For all intents and purposes, the United States re-opened for business Monday afternoon when the U.S. Senate voted 81-18 for a short-term spending measure that extends to Feb. 8.
To obtain the necessary bipartisan support, Mitch McConnell, Senate majority leader, promised Democrats immigration would be addressed in the near future.
We’ll learn soon enough whether McConnell is a man of his word or whether Democrats did indeed capitulate, throwing the Dreamers to the wolves.
Even President Trump ridiculed the Democrats for their willingness to reach a solution when he tweeted late Monday night: “Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown.”
The three-week budget deadline will help keep the pressure on Republicans to live up to their pledge. At this point, Democrats have little else to leverage.
Of all the president’s stances, immigration has been the most “flexible.”
Those close to President Trump maintain he has a soft spot in his heart for Dreamers, those who came to the United States as the children of illegal immigrants.
“We don’t want to hurt those kids,” Mr. Trump has said. “We love the Dreamers.”
When Mr. Trump canceled DACA in September it was with the understanding that it needed to be revised. Since then, he twice has called for brainstorming sessions.
In talks on Jan. 9 that included Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., the president seemed to agree with her that a “clean” DACA bill — separate from any other legislation — would be preferable.
Just Friday, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., came away from a one-on-one meeting with the president feeling good about discussions that provided beefed up spending for the military and Mr. Trump’s border wall in exchange for paving the way for legal status for the Dreamers.
The president has since denied any such understanding, leading one to question whether the president understands the importance of a handshake.
Insiders say the president’s about-faces are due to the influence of John Kelly, the president’s chief of staff, and Stephen Miller, his 32-year-old “senior” adviser, foes of immigration who maintain anything good for immigrants must be bad for the country.
SO IS DACA a bad deal for the United States?
