Posted on 01/09/2018 10:00:47 PM PST by Oshkalaboomboom
Conservative immigration hawks are losing faith in President Trump, who left them fuming Tuesday when he endorsed a two-phase process to permanently protect young undocumented immigrants and later pursue comprehensive changes to interior enforcement and legal immigration policies.
The outline of a side-by-side approach emerged during a televised White House meeting with President Trump and 20 lawmakers, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who lured the president into seemingly declaring his support for a “clean” bill that codifies the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
“I have no problem,” Trump told the California Democrat. “We’re going to do DACA, and then we can start immediately on the phase two, which would be comprehensive.”
White House officials were later forced to clarify that Trump’s definition of a clean bill differed greatly from the legislative process Feinstein had described, telling reporters, “A DACA bill he deems as ‘clean’ would include border security.’”
Conservatives who have long opposed legalizing the expiring DACA program without first improving border security and eliminating loopholes that allow immigrants to remain in the U.S. illegally were alarmed and befuddled by Trump’s comments.
“There was one thing missing from the White House today: a coherent, unequivocal position by the president who campaigned and won on the immigration issued,” said Bob Dane, executive director of the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
“Even though the public relations flacks at the White House clarified Trump’s statements afterwards, his comments are red meat for the Democrats,” Dane continued. “I think this represents a certain level of naivety on the president’s behalf.”
Roy Beck, president of the immigration reduction group NumbersUSA, said in a statement following the public negotiations that Trump “must hold fast to his compact with American workers and greatly reduce both the illegal and legal competition from mass migration.”
Beck blasted what he referred to as an “amnesty-now and enforcement/reform-later agreement,” claiming such proposals “always fail the American people” and “result in more illegal immigration and continued flooding of U.S. labor markets.”
Republicans present for the meeting on Tuesday repeatedly attempted to steer the president away from a deal that would tackle DACA and border security first and a host of other issues — like family-based immigrant visas, catch-and-release policies, employment verification, and at-random green cards — in a broader immigration reform package later on.
“Mr. President, you need to be clear though,” House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., advised Trump following his response to Feinstein’s question about a clean DACA bill. “When we talk about just DACA, we don’t want to be back here two years later. We have to have security.”
Trump appeared unreceptive to such overtures, telling the room at one point: “I think what we’re all saying is we’ll do DACA and we can certainly start comprehensive immigration reform the following afternoon. OK?”
“I’m sure Stephen Miller was squirming in his chair,” Dane mused, noting that the 32-year-old White House policy adviser has “meticulously and methodically laid out a plan to implement longstanding immigration fixes.”
Miller could not be reached for comment.
A source close to the negotiations told the Washington Examiner it would be nearly impossible for the White House to ensure issues like chain migration and interior enforcement are promptly addressed after a DACA bill clears the president’s desk.
“Your border, interior enforcement, and immigration reform have to be done contemporaneously with the DACA bill,” the source said.
The source pointed to a recent influx in the apprehensions of family units and unaccompanied minors at the border in the Southwest as an incentive to include measures that boost interior enforcement and reform the asylum and court system for illegal immigrants in the initial bill to extend DACA protections.
“You can look historically at the arrival numbers and also the capture numbers that [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] takes and anytime we even talk about amnesty, you see a spike in border numbers,” the source said.
The same source suggested administration officials might begin to broaden their arguments for enhanced border security — beyond infrastructure — in the coming days. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders declined to provide examples of other aspects of border security that Trump could demand be included in an immigration bill.
Sanders said lawmakers made a behind-the-scenes agreement Tuesday to focus on four priorities — border security, chain migration, the visa lottery, and DACA — as they continue to negotiate an immigration bill.
“Both sides are going to have to give a little bit,” Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters after attending the White House meeting. “I think there’s a path there to get DACA and several other things that we’ve been talking about for a long time, and both sides seem motivated to do that. The question is whether it can happen in the next 10 days.”
Meanwhile, conservatives are warning the White House that rushing a deal through Congress, and placing certain immigration reforms on the backburner to do so, would have devastating consequences for the GOP in a midterm year. The DACA program is set to expire on March 5, but Democrats have insisted that it be dealt with legislatively as part of a budget deal that lawmakers are hoping to iron out before the government runs out of money next Friday.
“If DACA comes before everything else, then this is a sellout just like the Gang of Eight bill and I cannot overestimate the damage to the GOP in the midterm elections if what we heard today is the priority,” Dane told the Washington Examiner, predicting that Trump’s base would go “scorched-earth” on Republicans facing re-election challenges.
Dale Wilcox, executive director of FAIR’s legal arm, the Immigration Reform Law Institute, said Republicans instead have an opportunity to learn from past failures and permanently change the course of immigration trends.
“The 1986 immigration deal gave us amnesty for illegal aliens with a promise of increased border security that never materialized,” Wilcox said. “The border wall, chain migration, and the visa lottery are the heavy lifting of this process. They should be addressed in conjunction with any DACA agreement, or they will again be kicked down the road to a time when the problems have become much worse.”
