.
The drive for Congress to address the plight of the so-called dreamers has ebbed somewhat since the Obama administration announced June 15 that it would grant some young undocumented immigrants relief from deportation for two years.
But supporters say the administrations action is not enough, since a subsequent administration could easily rescind the policy. They also have questions about the implementation of the new directive. How the Homeland Security Department runs the program could have a significant effect on the number of young people granted deferred action, which would allow them to stay and work in the country.
At the same time, keeping talk of the DREAM Act alive is a political boost for Democrats seeking to court Hispanic voters, who are expected to play a key role in this year's election.
Thanks to President Obama's new policy, dreamers are not at risk of deportation for the next two years, Durbin said in a speech at the Center for American Progress Action Fund. But a future president could change this policy. Ultimately the responsibility lies with Congress to pass the DREAM Act and give these bright, ambitious young people a path to citizenship in America.
Although the House passed a version of the legislation in 2010, Senate Democrats could not muster the 60 votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster. Democrats have reintroduced the bill in this Congress, but a Senate Democratic aide said it was unlikely it would be brought up before the election.
Republicans Challenge Administration
The administration is expected to unveil the rules governing its new deferred action policy on Aug. 1, and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said earlier this month that her agency would start accepting applications Aug. 15.
Republicans, led by House Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith of Texas, have been pushing the administration to demand that applicants show a certified school transcript and other documents to prove their eligibility. He called the new policy a magnet for fraud.
"Many illegal immigrants will falsely claim that they came to the U.S. as children, and this administration refuses to take the steps necessary to check whether their claims are true or not," Smith said.
Under the administration's guidelines, only immigrants who came to the country before they turned 16, who are under 30 years old and who have lived in the country for the last five years are eligible. They must not have been convicted of serious crimes and must be either in school or have received a high school diploma or GED.
Immigration attorneys say they are waiting to learn what kinds of misdemeanor convictions would disqualify an applicant. And they are also waiting to hear what fees will be charged.
"We're still kind of in limbo," said Maurice Goldman, an immigration attorney in Arizona who represents several people who could benefit from the new policy.
There's a lot of questions that are unanswered at this point.
Advocates are asking the administration to write the rules in ways that would allow as many people as possible to qualify for deferred action and that would protect their privacy.
"We're being more proactive than just sort of waiting for that to happen," said Erika Andiola, a DREAM Act activist from Arizona. "That's why we're on top of people. It's an ongoing advocacy that we have to be doing. Even if it's implemented the right way, we have to keep going and ask for something bigger. Hopefully we can get something passed in Congress."
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