Thread: Dream Act - a needed step in immigration reform

The big contribution - be able to vote to insure amnesty for all of the illegals and everyone still in Mexico.

My message to Dreamers - Go home and remake your own country in the image of what you covet. Most of you are adults and no one owes you for your family's decisions. When American kiids that don't have families are 18, they are turned into the streets, what makes you think you are so "special" ? Durbin and Reid are the biggest supporters JMO


Dream Act - a needed step in immigration reform
Ruben Navarrette Jr.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Ruben Navarrette Jr.
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(08-17) 04:00 PDT San Diego --

Most parents will do anything for their children. And when Mom and Dad are in the United States illegally, this includes volunteering to spend the rest of your lives in the shadows if it means your kid can step into the light.

On a recent trip to Phoenix, I sat down for dinner with a pair of illegal immigrants - a married couple who overstayed their visas about 15 years ago and have been trying, with the help of an attorney, to get right with the law ever since. They're not the only ones who lack legal status; they have a child, born in Mexico, who is now a teenager with an uncertain future. Mom and Dad agree that they'd be willing to forgo their chance at legal status if, at least, something could be done for their child.

That something is the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or DREAM, sponsored by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Richard Lugar, R-Ind. The bill is aimed at young people in the country illegally, offering them "conditional permanent residency" if they came before they were 16 and if they attend college or serve in the military. Once they graduate or complete their enlistment, they would get permanent legal residency with a chance to apply for U.S. citizenship. Anyone who didn't enroll in college or join the military would be subject to deportation.

As far as my dinner companions are concerned, the legislation is a gift from above.

"We'd be willing to wait 100 years for the chance to stay here legally," the father said, "if our child could have that opportunity right now through the DREAM Act."

This bill is a fantastic idea. It identifies young people who want to make a contribution and separates them from those who don't. And it allows the United States to keep precisely the kind of individuals that other countries would love to have. The legislation represents good policy and good sense. So, naturally, it's having trouble making it through Congress.

Immigration-reform liberals are split. In one camp are those who think Congress should pass the DREAM Act to solve a small part of the immigration problem. In the other are those who want to stay focused on the larger and more elusive cause of comprehensive immigration reform.

Part of it has to do with the numbers. It is estimated that the DREAM Act could affect as many as 700,000 people; those who are pushing for comprehensive immigration reform have their eye on changing the status of more than 10 million.

Some say its time to settle for the DREAM Act as a "down payment" on immigration reform.

Adding to all this, there's also drama on Capitol Hill. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is in a tough battle for re-election. Should he lose, it would set off a gladiator match to succeed him between the second-ranking Democrat (Durbin, who is sponsoring the DREAM Act) and the third-ranking Democrat (Sen. Charles Schumer of New York, who is supposedly going to propose - one of these days - a comprehensive bill).

The Hill newspaper reported a few months ago that Durbin is "soft-pedaling" the DREAM Act so as not to undercut Schumer's reform effort. He's doing this even though his supporters think it's every senator for himself now and that No. 2 shouldn't be doing anything to help No. 3 - especially because, many immigration advocates acknowledge, it's Durbin's bill that stands the better chance of passing.

Political junkies love this stuff, but most people couldn't care less about the politics holding back the DREAM Act.

They include those parents in Phoenix who just want a safe haven for their child and thought they had seen the last of this kind of political dysfunction when they left Mexico.

They also include the several hundred undocumented high school and college students who recently marched on Washington - in caps and gowns - to rally support for the bill. Some of them occupied senators' offices and got arrested, risking deportation. By their actions, these students showed more courage and character in confronting this issue than our lawmakers have shown in ducking it.

And there's the best argument for passing the DREAM Act - so that deserving young people get the chance to realize their full potential. With so much of politics driven by the self-interest of politicians, we're fresh out of leaders in this country. So we had better start growing a new crop.

(c) 2010, Ruben Navarrette Jr.


Ruben Navarrette Jr.'s e-mail address is ruben@ rubennavarrette.com.

This article appeared on page A - 8 of the San Francisco Chronicle


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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... 1EV9I8.DTL

When I saw this article was by Navarrete I did not even bother reading it because I have heard it all before,the same tired rhetoric time and time again from Rueben.

If our politicians would stop talking about passing the Dream Act like they have for many years now these adult children of IA's would have gone home and be busy living their lives to the fullest.

Instead they are wasting the best years of their young lives waiting,waiting,waiting for the Immposible Dream Act to pass.

Wasted lives since many of these IA's who seem to have bet their futures on the words of lying politicians who make promises just to keep the Pro-Illegal vote.

DREAM Act = Amnesty

Doesn't matter if they were brought to the US when they were 16, 6 or 6 months old. They are still jumping the line ahead of the thousands of people who want to immigrate here legally. They have enjoyed their federally mandated public education and received their American high school diploma. They need to move on, go home and fix things in their own countries.

This was the first article of many articles, including extensive coverage of Dreamers biking to DC, if you go to google news and query Dream Act.

