The DACA issue is your fault too: Democratic complicity and illusory ally-ship endangers immigrant lives.

The lives of many are being devastated by President Trump’s draconian immigration policies. In September 2017 Trump canceled Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), and has canceled Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for hundreds of thousand Haitian, Honduran, and Salvadoran nationals since 2017. Because of Trumps policies immigrants live in constant fear, and uncertainty. Because of these policies, many immigrants and their families have put their education and careers on hold, and many more are suffering from significant mental health issues.[1] Although, these hardships were the result of Trump’s draconian immigration policy, democrats are also to blame because their ally-ship has been nothing but illusory.

The urgency of the DACA falls squarely on Republicans, but that does not absolve Democrats of their part in the immigration issue.

Since his inauguration, Trump has consistently tried to implement his anti-immigrant policies. Trump has attempted to implement a Muslim Travel ban,[2] and done away with Temporary Protected Status and DACA for hundreds of thousands of immigrants. Furthermore, Trump is attempting to overhaul our entire immigration system by doing away with the principle of family unity at the core of our immigration system, by re-framing it as “chain-migration.”[3] The urgency of the immigration issue is therefore, squarely upon the shoulders of Republicans. However, Democrats who label themselves “allies” must realize their complicity in the problem, in order to weight behind their self-proclaimed ally-ship.

Democrats are also to blame for the the broken state of our immigration system.

Although Democrats have had numerous opportunities to change our broken immigration system, their alleged support for immigrants is notably absent when it matters. In 1996 Bill Clinton and the Democrats were complicit in the harshest immigration reform bill, the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibilities Act (IIRAIRA).[4] This set of laws made it nearly impossible for immigrants to qualify for and obtain legal status.[5] In 2010, Democrats failed to provide any relief to immigrants when they voted down a House passed Dream act in the Senate where Democrats held the majority.[6] While Democrats have pushed for some pro-immigrant legislation since the passage of IIRAIRA, the general belief that Democrats have moved to the left of immigration hasn’t manifested itself in concrete action.[7] On the contrary, the Obama administration deported more people than any other president, between 2009 and 2015 the Obama administration removed more than 2.5 million immigrants from the U.S.

Our representatives in office, however, are not the only ones to blame. While Democrats have mobilized against Trump, they refuse to mobilize for immigrants. Soon after Trumps inauguration, Democrats spent a full weekend building opposition to Trump’s Muslim ban.[8] However, when it comes to supporting immigrants pro-actively, Democratic voters lose their fervor. During the recent government shutdown fewer than half of Democrats prioritized DACA over a government shutdown.[9] Without the support Democrats were expecting, they blinked three days into the government shutdown to preserve their viability for mid term elections, in effect abandoning immigrants.[10] Furthermore, Democrats have declined to solve a number of pressing issues, including the immigration issue in the upcoming Omnibus Spending bill, which is the last time Democrats will be able to exert leverage for positive legislation.[11] In effect, Democrats have determined, because of the lack of support for the last shutdown, that the lives of immigrants are not worth the risk before midterm elections.

Wagering immigrant lives on a speculative midterm success is unlikely to succeed.

Considering Democrats’ track records, an immigration solution is unlikely to come before the midterm elections, and it remains to be seen whether Democrats will finally push for a concrete fix to the immigration issue. Democrats have already stated that they will not include immigration in this years Omnibus spending bill.[12] If this is the case, then immigration may be on the back burner until after midterm elections in anticipation of continued Democratic success, at the ballots. Since Trump’s election, Democrats have made unexpected gains in local elections where Republic candidates were expected to win.[13] Furthermore, it is expected that Democrats will make significant gains towards a majority in the House of Representatives in this coming 2018 midterm elections.[14] Many on Capitol Hill are relying on this trend, believing that the fate of immigration may not be decided until after midterm elections.[15] However, if Democrats continue their trend of being all bark and no bite, the immigration issue will continue well after mid term elections.

Although Democrats are complicit the the current failures of the immigration system, there is a solution.

