It is clear that we have very profound political
differences when it comes to the issues that face us, but I come to the
floor this morning in an unusual position to express my gratitude to
President Trump for a position he has taken, which I think is the right
position for America. Let me explain. Five years ago, President Barack Obama created the
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, known as DACA. It
enabled approximately 790,000 talented young people to contribute more
fully to this country. They are teachers, nurses, engineers, small
business owners, and more. DACA, which was an Executive action by
President Obama, provides a temporary legal status to immigrant
students who arrived in the United States as infants, toddlers, and
children. They have to come forward under this Executive action and
register with our government. They have to pay a substantial fee for
processing. Then they have to submit themselves to a criminal and
national security background check. If they are successful, they are
given 2 years of temporary relief from deportation. This program is based on the Dream Act, a bill that I first
introduced in the U.S. Senate 16 years ago--in 2001. That bill would
give undocumented students who grew up in this country a chance to
become legal and to earn their way to citizenship. These young people have come to be known as Dreamers. They came to
the United States under the age of 16, some of them 1 or 2 years old. They grew up in the United States, going to our public schools, singing
the ``Star Spangled Banner,'' pledging allegiance to the only flag they
have ever known, the American flag. They are American in every way
except for their immigration status. We have already invested in them,
as you can tell--invested in their education, bringing them up in
American schools. I can't believe it makes any sense for the future of
our country to squander their talents by deporting them to countries
that many of them have never known. A recent study by the Center for American Progress finds that ending
DACA, President Obama's Executive action, would cost our economy at
least $433 billion in gross domestic product over the next 10 years. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy estimates that the 1.3
million young people eligible for DACA pay $2 billion each year in
State and local taxes. As I said at the beginning, I have had many differences with
President Trump, particularly on the issue of immigration in some of
the speeches and statements he has made, but I do appreciate--
personally appreciate--that this President has kept the DACA Program in
place. I have spoken directly to President Trump only two times--three
times, perhaps. The first two times--one on Inauguration Day--I thanked
him for the kind words he had said about Dreamers and the DACA students
and those protected by the President's Executive action. President Trump said to me: Don't worry about those kids. Well, Mr.
Keywords matched
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