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Paige Masten

Prof. Summerlin-Long

3 April 2018

DREAM On: The Politics of Immigration Policy

Immigration has been a hot topic in American political discourse since our nation’s

founding. Through the years, the topic has become even more controversial, as policies enacted

during the Obama and Trump administrations have made their way to the forefront of political

debate. In 2018, Congress has prioritized immigration policy, with the Deferred Action for

Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and the DREAM Act being of unique concern. As

complex as it is controversial, immigration is an issue involving nearly every possible actor,

including the president, Congress, the bureaucracy, the judiciary, interest groups, and the

American public. Though immigration policy certainly encompasses matters of fiscal policy,

humanitarianism, and national security, the U.S. immigration debate is above all a question of

membership. What does it mean to be a “real” American, and who should or should not be

classified as such?

Illegal immigration is an especially contested topic in the American political arena. As of

2015, there are an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States

(Krogstad, Passel, & Cohn, 2017). Illegal immigration is largely within the purview of the

federal government, as the enforcement of immigration law falls under the authority of U.S.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Undocumented immigrants are active in the U.S.

economy, with many working in the agriculture, service, and construction industries (Krogstad et

al., 2017). Dreamers, relatively young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, are

another population of interest. Until late 2017, some 800,000 Dreamers were given temporary
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relief from deportation as long as they worked, attended college, or served in the U.S. armed

forces thanks to an Obama-era initiative known as DACA. However, the Trump administration

has ended DACA, placing the fates of these Dreamers in question.

The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act was originally

introduced in the Senate in 2001. Unlike DACA, the DREAM Act offers a permanent solution

by setting forth a path for undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children

(commonly referred to as Dreamers) to become permanent residents as long as they attend

college, get a job, or serve in the U.S. military (“DACA and DREAM Act 101,” 2017). A second

DREAM Act was introduced in 2010 and enjoyed significant bipartisan support, but ultimately

fell short of the 60 votes needed to pass in the Senate. Although the DREAM Act has yet to

become law in the 17 years since it was introduced, it is still referenced as a popular legislative

solution to the immigration debate.

After the DREAM Act failed, President Obama enacted Deferred Action for Childhood

Arrivals (DACA) via executive order in 2012. DACA provides approximately 800,000

undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children with temporary relief from

deportation as well as permission to work and study in the U.S. without penalty. However,

DACA is not a permanent solution, as it offers no path to citizenship and must be renewed every

two years. President Obama also signed another executive order, Deferred Action for Parents of

Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA, which provided temporary relief from

deportation and work permits for undocumented parents of U.S. citizens or permanent residents.

Yet DAPA was ultimately ruled unconstitutional, citing an overreach of executive power (Liptak

& Shear, 2016) and demonstrating the check that the judiciary has over presidential authority.
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DACA has also faced some challenges at the executive level. When it was enacted,

conservatives accused Obama of overstepping his presidential authority, but DACA remained in

effect throughout the duration of his presidency. However, on September 5, 2017, President

Trump signed an executive order to officially terminate the program. Trump’s actions faced

major backlash almost immediately, with congressional Democrats and citizens alike criticizing

Trump for harming Dreamers and demanding that Congress take action. In the months since,

Congress has been trying to find a solution to immigration reform that will satisfy both sides of

the aisle and preserve their own chances at reelection.

On the whole, those involved in the passage of immigration reform all have wildly

different beliefs in how to approach the issue. The President’s priorities do not exactly line up

with those of Congress, and Congress is further divided among Democrats and Republicans

when it comes to immigration. With so many fundamentally incompatible perspectives on the

issue, the question of how to reconcile these differences and negotiate a universally agreeable

solution becomes even more unclear.

