"Dreamers" Get a Temporary Reprieve But Trump Will Try Again to Deport Them if He's Reelected
Yesterday the Supreme Court gave the 700,000 "Dreamers," individuals brought to America by their parents as children, a temporary reprieve by rejecting the Trump administration's attempt to rescind President Obama's DACA program [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals]. The Court held in a 5-4 decision that the Trump administration was sloppy and had not followed the proper rules and procedures in place to rescind DACA. However, Chief Justice John Roberts didn't say in his opinion that President Trump couldn't repeal DACA, just that he had to follow the rules.
Washington Post: “The dispute before the Court is not whether DHS [Department of Homeland Security] may rescind DACA,” Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote for the court. “The dispute is instead primarily about the procedure the agency followed in doing so.”
Trump immediately tweeted that he would have to "start this process all over again," to rescind DACA and Americans should take him at his word on this. If Trump is reelected he will again attempt to deport the "Dreamers, " or hold them hostage to get tens of billions of dollars for his grotesque and pointless border wall." In either case, these individuals would again become political pawns, facing fear and uncertainty, unsure if they could build lives and careers in the United States. That would be a tragedy. These individuals broke no laws and will contribute to the nation's future vitality and success.
Washington Post: "Some 27,000 dreamers work in health care — doctors, nurses, EMTs, physician assistants. Even as they scrambled to protect people from covid-19, they had to worry that the Trump administration would soon target them for deportation to countries where they would be, effectively, total foreigners. Thousands more are college students, teachers, food preparers and government workers. Deporting these people would be an act of economic and social self-harm that, studies suggest, could cost the country hundreds of billions of dollars."
And beyond the economic calculation, there is the question of who we are as a nation, what we represent to the world. I found this quote in the student newspaper of the University of Missouri-Kansas City from 2017. It's unsigned but it speaks to this point about as well as anything I've read.
UMKC.edu: This debate is not a simple dichotomy between legal immigration and illegal immigration.
This is a question of whether children will incur punishment for their parent’s actions. This is a moral, economic and American question. It is about our values. It is about whether we, as a country, are prepared to expel people who chose to come out of the shadows and contribute to our society.
These immigrants represent the promise and love of Lady Liberty, who has served as a beacon of hope for generations of newcomers.
We owe to them our protection and acceptance. Because they are not them anymore. They are us. They are Americans."
And President Obama responded yesterday to the Supreme Court's ruling reminding us of a time when compassion, empathy and a healthy dose of common sense played a role in the nation's policy-making.
Obama, Twitter: "Eight years ago this week, we protected young people who were raised as part of our American family from deportation. Today, I'm happy for them, their families, and all of us. We may look different and come from everywhere, but what makes us American are our shared ideals…"
Former Vice-President Joe Biden will make it possible for the "Dreamers" to stay and build lives in America, and Donald Trump will deport them or use them as hostages to achieve his white nationalist agenda. The choice is very clear on this issue.
By: Don Lam & Curated Content
Photo: Sen. Tammy_Duckworth_with_We_Are_All_Dreamers_shirt
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