Thank you for contacting me to express your opposition to H.R. 1275, the American Dream Act. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
The American Dream Act was introduced by Representative Howard Berman (CA) on March 1, 2007. As you know, this bill repeals the provision prohibiting an undocumented alien's eligibility for higher education benefits based on state residence. It also amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to cancel the removal of, and adjust to permanent resident status, certain alien middle or secondary students with qualifying years of U.S. residency, making such aliens eligible for Federal and State higher education assistance while their application for cancellation of removal is pending. On June 5, 2007, H.R. 1275 was referred to the House Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness, where it awaits further action.

You may be interested to know that there have been several bills introduced in state legislatures that have proposed giving illegal aliens access to an in-state tuition break. Texas, California, and Utah already have laws mandating in-state tuition for aliens who have spent a designated amount of time in the state. Supporters of this policy argue that such laws are necessary so that young, talented immigrants who aspire to higher education and are excelling in school aren't punished for the mistakes their parents made. Opponents of this policy feel that such laws will encourage more illegal immigration and will give an unfair break to those who are not in the country legally.

Unfortunately, you and I disagree on this issue. I believe that it is unfair to expect children to suffer the mistakes of their parents. Many of the immigrants who will take advantage of this bill are individuals who have lived in the United States most of their lives, are bright students, upstanding members of the community, and through no fault of their own, are undocumented. I believe that every child, irrespective of the acts of his or her parents, deserves a chance to succeed.

Thank you again for writing to me on this issue. If you have any questions or if I can be of any further assistance, please contact me at 503-326-2901 or 800-422-4003.

With warm regards,

David Wu
Member of Congress

You know the thing that kills me is how he doesn't mind spending our money to finance this Dream Farce. Its ok for me to pay 30 to 40K in taxes and we dont get a say in this? How about the rights of my Sons & Daughters? Oh yeah, they were born here so they dont get rights, except the rights to pay for the wo's of the rest of the world. Wu=NO at the Poles.