Thread: Immigration groups: Trump's silence on DACA means it's here to stay

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Immigration groups: Trump's silence on DACA means it's here to stay

[COLOR=#636C72 !important]by Anna Giaritelli | Jun 25, 2017, 12:01 AM[/COLOR] Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Email this article Share on LinkedIn

As a candidate, Trump blasted the "amnesty" program. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)


Immigration groups are increasingly doubtful President Trump will end President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program after the Department of Homeland Security announced last week that recipients of the Obama-era program were safe for the unforeseen future.

Four national organizations representing a variety of immigration stances told the Washington Examiner the White House has been silent on the issue, and has not told even the groups that support Trump how it plans to go forward. That silence, according to two groups who supported Trump's immigration positions as a candidate, indicates the idea of DACA reform is not stalled, but dead.

"If the president had decided to end DACA, it would have happened. I don't know what they are waiting for. He promised to end DACA," said Rosemary Jenks, director of government relations for NumbersUSA. "Once you say something is illegal and unconstitutional, you can't just keep doing it."

New data from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' second fiscal quarter shows 107,524 DACA renewals and 17,275 new applications were approved from January to March, approximately 70 percent of which happened under the Trump administration.

While campaigning last year, Trump promised to "immediately terminate" the 2012 policy that permitted illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. as minors to receive a two-year period of deferred action and work permit. Recipients' approval would last two years and could be renewed if the individual remained in good legal standing.

As a candidate, Trump blasted the "amnesty" program that former President Barack Obama's second term Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson imposed by memo because Congress could not pass comprehensive immigration reform.

Shortly after his inauguration, Trump appeared to be wavering in his commitment to rescinding DACA. He told one news outlet that recipients "shouldn't be worried" because "we're going to take care of everybody."

Then in April, Trump reiterated that compassionate view when he said "we need special heart" to "understand the other side of that equation" as it relates to DACA recipients.

But last Thursday, DHS Secretary John Kelly said DACA would remain in place while its 2014 sister program, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, would end before it had even begun. The Trump administration revoked the parental program, though it was never implemented, because there was "no credible path forward to litigate the currently enjoined policy" due to its current entanglement in the courts.

Last week, a White House official told the New York Times "there has been no final determination made about the DACA program, which the president has stressed needs to be handled with compassion and with heart."

When asked about a timeline for Trump's deciding the fate of DACA, the White House referred the Washington Examiner to a two-month-old interview it conducted with Trump in which he said "we need special heart."

Trump has some choices he could make related to the program. He could direct DHS to immediately stop issuing renewals and new permits, or announce the program will be discontinued at a future date, giving people time to come up with a plan for how to respond.

But Kelly has said the issue should be taken up by Capitol Hill lawmakers because "Congress is the only entity that can provide a long-term solution to this issue."
Other groups agree with Kelly.

"Though I was initially skeptical, it might even make sense to try to trade a real, lawful amnesty for the DACAs in exchange for important immigration changes only Congress can pass – specifically, universal E-Verify and cuts in legal immigration. In that case, announcing that renewals would continue until, say, the end of the year could be a powerful motivator for congressional Democrats," writes Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which supports conservative-aligned immigration reforms.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/im...rticle/2626949

Though I was initially skeptical, it might even make sense to try to trade a real, lawful amnesty for the DACAs in exchange for important immigration changes only Congress can pass – specifically, universal E-Verify and cuts in legal immigration. In that case, announcing that renewals would continue until, say, the end of the year could be a powerful motivator for congressional Democrats," writes Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which supports conservative-aligned immigration reforms.

And this is our hard-liner pal? Really??!! I sure hope Mark doesn't spend Thursday nights playing poker, he wouldn't have a stitch left to wear home. Nervous Nelly. He's been spittin' and spurtin' and spazzin' since February. Blah. Blah. Blah. BE QUIET.

Just wait. Be cool. Be calm. Relax. Five days to go.

"If the president had decided to end DACA, it would have happened. I don't know what they are waiting for. He promised to end DACA," said Rosemary Jenks, director of government relations for NumbersUSA. "Once you say something is illegal and unconstitutional, you can't just keep doing it."

Yep, you can't be a law and order President if you knowingly allow illegality and unconstitutional acts to continue under your watch.

That's a disappointing statement by Rosemary Jenks. Trump never said the DACA 2012 program was illegal and unconstitutional. He said the two programs challenged by the Texas lawsuit that a Judge stopped were illegal and unconstitutional which were the 2 programs of DACA Expansion and DAPA covered by the November 20, 2014 Jeh Johnson Memorandum that the Trump Administration has rescinded and terminated.

They are still reviewing the DACA 2012 program, and I believe will end it upon dismissal of the Texas lawsuit whose injunction ruling required DACA 2012 remain in effect through resolution of the lawsuit.

