“His life’s legacy”: Durbin leads another push to expand Dreamer protections
The number-two Senate Democrat and chair of the Judiciary Committee has a fresh sense of urgency to remove the uncertainty so many young immigrants live with.
First Things First
Boris Hernández has no problem picking favorites when it comes to members of Congress.
First on the list, of course, is his wife Delia Ramirez, a first-term House progressive who made history in 2022 when she became the first Latina to represent Illinois in Congress.
Then there’s Dick Durbin: The senior senator of the Prairie State who has dedicated his decades-long career in public service to reforming the US immigration system so people like Boris and other “Dreamers”—undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children by their parents or relatives—have the opportunity to become American citizens.
Durbin, the number-two Senate Democrat and chair of the chamber’s powerful Judiciary Committee, will write the latest chapter in this story this morning when he convenes the panel for a hearing to press Congress to pass legal protections for Dreamers, many of whom have grown up as Americans in every way except on a piece of paper.
“His life’s legacy is to make sure that he’s able to ensure that young children that have been here their entire life have a permanent pathway to citizenship here,” Ramirez told Once Upon a Hill on Tuesday morning. “I think that’s why this hearing is so important. Everything we’ve talked about right now around immigration has been about enforcement at the border and we’ve forgotten about these four-year-olds who are now 38-year-olds. I think it’s important for him to continue to push the needle.”
Ramirez, who had breakfast with Durbin last Friday to discuss the issue, said what makes him such a powerful advocate for Dreamers is that he sees himself as leader within a broader coalition.
“He’s really intentional about being able to hear from the folks in how he legislates,” she added. “I think he says a lot about his leadership, and that in this moment, he knows that we are at a critical turning point: Do we stand with immigrants? Or do we become the Trumpsters that criminalize our children?”
Durbin is the author of the DREAM Act, a bill he first introduced in 2001 with the late Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) that would put young undocumented immigrants on a pathway to citizenship. The bill was included in the 2013 comprehensive immigration reform bill Durbin coauthored as part of the Gang of Eight—made up of four Democrats and four Republicans. The 2013 bill passed the Senate in a 68–32 vote but House Republicans leadership refused to consider it. Senate Republicans have blocked the bill from a floor vote at least five times since its introduction.
In lieu of legislative action, former President Barack Obama established the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program—also known as DACA—in 2012 that allows eligible undocumented immigrants to receive a renewable two-year protection from deportation and a work permit to gain employment in the US following a call from Durbin and then-Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) to stop the deportation of Dreamers.
Since its inception, Republicans have labeled DACA an example of executive overreach. In 2017, former President Donald Trump rescinded an expansion of the program and announced a plan to sunset it altogether.
President Joe Biden reinstated DACA on his first day of office in 2021. But that summer, a federal district judge blocked the administration from accepting new applications to the program. While an appeals court decides if the program violates federal law, current DACA recipients can keep their status and apply for renewal. The case may eventually reach the Supreme Court.
“This means that without congressional action, thousands of Dreamers who are ready to serve our country as doctors, teachers or first responders may never have that opportunity,” Durbin said in a speech on the Senate floor last week. “It’s time for Congress to grant them the stability and certainty in their lives they deserve.”
The hearing comes as the Biden Health and Human Services Department finalized a rule last week to enable 100,000 DACA recipients to gain health insurance under the Affordable Care Act beginning in November.
“Everyone deserves access to healthcare,” Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Nanette Barragán said in a statement following the announcement. “Now, tens of thousands of Dreamers who are American in every way and are part of the American fabric will have access to high-quality and affordable health insurance. This will pave the road to healthier communities and improve their quality of lives.”
It also arrives amid speculation President Biden will issue an executive order to band-aid the country’s broken immigration system after an effort to pass a Senate-negotiated border policy crackdown flamed out this year when former President Trump said he didn’t want Republicans to give Biden a legislative win ahead of the general election. (The president recently said he would continue to fight to advance the Senate bill, which, for what it’s worth, excludes protections for Dreamers.)
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said last month that the administration doesn’t believe executive action is the way forward.
“We want to see that proposal,” she said of the Senate bill. “But we’re always going to look at all options.”
Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma and the chief Republican architect of the proposal told OUAH the president has several levers he could use on his own, including restricting access to the asylum system.
“What I’ve said to him is if he would enforce the border in the same way President Obama did, we’d be in a much better place,” Lankford said. “You could do the same way President Trump did or do the same way President Obama did, we’d be better. So if you want something better on the border, he has some tools at his disposal he can use.”
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), who serves on the Judiciary Committee, told OUAH that Congress’s work is incomplete until it modernizes the nation’s immigration laws, which includes an orderly, safe and humane border policy.
“But we can't leave behind the millions of long-term residents United States who happen to be undocumented but are contributing so much to the vibrancy of the country.”
Padilla added that he supports Biden taking executive action.
“We keep encouraging them to do so in the balanced way that we’ve tried to do so legislatively,” he said. “But the ultimate solutions, the most sustainable solutions, are legislative action from Congress.”
Barragán told OUAH the CHC is in ongoing conversations with the White House and made suggestions on some of its preferred executive actions.
“The question is, what do those actions look like?” she said. “And making sure if anything that's being considered that’s punitive is paired with pathways to citizenship.”
House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar told OUAH that congressional Republicans walked away from the Senate deal, so it’s on them to prove that they want to solve the problem.
“Everything that we have been able to accomplish over the last year it takes bipartisan consensus to do anything around here,” he said. “And so we're waiting for Republicans to indicate that they want to be partners to address this in a meaningful way. If they have a willingness to do that, we will because it will meet the needs of the American public has.”
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Happenings
All times Eastern
At the Capitol
10 a.m. The House will meet with first and last votes expected at 4:30 p.m. The Senate will meet with a recess at 1 p.m. for weekly party lunches. No votes are scheduled at press time.
At the White House
8:45 a.m. President Biden will receive his daily intelligence briefing.
9:10 a.m. The president will leave the White House and travel to Racine County, Wisconsin, arriving at 11:20 a.m.
12:45 p.m. President Biden will speak about his economic agenda at a local technical college.
6 p.m. First Lady Dr. Jill Biden will host a virtual event at the White House for educators with the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association to celebrate National Teacher Appreciation Week.
7 p.m. Vice President Harris will speak at the EMILYs List National Gala in Washington.
On the campaign trail
12:15 p.m. Vice President Harris will leave Washington to travel to Philadelphia, arriving at 1 p.m.
2:15 p.m. The president will participate in a campaign event in Wisconsin.
2:30 p.m. The vice president will participate in a campaign event.
3:55 p.m. President Biden will depart Wisconsin en route to Chicago, arriving at 4:35 p.m.
5:05 p.m. Vice President Harris will leave Philadelphia to return to Washington, arriving at 5:55 p.m.
5:40 p.m. The president will participate in a campaign fundraiser.
7:25 p.m. President Biden will leave Chicago to return the White House, arriving at 10:50 p.m.
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