But alas, I was naive; that was not to happen. We are now in a different place, and we have the ability to act. I supported President Obama's actions in June of 2012 to protect
Dreamers--the DACA Program; and then later, the DAPA Program. I felt
that those actions were completely in accord with earlier Executive
actions Presidents had taken in the area of immigration. Since June of 2012, 800,000 young people have achieved Dreamer
status. Some of them aren't so young anymore. I sometimes refer to them
as students and kids, but they are in the military, they are parents,
they are teachers, and they are active in their communities. As I said,
there are 13,000 in my State. DACA has allowed them to continue their
education, to work legally, and to remain in the only country they have
ever known. I will say I was disappointed when President Trump in September
announced that he would terminate the program in 6 months--in March. I
felt like it was the breaking of a promise to these young people
because he had said, even as a candidate and then as President, that
Dreamers were good kids and that they wouldn't have anything to worry
about from him.
Keywords matched
immigration DACA