The current DACA issue is not just Republican’s fault, Democrats are also to blame because of their involvement in anti-immigrant policies, and because of their illusory ally-ship. The path towards a solution is simple and begins with putting actions behind Democratic calls for an immigration solution. Democrats and Immigrants cannot wait and see what will come with midterm elections. Although Democrats have been winning elections at the local level, that success is not guaranteed at the federal level. In fact, their ability to make gains in the Senate sufficient to overcome Republican anti-immigrant policies is on shaky ground.[16] The Omnibus Spending bill is the best option for Democrats to pressure republicans to come to the table and solve the DACA issue. This should be feasible where there is overwhelming support to solve the DACA issue among both Democrats and Republicans.[17] Using the Omnibus as medium for a solution, however, means the likelihood of another government shutdown in order to compel Republicans to work towards a solution. A government shutdown means that the Trump administration must determine which government services are essential, and which are non-essential, and shut-down non-essential services, including placing non-essential employees on furlough.[18] While the thought of shutting down “non-essential” government services, and furloughing a segment of our population is embarrassing and inconvenient, Democrats must search the conscience to determine what is right. During the recent DACA shutdown in February, less than fifty percent of Democrats believed that the lives of thousands of immigrants were important enough to shut down the government.[19] This is the question Democrats must ask themselves as we approach March 23: Do we value the lives and the wellbeing of thousands of immigrants enough to shutdown the government until Republicans agree to negotiate in good conscience? If Democrats continue to believe that immigrant lives are not worth the inconvenience of shutting down the government for a short period of time then Democrats must stop pointing the finger at republicans for the broken state of our immigration system.

[1] Tatiana Sanchez, Stuck in Limbo, DACA recipients are consumed with fear and anxiety, The Mercury News, available at https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/03/09/stuck-in-limbo-daca-recipients-are-consumed-with-fear-and-anxiety/ (Mar. 9, 2018); See also Dara Lind, Trump Wants Immigrants to be Afraid. Two New Studies Show it’s Working, Vox, available at https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/5/17071648/impact-trump-immigration-policy-children (Mar. 5, 2018).

[2] Clark Mindock, Travel Ban: What is Trump’s Major Immigration Policy, and Why is it called a Muslim Ban? All you need to know, Independent, available at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/travel-ban-trump-what-is-it-muslim-countries-list-restrictions-latest-a8093821.html (Dec. 5, 2017).

[3] Interview with Tomas Jimenez, Explaining ‘Chain Migration’ or ‘ Family Reunification,’ NPR, available at https://www.npr.org/2018/01/21/579500292/explaining-chain-migration-or-family-reunification (Jan. 21, 2018).

[4] Dara Lind, The disastrous, Forgotten 1996 Law that Created Today’s Immigration Problem, Vox, Available at https://www.vox.com/2016/4/28/11515132/iirira-clinton-immigration (Apr. 28, 2016).

[5] Id.

[6] Scott Wong and Shira Toeplitz, DREAM Act dies in Senate, Politico, available at https://www.politico.com/story/2010/12/dream-act-dies-in-senate-046573 (Dec. 18, 2010).

[7] Dara Lind.

[8] David Weigel and Ed O’Keefe, Democrats Launch a Full-Scale Opposition Push Against Trump’s Executive Order, The Washington Post, available at https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/democrats-across-the-country-join-protests-against-trump-order/2017/01/29/3146fcd0-e4de-11e6-a547-5fb9411d332c_story.

html?utm_term=.f3f8c30a9c1e (Jan. 29, 2017).

[9] Jennifer Agiesta, CNN Poll: DACA Not Worth a Shutdown, Except to Democrats, CNN, available at https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/19/politics/cnn-poll-shutdown-trump-immigration-daca/index.html (Jan. 19, 2018).

[10] Carl Hulse, Democrats Blink in Shutdown Impasse, Hoping for a Bargain, The New York Times, Available at https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/22/us/politics/schumer-democrats-shutdown.html (Jan. 22, 2018).

[11] Mike Lillis, Pelosi: Gun Control, DACA should be considered separately from Spending Package, The Hill, available at http://thehill.com/homenews/house/377421-pelosi-no-need-for-guns-daca-in-spending-package (Mar. 8, 2018).

[12] Id.

[13] Susan Milligan, Democrats Making Startling Gains in Legislative Elections, U.S. News, available at https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2017-09-14/democrats-making-startling-gains-in-state-legislative-elections (Sept. 14, 2017).

[14] G. Elliott Morris, 2018 Midterm Elections Forecast, The Crosstab, available at http://www.thecrosstab.com/2018-midterms-forecast/ (Mar. 16, 2018).

[15] See Scott Detrow, Top Democrat Says Election Will Decide DACA’s Fate, NPR, available at https://www.npr.org/2018/02/28/589645083/top-democrat-says-election-will-decide-dacas-fate (Feb. 28, 2018).

[16] Nate Silver, Are Democrats’ Senate Chances In 2018 Overrated?, FiveThirtyEight, available at https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/are-democrats-senate-chances-overrated/ (Jan. 10, 2018).

[17] Brett Samuels, Poll: Most Americans Support DACA, The Hill, available at http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/368959-poll-most-americans-support-daca (Jan. 14, 2018).

[18] Daniella Diaz, This is What happens during a Government Shutdown, CNN, available at https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/17/politics/what-happens-government-shutdown-explainer-congress-budget/index.html (Jan. 201, 2018).

[19] See Jennifer Agiesta.