The same as always, just another sob story; "The real Dream Act would send these students back to their HOME countries and stop draining our resources that could be used to assist United States Citizens and NOT the ILLEGALS and their anchors! Just follow the money! The Elitist Politicians and their Elitist Political Contributors want to maintain having United States Citizens pay the benefits for their ILLEGALS while they continue to have their BOTTOM LINES increased with the Cheap ILLEGAL Labor at the taxpayer's expense!"

Some say its time to settle for the DREAM Act as a "down payment" on immigration reform.

NO! NEVER! Before you know it there will be several millions of illegal aliens registering for school. Community colleges will be built at taxpayers expense to provide room for them. They can put rules in place that state the kids must graduate from high schools in order to be qualified but these rules will eventually be broken. It will be one other huge mess on top of an already out of control illegal alien population.

Well, we can keep bitchin' about the problem or we can vote Reid, Graham, McCain, and every other Representative and Senator OUT who supports Amnesty and the DREAM ACT.

So what's it going to be? Vote your conscience, unite, and take back America or keep complaining.

I emailed McCain weeks ago RESPECTFULLY ASKING THAT HE OPPOSE THE DREAM ACT!
This is what I finally got back and this is the ONLY Response that I have ever gotten from Sen. McCain:

Sgt at Arms Normal SAA 2 0 2010-04-23T14:24:00Z 2010-08-16T19:04:00Z 2010-08-16T19:04:00Z 2 1112 6073 United States Senate 19991 132 29 7156 12.00 false 6 pt 2 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4
DATE \@ "MMMM d, yyyy" \* MERGEFORMAT August 16, 2010
Dear ..........:
Thank you for contacting me regarding border security and immigration reform. This is one of the most critical issues facing the people of Arizona and I appreciate knowing your views and for the opportunity to explain my position.

The violence along our southern border is increasing and impeding everyday life and the peace of mind of our citizens both along the border region and in the entire state. Since Mexican President Felipe Calderon began his war on the drug cartels in 2006, according to law enforcement officials in Arizona, the percentage of hardened criminals that are illegally crossing the border through the Tucson Border Patrol Sector has increased to over 17 percent. The violence and destruction in our border region has reached levels that I have never witnessed in all the years I've had the privilege to represent Arizona in Congress. It has led some Arizonans to feel that they are living in a lawless territory where there is little or no consequence for the violation of their land, property and well-being. I have heard first hand of the fear and difficulties these individuals live with every day and I admire their courage. For years, I have demanded the federal government must do all it can within its power to curb this violence and protect its citizens from criminals coming across the Mexican border. Arizonans living throughout the state, but especially along the border, must feel safe and secure in their homes and on their property.

To combat illegal immigration, drug and human smuggling, and violent activity in the southwest Senator Jon Kyl and I have developed a comprehensive 10-point plan to secure our southern border. We must begin with the immediate deployment of 3,000 National Guard troops along the Arizona-Mexico border and simultaneously begin hiring and training an additional 3,000 Customs and Border Protection Agents to be permanently stationed in the region. Furthermore, we must fully fund Operation Streamline in all Arizona Border Patrol Sectors to put illegal border crossers in jail for up to 30 days with expenses paid for by the Federal government. Additionally, the Federal government must complete the 700 miles of fencing along the southern border.

Our plan is supported by law enforcement officers across the state of Arizona, including Cochise County Sherriff Larry Dever and Pinal County Sherriff Paul Babeu. Attached to this letter, I have included the full 10-point plan that Senator Kyl and I have developed. We intend to fight to see this plan implemented in its entirety as soon as possible.

It is true that some industries in Arizona continue to struggle without a sensible and fair temporary worker program. However, I believe that it would be irresponsible for Congress to take up any measure designed to address broader immigration issues while the security situation in Mexico continues to deteriorate. Before action on comprehensive immigration occurs the border must first be secured.

According to an April 14, 2010, Los Angeles Times article, the death toll from the Mexican government's three-year war on drug cartels is far higher than previously reported -- more than 22,000. This violence is an existential threat to the Mexican government and demands that we secure our border immediately. I will continue to do everything within my ability to ensure the federal government fulfills its obligation to protect the citizens of Arizona from the dangerous criminal elements lurking on our southern border to ensure that everyone's families, friends and neighbors can feel safe and secure in their homes.

Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. Please feel free to contact me on this or any other issue of concern.
Sincerely,

John McCain

United States Senator

JM/ds

SOME JOKE!

Originally Posted by USPatriot

When I saw this article was by Navarrete I did not even bother reading it because I have heard it all before,the same tired rhetoric time and time again from Rueben.

If our politicians would stop talking about passing the Dream Act like they have for many years now these adult children of IA's would have gone home and be busy living their lives to the fullest.

Instead they are wasting the best years of their young lives waiting,waiting,waiting for the Immposible Dream Act to pass.

Wasted lives since many of these IA's who seem to have bet their futures on the words of lying politicians who make promises just to keep the Pro-Illegal vote.

Ditto...he's like a broken record for his beloved amnesty and dream act for criminal invaders.