Congress is the most prominent player in the policymaking world, as they possess the

constitutional power to pass legislation in the United States. However, Congress is plagued by

the issue of political parties and compromise. Although the Republican Party holds a majority in

both the House and the Senate, they do not have enough of a majority to pass a bill without

significant Democratic support, especially in the Senate. Thus, any immigration bill introduced

to Congress must be able to garner bipartisan support, which means any changes are inherently

small and incremental. Furthermore, drafting bipartisan legislation requires compromise, which

is increasingly difficult as parties become more and more polarized. However, members of

Congress are fully aware of how their approach to immigration reform affects the public’s
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opinion of them. Dreamers are a “politically sympathetic population,” meaning that the public

would not take kindly to Congress choosing to deport young students and workers who have

spent most of their lives in the United States (Lind, 2018). Assuming that members of Congress

prioritize their own interests, it is safe to conclude that Congress will likely continue to work to

negotiate a solution to the matter in order to preserve their chances of reelection, especially given

the fact that midterm elections are quickly approaching.

Within Congress, progress has been slow on immigration reform. Immigration reform

seems to hold little intrinsic value to members of Congress, and is instead used as a bargaining

chip when negotiating other items on the congressional agenda. Democrats have threatened to

block Republican-sponsored bills (such as the federal budget) unless they included a stipulation

on DACA, while Republicans have decided to use DACA as a trade-off for passing their own

agenda, such as stronger border enforcement and cuts to legal immigration (Lind, 2018). So far,

several immigration bills have been introduced, including a revised DREAM Act, but none seem

to have garnered enough support to pass.

The White House is another important actor when it comes to passing immigration

reform. Immigration reform was a central part of President Trump’s campaign platform,

especially with his continued promise of a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. However,

Trump himself does not possess the power to make any sweeping changes to U.S. immigration

policy, nor does he have the authority to allocate funds towards border enforcement.

Consequently, he must turn to Congress to carry out his legislative agenda, most notably when it

comes to obtaining the billions of dollars needed to construct a border wall. Yet the president

does have one important power: his constitutional authority to place a check on the legislative

branch by vetoing any bill that arrives at his desk. If Trump is not pleased with Congress’s
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solution, or if he does not think it adequately satisfies his goals, then he has the ability to strike

down the bill before it ever becomes law. As a political actor, Trump has his own interests to

worry about, and although 2020 seems far away, he still must consider his own reelection. If

Trump does not fulfill his most significant campaign promise, then it is possible that he will lose

some of his core supporters in 2020.

Public opinion plays a significant role in driving Congress to pursue immigration reform.

According to polls conducted in early 2018, 84% of the American public supports the

continuation of DACA. In all polls conducted, a remarkable majority of Americans support a bill

“allowing undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children to remain in the

United States and eventually apply for citizenship” (Matthews, 2018). Similarly, the majority of

Americans oppose President Trump’s proposition of a border wall. If we are to assume that

members of Congress prioritize their own interests, then it would seem that Congress would

overwhelmingly favor taking action on immigration reform. This is evident on Capitol Hill

today, given that Congress has been debating the issue for many months.

Currently, the most commonly cited solution is the passage of a revised DREAM Act,

which has already been introduced in the Senate by the bipartisan duo of Senators Dick Durbin

and Lindsey Graham. Democrats want to pass what they refer to as a “clean DREAM Act,” or a

bill that provides undocumented youth with a path to citizenship without conceding too much in

other areas, such as a border wall or the elimination of the diversity lottery (Gonzalez, 2018). Yet

a clean DREAM Act is essentially a pipe dream for Democrats, who are the minority party and

have to be willing to compromise in order for any of their policy priorities to become law.

Furthermore, the likelihood that a DREAM Act will even pass in Congress is rather low, given

the fact that it has yet to have any legislative success in the 17 years since it was first introduced.
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Any effective solution to the immigration reform issue and DACA must be bipartisan,

permanent, and feasible. DACA is only a temporary solution, and it is politically vulnerable,

which has put the fate of many Dreamers in peril as they wait on Congress to make a decision.

Consequently, anything that Congress decides must provide Dreamers with an opportunity to

earn citizenship if they meet certain standards. Immigrants are a valuable contribution to our

country, which was founded on the principles of diversity and acceptance.

Immigration, specifically DACA, has a positive impact on the U.S. economy and should

be valued as such. According to the Center for American Progress, the DACA initiative has

stimulated the U.S. economy in many ways, most significantly through tax revenue. Thus,

ending DACA would be detrimental to the economy, with GDP losses estimated at $433.4

billion in addition to decreases in Social Security and Medicare contributions (Team &

Nicholson, 2017). These statistics show that it is in the economic interest of the United States to

protect Dreamers and offer an alternative to the DACA initiative. The economy would be further

benefitted if this legislation included a path to citizenship, as such reform would increase U.S.

GDP by $1.2 trillion in the next decade and add hundreds of thousands of jobs to the economy

(Team & Nicholson, 2017).

Although legislative action on immigration reform is clearly favorable, a bill that will

protect Dreamers does not appear to be politically feasible. Congress has inherent inefficiencies,

as evidenced by the lack of progress it has made on immigration in recent months. Immigration

is a highly complex issue, which does not bode well given that most policy change in Congress is

slow and incremental. Democrats and Republicans have been attempting to compromise on the

issue throughout much of 2018, but they cannot seem to arrive at a solution that satisfies both

sides of the aisle. Similarly, President Trump has not been pleased with Congress’s progress – or
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lack thereof – on immigration, despite his previous inclinations to find an alternative to DACA.

Given the present administration, Congress, and the institutional framework, immigration

legislation does not seem likely to pass in the near future. Although a revised DREAM Act is the

most preferred solution, it also happens to be the least likely to pass. President Trump’s

administration has already stated its opposition to a DREAM Act, and their position is highly

unlikely to change (Taylor, 2017).

Immigration is a highly complex and controversial topic within American politics.

Dreamers, who enjoy significant public support, are demanding that Congress take action to

protect them and neutralize the threat of deportation. Though Congress has been debating the

issue for many months, no progress has been made, and the fate of Dreamers is still up in the air.

The Senate, the House, and the White House must reach across party lines and work together to

protect these young students and workers who are so valuable to our country, both economically

and otherwise. The DREAM Act may have failed in the past, but there is still the chance that it

might succeed in the future, despite the odds. Until then, all we can do is hope, pray, and

DREAM on.
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References

DACA and DREAM Act 101. (2017, September 7). Retrieved April 1, 2018, from

https://www.worldrelief.org/blog/daca-and-dream-act-101

Gonzalez, L. F. and E. (2018, January 17). A Dreamer solution both parties can agree on.

Retrieved April 3, 2018, from https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/17/opinions/daca-

temporary-solution-opinion-fresco-gonzalez/index.html

Krogstad, J. M., Passel, J. S., & Cohn, D. (2017, April 27). 5 facts about illegal immigration in

the U.S. Retrieved April 1, 2018, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-

tank/2017/04/27/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s/

Lind, D. (2018, February 12). 9 questions about the Senate immigration debate you were too

embarrassed to ask. Retrieved April 1, 2018, from

https://www.vox.com/2018/2/12/17003524/immigration-congress-daca-trump

Liptak, A., & Shear, M. D. (2016, June 23). Supreme Court Tie Blocks Obama Immigration

Plan. The New York Times. Retrieved from

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/24/us/supreme-court-immigration-obama-dapa.html

Matthews, D. (2018, February 3). Polls show Americans are closer to Democrats than Donald

Trump on immigration. Retrieved April 3, 2018, from https://www.vox.com/policy-and-

politics/2018/2/3/16959458/immigration-trump-compromise-public-opinion-poll-

dreamers-wall

Taylor, J. (2017, September 6). Here Are 4 Options Congress Could Take On DACA. Retrieved

April 3, 2018, from https://www.npr.org/2017/09/06/548766330/here-s-how-congress-

could-act-to-save-daca
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Team, the C. I., & Nicholson, M. D. (2017, April 20). The Facts on Immigration Today: 2017

Edition. Retrieved April 3, 2018, from

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/reports/2017/04/20/430736/facts-

immigration-today-2017-edition/