Before the new Congress is sworn in, Democrats are looking for ways to pass legislation to protect undocumented immigrants, known as "Dreamers," who came to the U.S. as children, Politico reports.
Legislation to protect Dreamers after the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, has stalled in Congress despite support from Democrats and some Republicans.
"It's not like we have five years," said Raha Wala, the National Immigration Law Center's vice president of strategic partnerships and advocacy. "The current DACA recipients are in this state of legal limbo really in fear of the fact that the Supreme Court is going to make a final determination that, Yep, this thing is unlawful and y'all are out of luck."
Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told Politico that it's "a long shot, but we're still going to try" to pass a bill in the lame-duck session. "The time to act is now."
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., cast doubts on the possibility of passing the legislation, saying that Democrats are "crazy" to attempt it.
"I think they're just trying to do it, probably, to please some activist groups," he said.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., added, "There's no way you're going to get anybody on our side to do an immigration bill with a broken border."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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