President Trump will send a proposal to Congress on Monday for a grand compromise on immigration policy. Many of his supporters are angry that his proposal includes a pathway to citizenship for 1.8 million illegal aliens who are eligible for the DACA program. But nobody would object, if the new law makes military service the DACA pathway.
The President’s program includes a combination of policies, some important to him and the Republicans, and others important to the Democrats. The plan includes a $25 million budget for a border wall and associated security, and an increased budget for ICE. Trump also proposed to end the visa lottery and to allow new citizens to sponsor only their spouses and children, not large groups of distant family members.
There is not an American alive who would deny citizenship to any ‘Dreamer’ who had served his or her country and jeopardized life and limb, as Mr. Villarreal did.
The most controversial element of the plan is Trump’s agreement to Democrat demands that DACA enrollees can become citizens. His outline suggests that they may become citizens after ten to twelve years, if they meet certain requirements. Trump supporters are angry, because they see legalization as a Democrat plan to import new Democrat voters, securing electoral victories that they could never achieve without newly legalized immigrants.
As members of Congress consider the Trump proposal they will have many opportunities to change it. If the pathway requires military service, then it will probably be relatively easy to find 60 votes in the Senate to support it. It would be very difficult for Democrat senators facing re-election this year to vote against it.
PR For ‘Dreamers’
There is a huge, multi-million dollar PR and lobbying effort under way to generate sympathy for ‘Dreamers’ among the general population. One example comes from a website that lets people tell what DACA means to them. