The House of Representatives is set to, once again, take a vote against DREAMers. The diehard anti-immigrant wing of the GOP is seeking to strike from the National Defense Authorization Act a provision pushed by Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) that would ask the Pentagon to review whether Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients should be able to enlist in the military and serve the nation they call home. Just a few weeks ago, Gallego’s amendment passed through the House Armed Services Committee on a bipartisan basis, but it was met with staunch opposition from the House anti-immigrant wing, led by Rep. Steve King (R-IA) and Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL). Yesterday, the Rules Committee advanced an amendment by Rep. Brooks to remove the Gallego provision. So the next step is the full House vote on the underlying bill and the amendments.
According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, “Who is the real patriot here? The DREAMers who are willing to sacrifice and potentially lay down their lives for the country they love and call home? Or Steve King – a man who avoided service in Vietnam and has a relentless appetite to demonize and deport DREAMers? This is a relatively small, but common-sense measure that should be the ultimate of no-brainers. But even this is too much for Steve King and his ideological brethren.”
