After Failed Defense Bill Vote, DREAM Act Finds Its Way Back

by: Julianne Hing  |  Colorlines | Report

The DREAM Act was dealt a blow this week, but it’s already back for more. On Wednesday, the day after the defense authorization bill failed to clear a motion for cloture in the U.S. Senate and stalled efforts to attach the immigration bill and a “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal as amendments, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin reintroduced the DREAM Act.

The move clears the way for the bill, which would offer undocumented youth raised in the U.S. an opportunity to gain citizenship if they commit to two years in the military or college. In order to qualify for the DREAM Act, young people must have been brought to the U.S. before the age of 16, have lived in the country for at least five years, hold a high school diploma and have a clean criminal record. The bill would benefit almost a million young people, by some estimates.

Durbin’s latest move clears the way for the DREAM Act to be reintroduced as a stand alone bill, bypassing the judiciary committee. Durbin introduced the bill with Republican Sen. Richard Lugar. DREAM Act advocates have confirmed that the bill was added onto the Senate’s legislative calendar on Thursday but without a firm date attached to it. However, while they don’t foresee that the bill will be acted on before the November midterm elections, there’s still a small window during the lame duck session between November and January.

Illinois Rep. Luis Gutierrez has said that should the bill clear the Senate, he’s confident it would pass the House. “I believe there are at least 218 votes in the House to pass the DREAM Act,” Gutierrez wrote this week, urging Senate Republicans not to stall on the defense authorization bill. Should the DREAM Act actually get pushed as a stand alone bill, Republicans are already ready to water the bill down and attach amendments to it. This is not new though. In 2007 when the DREAM Act was also being discussed, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson wanted to change the language of the bill so that instead of giving DREAM Act-eligible young people green cards, they would receive renewable work permits before being able to qualify for citizenship. In the past Republicans also have called to bring down the age cap on the DREAM Act, which would limit the number of young people who could benefit from the bill.

There is still another option for the bill. After the cloture motion failed on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid filed a motion to immediately reconsider the vote, leaving open the possibility that he will take up the issue again after the election. The hope is that moderate Republicans unencumbered by the elections will be more willing to break away from the immigration hawks of their party to vote for the bill.

DREAM Act activists plan to keep pushing for DREAM Act support from Sens. Scott Brown, George LeMieux and Susan Collins, who said during the Senate floor debate on Tuesday that they would support the DREAM Act as a stand alone bill. “What we know is, is that they are potential votes,” said Matias Ramos, a DREAM Act activist and board member for the group United We Dream. Ramos called their remarks “a silver lining” from the failed Tuesday vote.

Either way, DREAM Act advocates who have been strategically increasing public pressure on congressional leaders with intense lobbying, hunger strikes and civil disobedience all year, have no plans to back off. They are planning another escalation right after the elections are over.

“We’re going to be ready to push, and push hard,” said Ramos. 

Reprinted with permission of ColorLines magazine, www.colorlines.com.

All republished content that appears on Truthout has been obtained by permission or license.





     

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Doesn't go far enough - open

Doesn't go far enough - open the borders wide so that anyone can come and go as they please. Good first step, but until things return to what made this country great, we're going to be exploited and the majority will be living in poverty if corporations and money rule the land.



How sad. Helping Mexican

How sad. Helping Mexican citizens join the U.S. military or attend American colleges only displaces poor American minorities. Why do some Dems and TO hate poor Americans. Can't anyone give a brother a job?



That's a-tasty xenophobia.

That's a-tasty xenophobia. Corporate 'Murica savored the opportunity to create a haven for slave labor south of the border. Bubba gave them NAFTA, with additional thanks to Robert Reich. Americans, generally clueless, had no idea their good jobs were being sent away, permanently.
Open borders are really scary to the labor exploiters, but with therapy and training they emerge improved.



Open borders is an insane

Open borders is an insane and naive idea by those who haven't a clue what would happen if the five billion poor people of the world could come here. You'd have ships full of starving people arrive hourly, and we'd have a billion unskilled foreigners roaming and looting our streets within four years.

This is why no other developed nation allows mass immigration like we do, much less open borders.



We do allow mass immigration

We do allow mass immigration of H1-Bs to undercut and marginalize American workers. Only a propagandist can't see that Wall Street and Banks have roamed and looted for at least the past 10 years. They particularly do not want to see open borders, and they are clinical sociopaths, through no fault of their own, since the profit motive consumes the best of everything.



The US recession has pushed

The US recession has pushed well educated Indian professionials back to their "homeland" since their isn't opportunity for them here. The Koch crowd will probably argue for a border fence to keep people "in" because fleeing economic malaise is "un-American",



A Plan For A Real

A Plan For A Real “American Dream Act” Bill & Counter Attack To Save Legal U.S Citizen From Silent Invasion:

First bring back our soldiers from this Afghanistan war that is costly and going nowhere. Middle Eastern and Asians love to see us waste money and go broke fighting for freedom when they don’t really want it. This is their main weapon and we keep falling into their trap. Then we need to regroup military troops and military force to invade/overthrow Mexico’s government turning it into a U.S territory.
The new land will be used as an industrial/business commerce zone. U.S citizens will be able to by property and have a dual citizenship between U.S and Mexico. Mexico will keep its current currency and there current government will be demoted to local municipal law enforcement as long as they surrender to the U.S.
The U.S will be in full control of all laws, finances, local law enforcement, military and our “Secondary Army of Illegal Soldiers/Enforcers” in Mexico. The path to dual citizenship will require the illegal immigrants living in the U.S to serve in the U.S Secondary South Boarder Military for teen years… Along with completing the invasion/overthrow of Mexican government to expand U.S lands, business, and revive our economy. For Mexico citizen requesting to come to the U.S temporary worker programs and legal paths to citizenship & residence will be granted to those who qualify.
This action is to liberate Mexico from its corrupt government that is destroying it self and the U.S slowly. It is also a test for them to redeem them selves for us to see, how much heart they have, how patriotic they are, and much they love this country including us, laws in all.
This Government, past & present, Republican & Democrat, have allowed this invasion of 20 to 30 million illegal aliens of which is the largest invasion of any Nation, at any time, by any means and in direct violation of Article IV Section IV of the U.S Constitution. Our government has failed the most basic and primary task & duty of government, spelled out in our Constitution Article IV Section IV to protect this Nation and its Citizens from invasion and enforce its laws.
We need real change and action on this now!
Give Central, South & Caribbean Americans Rights Reside In Mexico To Work
U.S. Constitution - Article 4 Section 4 Text Copy
Article 4 - The States
Section 4 - Republican Government
The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.

Pass It On To Congress & The President!!!