FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 18, 2020
PRESS CONTACT: Alia El-Assar | aelassar@americanbic.biz
ABIC Statement on Supreme Court Decision Against Trump’s Move to End DACA
Congress must act immediately for a permanent DREAM Act
In a 5-4 vote today, the Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration’s decision to end a program that provided legal protections and work authorizations to [650,000] undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. The Court found that the Trump administration’s decision to terminate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program was “arbitrary and capricious”. Furthermore, Chief Justice Roberts wrote, “for the reasons that follow, we conclude that the Acting Secretary did violate the [Administrative Procedure Act],” and the decision to rescind DACA “must be vacated.”
At this time, current DACA beneficiaries remain protected from deportation. Additionally, the Court’s decision returns the DACA program as it was before the decision to rescind was announced in October of 2017.
Mike Fernandez, MBF Healthcare Partners Chairman and ABIC Co-Chair “Today’s decision from the Supreme Court reflects the beliefs of the majority of Americans, Republicans and Democrats alike. During these tumultuous times, we call on the federal government to follow the will of American people and provide permanent protections for the millions of Dreamers and their parents that call the U.S. home.”
Woody L. Hunt, Hunt Companies Inc. Board of Directors Senior Chairman and ABIC Co-Chair “With [one-third] of DACA applicants having arrived in the U.S. before the age of five, they have deep roots in our society and economy. Annually, DACA-eligible residents contribute over [$19 billion in spending power and $6 billion in taxes] to our economy. Currently, an estimated [542,000 are essential workers] that help keep us all healthy and safe–comprising almost half of all DACA-eligible immigrants. Grant a path to legal status and citizenship for these young people will help Texas and our nation rebuild from the coronavirus and strengthen our competitiveness.
Juan Carlos Cerda, ABIC Dallas-Fort Worth Business Outreach Manager “As a DACA recipient, I feel a huge sigh of relief now that the Supreme Court has decided that I can live my life and pursue my dreams in my adopted home. I feel more determined than ever to help deliver solutions that address the 11 million undocumented immigrants who make our country great, especially the parents who brought us to the U.S. for a better life and young Dreamers who were too young to qualify for DACA or arrived shortly after the 2007 DACA cutoff date.”
John Rowe, Exelon Corporation Chairman Emeritus and ABIC Co-Chair “It is now more urgent than ever for Congress to come together and pass a DREAM Act. They are doctors, teachers, and business owners essential to the recovery of our economy post-COVID. We cannot turn our backs on them. We urge the Trump administration to continue accepting and processing DACA applications until permanent protections are passed by Congress, or risk the further collapse of our communities and economy during this pandemic.”
Carole Segal, Crate and Barrel Co-founder and ABIC Co-Chair “Nearly one-third of DACA recipients are essential workers in industries critical to the pandemic response, including healthcare, food supply chain and education. They are caring for the sick, teaching our children, and delivering our groceries. Many are taking on great personal risk so that Americans can stay home, safe, and well-fed. By playing with the lives of Dreamers, the federal government is playing with the lives of all Americans. There is no place for partisan gamesmanship in this pandemic; we need a pathway to citizenship for these young people and their families now.”
Joshua Hoyt, National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA) Retired Executive Director and ABIC Co-Chair “This decision means that young people brought to the US as children will not be turned into hostages in the immigration debates during this Fall’s election. It is time for Congress to legislate solutions.”
Dr. Zaher Sahloul, Pulmonary Consultants President and ABIC Member “As a critical care and pulmonary specialist working in two Chicago hospitals, I have experienced the consequences of our severe shortages in healthcare providers firsthand. DACA recipients alone make up [29,000 healthcare workers] putting their lives on the line every day. The federal government must focus on policies and legislation that improve our healthcare infrastructure and prioritize the health and well-being of our population– including a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and other immigrant healthcare workers.”
Trump voters and the majority of Americans support Dreamers. According to a [new poll from POLITICO/Morning Consult], a majority of Republicans and Trump voters believe that Dreamers should be protected, including 68 percent of Republicans, 71 percent of conservatives, and 69 percent of those who voted for Trump in 2016 when he promised to deport Dreamers. Overall, more than three out of four registered voters believe that Dreamers should be allowed to remain in the United States.
ABIC calls on President Trump and Congress to act in the interest of voters and our nation’s ability to rebuild and recover from the coronavirus by working swiftly to provide a path to legal status and citizenship for the [estimated 3.6 million Dreamers] who came to the U.S. as children, including current DACA recipients, and the [over 300,000 TPS holders].