Bipartisan lawmakers are expected to gather for a second meeting later this week to continue hammering out a deal on DACA. It is unclear with Trump again plans to participate.
Not so sure about that if the question was put to a plebiscite.
So you’re right in line with Trump capitulating as he did today. It was sickening. He ended up basically agreeing to amnesty as a standalone, immediate deal. He groveled by telling the Dems that if there is anything in his proposal they don’t like, they can just negotiate that away—and he will sign whatever DACA amnesty they pass. Somehow, after passing amnesty they will then move on to “negotiating” a second phase of immigration reform—including the comprehensive immigration reform that some of them were lamenting had died in the House previously.
Ann Coulter is right to be however upset about it that she was.
Trump is still pushing to bend the agreement in a useful direction. It’s going to require some kind of ex-DACA visa and there’s the place for the conditions.
It’s easier to regulate something that’s got wide popular support than to ban it.
And frankly I have to chuckle a little about 20% of the population saying “We The People” were sold out when the other 80% don’t agree. Now if we want a wiser populace, there is room to make a case to it. But don’t just go “We’re the 20%! We’re Murrica!” That’s silly and will be viewed as arrogant.
Illegal aliens cannot enlist but non-citizen can or used to could.
I had a college roommate was on an international music scholarship from Yugoslavia (Back when Yugoslavia was a communist county) He wanted to convert his student visa to a green card as he was about to graduate.
He’d been a conscript in the Yugoslavian army like every other young man there before entering college. He went to US Army recruiter at the university and asked if they could use someone who spoke Russian and could drive a T-62 tank. He is now a US citizen and lives in Colorado.
Things may have changed.
Sure you give the Dems their ‘clean DACA bill’ but you follow it up immediately with big funding for the wall and border security, ending chain migration, and ending lottery immigration.
The Dems and/or Repubs have 10 days to get the Security bill or phase-2 to Trump’s desk, or he veto’s the DACA bill if the Dems do a double cross.
We have been over-run with 3rd world immigrants and invaders and they are ruining the USA. With Trump, we hope to stop the tide and put in place rollbacks.
Legal resident aliens can and do serve in the US military.
Illegal aliens cannot.
Trump just agreed to give the Dems amnesty for nothing. Now, will some of the GOP and Steve Miller be able to walk back that grotesque giveaway? Possibly a bit, but this was a very bad day for America.
Ivanka of course must have been cheering, as she can hope to count more leftist voters for her own presidential campaign she apparently cluelessly dreams about.
No they shouldn’t—we need to send them home and they can serve in their own country’s military.
Where do people get so empty-headed about this stuff?
“I have no problem,” Trump told the California Democrat. “We’re going to do DACA, and then we can start immediately on the phase two, which would be comprehensive.”
Even his boundless ego can't turn Trump into a blathering idiot.
Feinswein is totally untrustworthy and lacks all morals and ethics, and arrogant beyond belief. I would never trust her word any farther than I can throw her mansion across the street.
Emergency!!!!!
Someone please take Trump aside and give him all the ugly details of how Ronald Reagan was defrauded with promises never kept by the criminal democrat Legislators, including Feinswine, in the late 80s.
That makes no sense, Skippy.
Are you sure that English is your first language?
Yeah, there’s a good chance we will not get what we need.
Oh PLEASE.
Every time anything happens it’s the same chorus from you and your fellow never-Trump whine brigadiers.
And your doom and gloom predictions have NEVER come to pass, and they won’t this time either.
Go back to lurking.
Most of the ‘purists’ aren’t purists.
Most of the ‘purists’ around here are bitter never-Trumpers who are still holding a grudge over the primaries almost two years ago.
I’ve kept track of the names and they’re all the same.
Hey, clown—this is the issue to end all issues for our country. Did you happen to watch the session? By the end Trump was agreeing to a pure amnesty bill, to be followed up by the beginning of “negotiations on comprehensive”. And he told them he’d sign whatever bill Congress gave him. (Which is what McConnell had already been telling people off the record.)
As I said, we can hope that his admin somehow walks it back. But it was pathetic.
That’s exactly what will happen with amnesty.
You already are... delusional and ignorant, to boot.
Yes, I’m very aware.
Then again, I wasn’t watching and looking for things to hate on. What I liked was ending chain migration, ending visa lotteries, building the wall.
The way you’d talk, it sounds like you’d rather that we have NONE of these. Because none of them is what we’re going to get unless we make a deal of some kind.
And considering how easy it was to get a federal judge to decide to decree DACA has to happen even after Trump ended it, NOT making a deal of some kind will result in exactly what you’re wringing your hands about.
For pity’s sake, lighten up and unknot your undergarments.
And if you’re still that worried, stop whining on FR and start organizing people to lobby Congress.
I want a WALL across our southern border. Those DACAs are already here, not all will end up staying.
That televised meeting was astounding! The optics were great for the President & Republicans! Who was talking about working together? Who was talking about not getting everything you want. The President and the Republicans looked great and willing to work with Democrats!
Optics incredibly positive. If the Democrats refuse to pass a budget and shut down the government who will get the blame - oh?
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