Executive Session
Floor Speech
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Mr. DURBIN. 2000.
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Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I want to thank my friend and colleague from both the House and the Senate, Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader, for his kind words. He has been such a valuable ally in this battle.
As leader on the Senate side, Chuck, I just can't thank you enough.
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Mr. DURBIN. Time and again, we did things here that were difficult politically--difficult politically--to fight for the young people.
I just want to thank all of the Senators on both sides of the aisle who were a part of moving this issue forward. They did it at great political risk.
I can remember, as sure as I am standing here, watching one of my Democratic Senate colleagues walk down and vote for the Dream Act, return to her desk in the corner, put her head down and sobbed, realizing that she had probably cost her own reelection with that vote. Over and over again, people stood up for these young people.
This morning, minutes ago, the Supreme Court brought a smile and a sigh of relief to more than 700,000 young people in the United States of America. This morning, the Supreme Court ruled that the September 2017 rescission of the DACA Program by the Trump administration was to be stricken as arbitrary and capricious.
So what does it mean? It means, for these 700,000 DACA-protected individuals, that they can continue to live, to work, and to study in America without fear of deportation for the moment.
DACA, of course, is a program created by President Obama in 2012. It was a program that was, frankly, our answer to the failure to enact the DREAM Act as the law of the land. The President used his Executive authority to create the DACA Program, and here is what it said, just basically mirroring the standards of the DREAM Act, which I introduced 20 years ago: If you were brought to America as a child, if you have lived in this country, gone to school, don't have a serious problem with the law, you should have a chance to live here without fear of deportation. The DREAM Act said you should have a chance to become a citizen of the United States, which is, of course, our ultimate goal.
But the DACA Program opened up eligibility, and almost 800,000 came forward and applied. They had to pay a filing fee of $500 or $600, go through a criminal background check, but for many of these young people, it was a turning point in their lives. At that point, finally-- finally--there was a chance they could stay in the country they called home, the United States of America.
They seized that opportunity and did remarkable things. They enlisted in our military. They went to schools and colleges to pursue an education. They took up jobs as teachers. They finished medical school. They did things that were unimaginable for DACA.
Of course, when the administration changed and a new President came in, there was a real question as to whether he would continue the DACA Program.
The very first time I ever spoke to President Donald Trump was the day of his inauguration, within an hour or two after he was sworn, at a luncheon. What I said to him then--my first words were these: Mr. President, I hope you are going to help those young people, those Dreamers, those protected by DACA.
He looked at me, and he said: Senator, don't worry. We will take care of those kids.
Well, sadly, that didn't happen.
In September of 2017, there was a decision made by this administration to eliminate the DACA Program, and at that point, were it not for a court challenge and a protective order by the court, those young people might have been subject to deportation. But many, myself included, believed that the process used by President Trump was flawed, and, if challenged, it would fall in court. It took from September 2017 until today, just minutes ago, when the Supreme Court ruled that the administration's approach to eliminating DACA was wrong and would be stricken.
I want to say for a moment who these young people are, because many people don't know them. They don't wear badges or uniforms to claim that they are DACA-protected, but this is who they are. Of the 700,000, 200,000 of them are essential employees. You may see them every day in many, many callings across America as we face this national health emergency.
Over 40,000 of them are healthcare workers. So if you are a patient at a clinic or a hospital today fighting COVID-19 and your doctor or nurse just walked in the room with a big smile, it is because the Supreme Court said to that healthcare worker or to that healthcare hero: You can stay in America. We need you.
Of course, that could change. I want to raise this issue because it is an important one. The Trump administration can decide that they are going to reinitiate this effort to rescind DACA and try to do it right this time by the Supreme Court standards. That would be a terrible tragedy if he made that decision, not just for those 700,000 but for their families as well.
The front page story on the Chicago Tribune this morning was about just such a family, both husband and wife protected by DACA, working in America, trying to buy a little home in Aurora, IL. She works in a cancer clinic. He has a job as well. They have two beautiful little kids. They are both DACA-protected. Because of the Supreme Court decision, they have another day in America. They have a sigh of relief this morning, but what about next week? What will the Trump administration do to them next week? I am calling on the President and those around him, begging him to give these DACA protectees the rest of this year until next year at least before anything is considered. Let's protect them now through the election, and let the next President, whoever he may be, make a decision.
I hope before that happens we will do our part in the U.S. Senate, the second part of what we can and should be doing, calling on the President not to rescind DACA again, not to put these young people and their families through this all over again but, secondly, that we do our job in the Senate.
I listened to Senator McConnell earlier, talking about bipartisanship and talking about our legislative accomplishments. He is correct that the lands bill we passed yesterday was historic. I am glad we did it. The coronavirus relief bill we passed is historic. I am certainly glad we did it on a bipartisan basis, and I sincerely hope, when it comes to Justice in Policing, we can do the same--a bipartisan effort to enact good law.
Let me add to the list, which unfortunately doesn't include a lot of legislation, something that is now critically important. The House of Representatives, months ago, passed the Dream and Promise Act, which would take care of the DACA issue once and for all. We could enact that law and say to these young people: Now you have your chance to stay and earn your path to citizenship in America. That is what we ought to be saying.
Everyone knows that our immigration laws are a mess. They are hard to explain and impossible to defend. We have a chance to do something about them on a bipartisan basis, and I am calling on Senator McConnell and all the leaders on either side of the aisle: Let's join together and do that. Let's have a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Let's bring this bill to the floor of the Senate this year so that once and for all we can deal with the problem we have been looking at for 20 years and approaching in so many different ways.
In the meantime, for today--at least for this week and, I hope, for long beyond that--we will be celebrating a Supreme Court decision that gives a new lease on life to 700,000 young people who have one goal in mind: to be part of America's future. They were educated in our schools. They stood in those classrooms and pledged allegiance to the same flag we pledge allegiance to. They have their children. They have their families. They have their hopes and a future, and they are making a good living with life in the America. Thanks to the Supreme Court, they have some more time, but now it is up to the President and up to us to solve this problem once and for all, to do the right thing for them and for the future of America.
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