GOPers ignore Trump’s bipartisan deal for Dreamers

GOP leaders are ignoring a bipartisan deal by US President Donald Trump to rescue the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), an Obama-era program that he himself has ordered to be scrapped.

According to a Sunday report by Politico, a GOP working group formed by House Speaker Paul Ryan held two meetings last week to discuss immigration, yet there was almost no support among members for Trump’s tentative DACA deal with Democratic leaders, Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Nancy Pelosi.

They rather focused on the border wall Trump had promised to build on the Mexican border to stop immigrants from entering the United States.

“The question about DACA is premature. I think it is a Democratic talking point and not what we should be talking about,” said Arizona Republican Representative Andy Biggs. “We should be talking about what we promised … and that was: Build the wall, secure that border, internal enforcement and then eliminate the incentives people have to enter this country illegally.”

The bipartisan DREAM Act, meanwhile, remained in need of support by at least 24 Republicans to go forward.

Trump’s decision to scrap DACA led to outrage by angry protesters who marched the streets to demand protection for over 800,000 immigrant children who will be left in limbo.

Faced with criticism on both sides of the isle, Trump managed to strike a deal with Democrats on DACA’s removal.

The new agreement specifically includes bipartisan legislation called the DREAM Act, which paves the way for the young immigrants to gain US citizenship upon meeting certain criteria.

“It’s an effort to politicize this issue and for people on the left side of the aisle to score points,” said Miami Republican Representative Carlos Curbelo, a Cuban-American and one of the few Republicans who supports a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. “That’s not constructive right now.”

Read More:

• GOP fears damage from Trump decision on DACA
• 'Trump's cancellation of DACA racist, outrageous'

Democratic leaders, who have come closer to Trump recently, are voicing willingness to work on the bipartisan DREAM Act as DACA was approaching its expiration date in March 2018.

“We are ready to work with Republicans to get the bipartisan DREAM Act signed into law,” wrote Pelosi and Schumer in an op-ed on Friday, further vowing not to work with the president over his border wall funding.

The Republican president has vowed to crack down on immigration but has failed to get his complete agenda through so far.

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