California Dems Call For Obama To Pardon Immigrants Brought Illegally Into US As Children
HUNTINGTON PARK (CBSLA.com) — Congressional Democrats issued a plea Thursday for President Obama to protect young people who were brought into the U.S. illegally as children from possibly being deported under the Trump Administration.
Reps. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey) and Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) signed a letter (PDF) along with Illinois Congressman Luis Gutierrez asking Obama to provide pardons "both retroactively and prospectively" for hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative.
An estimated 750,000 young people have registered with the U.S. government under DACA, a process that includes paying fees, submitting fingerprints, and undergoing a background check, Roybal-Allard said.
"By no fault of their own, these Americans are prisoners in their own country, living their daily lives, not knowing if they will be deported to a foreign country," said Roybal-Allard in a statement. "And make no mistake about it: If they are forced to leave the United States, it is our country that loses."
While DACA does not grant "lawful" immigration status, it does allow individuals to apply for a Social Security Number and a work visa, according to the California Dream Act website.
Nearly one in three so-called DREAMers - those who have lived in the United States for at least five years and are the parents of children who are American citizens or legal residents - are estimated to live in California, the Los Angeles Times reported.
An unidentified White House official told The Times federal officials don't believe a pardon would grant legal status.
"We note that the clemency power could not give legal status to any undocumented individual. As we have repeatedly said for years, only Congress can create legal status for undocumented individuals," the official was quoted as saying.
The Supreme Court was split 4-4 in June in a case challenging President Obama's 2014 immigration actions, affirming a lower court's ruling that has blocked the policy from taking effect.
