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The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program protects roughly 800,000 young undocumented immigrants from deportation by an Obama executive order.
During his campaign, Trump promised to end DACA. In April, he indicated that people covered under the program had nothing to fear from his administration. However, several states, led by Texas, threatened a lawsuit, which AG Jeff Sessions used to nudge Trump toward a decision.
On September 5, the Trump administration formally announced the end of DACA. But Trump seems torn about it. He gave Congress until March 5 to find a legislative solution. He later added that he would revisit the issue after the six-month period if Congress did not act. It is not clear what mechanism Trump thinks he might have to put the program back in place through the executive branch since Sessions has declared DACA unconstitutional and an overreach of authority.
Sen Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Rep Nancy Pelosi (D-CA12), said in a joint statement that Trump had agreed with them at a WH dinner meeting on September 13, “to enshrine the protections of DACA into law quickly,” they said.
But on September 14, the president contradicted the Democrats, saying no deal had been struck.
Trump’s contradictory statements on the program, and his drift back toward preserving it, came after days of deeply negative news media coverage over his decision to end the program. Trump, who pays close attention to the headlines, told advisers he was bothered by the seemingly endless bad press over DACA.
Negative headlines bother Trump, while the wellbeing of young immigrants, not so much.
Source:
NBC News Photo