DACA Deal May Depend on Funding for Border Wall

While a bipartisan agreement was reached on immigration, President Trump opposed it and countered with a demand of $25 billion to pay for his border wall along with other concessions such as an end to the diversity lottery and family-based immigration. Both the left and the right are opposed to Trump’s immigration plan, but it is unclear whether they will be able to pass a DACA bill with a veto-proof majority in the Senate. Trump announced an end to DACA in Sept. 2017, giving six months for legislators to come up with a replacement program. The deadline expires on March 5, and the fate of current recipients of DACA remains unclear. An immigration lawyer in Chicago might help clients to identify alternatives to DACA so that the recipients can remain in Illinois.

Trump Leaves DACA Recipients Worried

Trump ended DACA in Sept. and said that it would be up to Congress to come up with a deal to save the program. He gave a deadline of March 5, and he initially said that he would sign any immigration deal that he was presented. However, after six senators presented him with a bipartisan deal, Trump denied it. He instead returned with his own immigration plan.

Under his plan, 1.8 million DACA recipients and people who are eligible for DACA would be able to stay in the U.S. and would eventually be eligible for citizenship. However, he demanded $25 billion to fund his border wall in exchange. He also called for an end to the diversity lottery program through which people from under-represented countries are able to immigrate to the U.S. each year. Trump also demanded an end to family-based immigration, which he refers to as “chain migration.”

Democrats do not support Trump’s proposal because of the wall and the end of other immigration programs. Republicans do not support it because of the demand for $25 billion in funds. While legislators in the House and the Senate continue to work on bipartisan immigration bills, Trump is unlikely to sign them without his demands being met. The Senate would need to have a veto-proof majority, or the DACA recipients may lose their jobs and homes and face deportation to countries that they don’t know.