The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is the topic of discussion. The Trump administration officially announced the long-awaited rescission notice for the unconstitutional Obama-era program that shielded illegal aliens who entered the U.S. as minors from deportation as long as they paid the $495 application fee and met all the requirements (i.e. no criminal record). It’s not just conservatives who thought the executive order under Obama was on legal shaky ground. Democrats, like Sen. Dianne Feinstein (CA) thought so, as did CNN host Chris Cuomo. The fact is the Trump White House rightly felt that they couldn’t legally defend the order, so the option was a nationwide injunction or a gradual phasing out, with a six-month enforcement delay that affords Congress time to do something for these 800,000 illegals that is constitutionally sound. Some within the GOP, like Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), want to legalize the 800,000 DREAMers, but pass the RAISE Act, which Cotton co-sponsored, that will overhaul our green card policy, stressing high-skills and impose a language requirement. It’s aimed to give cover to American workers.
The move, unsurprisingly, sent Democrats into tantrum mode, saying this was cruel and illegal, though all President Trump did was rescind an executive overreach using the exact same authority Obama did to enact this shaky program. Yet, as Democrats rail, they should be reminded that their former standard-bearer for 2016, Hillary Rodham Clinton, also felt that illegal alien children had to go back in 2014. During a CNN sit down with Christiane Amanpour, the former first lady was commenting on the then-influx of unaccompanied minors into the U.S. Clinton also stressed border security and the notion that we need to send a message that just you cross the border, doesn’t mean you’re allowed to stay outright. That’s so racist (sarc.) (via CNN) [emphasis mine]:
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: Should they be able to stay here? It's safer.
HILLARY CLINTON: Well -- it may be safer but that's not the answer. I do not --
AMANPOUR: Should they be sent back?
CLINTON: Well, first of all, we have to provide the best emergency care we can provide. We have children 5 and 6 years old who have come up from Central America. We need to do more to provide border security in southern Mexico.
AMANPOUR: So, you're saying they should be sent back now?
CLINTON: Well, they should be sent back as soon as it can be determined who responsible adults in their families are, because there are concerns whether all of them should be sent back. But I think all of them who can be should be reunited with their families. And just as Vice President Biden is arguing today in Central America, we've got to do more. I started this when I was secretary to deal with the violence in this region to deal with border security.
But we have so to send a clear message, just because your child gets across the border, that doesn't mean the child gets to stay. So, we don't want to send a message that is contrary to our laws or will encourage more children to make that dangerous journey.
Recommended
Yet, when she announced her 2016 run, Clinton did a 180-degree turn. In May of 2015, she sat down with a group of DREAMers in Rancho High School in Las Vegas, where she said it was time to offer a pathway to citizenship for these people. Clinton had announced her candidacy for the presidency in April of that year. Also in May of 2015, she also picked Lorella Praeli, a DREAMer, to head up Hispanic outreach for her 2016 campaign. And now, she’s all about DACA, despite saying she was “adamantly against illegal immigrants,” and wanted to do more on border security and cracking down on those who hire illegal aliens in 2003. Yes, you can say that Clinton’s evolution shows a woman who will say anything to win an election. It also shows the Democratic Party’s progression from pragmatism to insanity on the issue.
Thanks to DREAMers' courage & resolve, #DACA has allowed thousands of young people to contribute to our society. We're better for it. -H
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) June 15, 2015
(H/T Mediaite)
Join the conversation as a VIP Member