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Senators to present bipartisan immigration, border security bill

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Senators to present bipartisan immigration, border security bill
By Ed Adamczyk
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Feb. 05, 2018

Feb. 5 (UPI) -- A bipartisan Senate bill offering legal status for undocumented immigrants in the United States, known as Dreamers, and an order to study a border wall will be introduced on Monday.

The bill sponsored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Conn., will grant permanent legal status to those who arrived without immigration status in the United States as children, The Wall Street Journal reported. They have protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, of DACA, program, which is scheduled to expire on March 5.

The pool of nearly 2 million immigrants is larger than the one to which President Donald Trump has offered his support for resolution of their status.
The McCain-Coons bill does not address family-based legal migration or the abolition of the diversity lottery, two of Trump's priorities.

In September, Trump announced plans to end the DACA program unless Congress reforms it.

The bipartisan legislation also calls for a comprehensive study of border security and an immediate improvement in security on the United States' southern border. It does not, however, authorize a $30 billion expenditure Trump has requested for construction of security walls and fences.
"It's time we end the gridlock so we can quickly move on to completing a long-term budget agreement that provides our men and women in uniform the support they deserve," McCain said in a statement Sunday. "While reaching a deal cannot come soon enough for America's service members, the current political reality demands bipartisan cooperation to address the impending expiration of the DACA program and secure the southern border."

While the bill is likely to meet resistance from Republicans in the Senate, it is almost identical to legislation sponsored by Rep. Will Hurd, R-Texas, and Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., in the House -- which has the support of 27 Democrats and 27 Republicans so far.

Both the Senate and House bills call for the use of drones and other technologies to secure U.S. borders. They also charges the Homeland Security secretary to submit a southern border strategy to Congress within one year, to include a comprehensive list of "known physical barriers" usable as border protection, and an estimated cost per mile for construction.

The Senate legislation comes four days before a short-term spending resolution, reached last month after a government shutdown, expires. The stopgap funding was passed after negotiations were stalled by Democrats in Congress who sought to tie a spending bill to one resolving the fate of the DACA immigrants, known as Dreamers.

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/201...ion-border-security-bill/7531517838543/?nll=1
 

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DHS opposes bipartisan immigration bill in favor of Secure and Succeed Act
By Susan McFarland
Feb. 14, 2018

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Immigration rights supporters protest against the Trump administration's announcement of ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), near the White House on September 5. Wednesday, President Donald Trump's Homeland Security Department said it favors the Secure and Succeed Act. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo


Feb. 14 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump's administration said Wednesday it opposes proposed bipartisan immigration legislation it says would increase unlawful migration, while not fixing existing problems in the system.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Conn., would grant permanent legal status to those who arrived without immigration status in the United States as children, who have protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program. It also calls for a comprehensive study of border security and an immediate improvement in security on the United States' southern border.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Wednesday the proposal would increase chain migration, continue catch and release actions and give a pathway to citizenship for convicted felon immigrants.

"The McCain-Coons proposal does not authorize a single penny for appropriations for border security, ensuring that our Nation's border is never secured or our national security protected," the department said. "Rather than securing the border, the McCain-Coons proposal requires the DHS to submit a strategy on border security to Congress -- something that DHS has already done."

The department also said the proposal would grant citizenship to hundreds of thousands of additional undocumented aliens that aren't DACA recipients, and provides a fast-track path to U.S. citizenship for millions of immigrants with criminal records.

"This includes convicted felons, as well as those who have committed domestic violence offenses, and criminal gang members. Even a deportable alien convicted of a firearms offense would be eligible for citizenship benefits under McCain-Coons," the DHS statement said.

The Trump administration said the bill also does nothing to "address the outdated and dangerous Visa Lottery program."
In a separate statement, the department said it does support The Secure and Succeed Act, which was released Wednesday. DHS said that proposal "includes recommendations made by the frontline officers of the Department of Homeland Security" and "is a reasonable compromise that follows the framework laid out" by Trump.

The DHS said it also accomplishes four main pillars -- securing the border, ends chain migration, cancels the visa lottery and finds a permanent solution for DACA. It is sponsored by Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, John Cornyn of Texas, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, David Perdue of Georgia, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, James Lankford of Oklahoma and Joni Ernst of Iowa.
Trump gave Congress until March 5 to negotiate a fix for DACA. Tuesday, a federal judge blocked the order.

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/201.../?utm_source=sec&utm_campaign=sl&utm_medium=4
 
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