DACA deal divided by ‘a wall’ proposal leaves Dreamers on edge
President Trump met with key Republican senators at the White House this week to talk about the future of DACA. The guests were more moderate members of his party who negotiate with Democrats in the Senate over the immigration program. In the meeting, President Trump said he hopes, “Everything is going to work out very well,” but touted the border wall he has long promised.
“We really are at a point where I think we can do something spectacular for the people on the border of people coming through. We have to be careful because this drug drug epidemic likes of which we’ve never seen in this country. We need protection. We need the wall we need all of those things,” said Trump.
January 5th marks four months since the Trump Administration rescinded DACA. As the deadline for expiration approaches, a wall proposal still divides Democrats and Republicans. NewsChannel 13’s Cinthia Maldonado joins us in the studio with more on the battle in Washington.
Democrats have been pushing to shield Dreamers since Trump made the announcement but some Republicans cannot seem to agree and want to limit the chain migration. Now uncertainty, is putting Dreamers on edge because President Trump is demanding his promised wall before anything is decided.
It’s this old archive Abraham Rivera can trace back to where he was born.
“This is the only photo of me in Mexico. Umm…I was maybe two-three months old. I don’t even know my godparents. Soon after this my parents decided to come to the United States.”
It’s a 1994 newspaper article about his baptism in Zacatecas, Mexico.
Fast-forward 23 years, “I love Colorado Springs! I went to Monterey Elementary, I went to Carmel Middle School, [and] I went to Harrison high school. I don’t know any other place but Colorado Springs.”
He’s known no other country than America. Abraham’s DACA expires next September. “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know if there’s going to be a big deportation force.”
The key deadline for Congress to figure out what to do with the DACA program is fast approaching.
As of Friday, almost 15,000 Dreamers have lost their status. That number grows with every day that passes.
“Having DACA really helps me out as far as going to college. I can pay in-state-tuition; I can have a job, and provide for myself and really help my family.”
Attorney Alex McSchiras in Colorado Springs says there are a few proposals on the table.
“One is codifying DACA which is what we already had in the Deferred Action putting it into law; previously it was an executive order.”
The other option is the Dream Act, a pathway to citizenship. But a deal seems far from reach, “Now, Trump tweeted and he said that deal will have to include funding for a wall.”
Now, DACA’s fate remains in the hands of congress.
The Trump Administration wants roughly $18 billion for the wall but to settle a deal Democrats demand the budget must include some sort of agreement on DACA or the Dream Act. Congress has until January 19th to come up with a new budget plan.