Originally Posted by Judy

That's a disappointing statement by Rosemary Jenks. Trump never said the DACA 2012 program was illegal and unconstitutional. He said the two programs challenged by the Texas lawsuit that a Judge stopped were illegal and unconstitutional which were the 2 programs of DACA Expansion and DAPA covered by the November 20, 2014 Jeh Johnson Memorandum that the Trump Administration has rescinded and terminated.

They are still reviewing the DACA 2012 program, and I believe will end it upon dismissal of the Texas lawsuit whose injunction ruling required DACA 2012 remain in effect through resolution of the lawsuit.

Yes, Trump did infer on repeated occasions that Obama's original DACA program was illegal and unconstitutional. Heck, everyone knows the program is unconstitutional, which would make it illegal. Even Judge Reed O'Conner of the U.S. District of Texas said Obama's original DACA program was unconstitutional.

Obama's DACA program is the one you keep calling DACA 2012. FYI: There is only one DACA program. The DACA Expansion and DAPA are separate actions from DACA and were both halted by the courts before the Trump administration canceled the programs. When Trump talked about DACA during his campaign, he was talking about Obama's original DACA program too. Furthermore, during his campaign he thought DACA was created through an executive order. It wasn't until after he was elected that he found out it was created through memorandums and directives from DHS.

Continuously attempting to offer Trump cover on his broken promise to end DACA is not doing our efforts to get him to rescind the program any good. We must put pressure on him, not offer him cover through false excuses and nonsensical rhetoric.

I never heard Trump say that. I only heard him say over and over and over that he was going to end the "two illegal unconstitutional orders that had been stopped by a Judge" .. that's the DACA Expansion and DAPA of 2014, because the Judge didn't stop DACA 2012, he did the opposite and ordered it to remain in effect during the lawsuit.

Trump has ended the "two illegal unconstitutional orders that had been stopped by a Judge" with Kelly's Memo of June 15, 2017 that ends the DACA Expansion and DAPA orders of November 20, 2014, that also extended the DACA 2012 for 3 years, and offered deferred action to some other groups as well.

The number of people given deferred action under the 2014 order was in the millions and millions, I think including all the groups probably close to 10 million illegal aliens. That threat is now over. We're left with the DACA 2012 which is for another 5 days protected by Judge Hanen's Ruling in the Texas lawsuit.

When the lawsuit is dismissed, the ruling is removed and DACA 2012 no longer protected by it at which point Kelly can let it "expire" like Sean Spicer said was the thinking back in February. As I've posted many times, Sean Spicer when asked about DACA at a press conference in February, said "the thinking is to let it expire in June."

I'm basing my opinion on what the White House said they were going to do.

The lawsuit will be dismissed within the next 5 days.

We'll see what happens after that.

Originally Posted by Judy

I never heard Trump say that. I only heard him say over and over and over that he was going to end the "two illegal unconstitutional orders that had been stopped by a Judge" .. that's the DACA Expansion and DAPA of 2014, because the Judge didn't stop DACA 2012, he did the opposite and ordered it to remain in effect during the lawsuit.

Trump has ended the "two illegal unconstitutional orders that had been stopped by a Judge" with Kelly's Memo of June 15, 2017 that ends the DACA Expansion and DAPA orders of November 20, 2014, that also extended the DACA 2012 for 3 years, and offered deferred action to some other groups as well.

The number of people given deferred action under the 2014 order was in the millions and millions, I think including all the groups probably close to 10 million illegal aliens. That threat is now over. We're left with the DACA 2012 which is for another 5 days protected by Judge Hanen's Ruling in the Texas lawsuit.

When the lawsuit is dismissed, the ruling is removed and DACA 2012 no longer protected by it at which point Kelly can let it "expire" like Sean Spicer said was the thinking back in February. As I've posted many times, Sean Spicer when asked about DACA at a press conference in February, said "the thinking is to let it expire in June."

I'm basing my opinion on what the White House said they were going to do.

The lawsuit will be dismissed within the next 5 days.

We'll see what happens after that.

So everyone else heard Trump promise to end DACA "immediately" but you? Okay, if you say so.

Trump now owns the DACA amnesty and it is in his complete power to end it anytime he so chooses. However, he chose to break his promise to the American people and continue the program because he discovered, after being elected I might add, he had a "big heart".

Trump betrayed us on DACA.

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Trump Ditches His Promise to 'Terminate' DACA

WITH IMPORTANT COMMENTS FROM W

But Kelly has said the issue should be taken up by Capitol Hill lawmakers because "Congress is the only entity that can provide a long-term solution to this issue."

Other groups agree with Kelly.

Those other groups are DACA amnesty supporters just like Trump's appointed Secretary of DHS. Many of us that voted on Trump do not support a resoloution in the U.S. Congress because we know that would mean permanent legalization should folks like Secretary Kelly and those "other groups" get their wish.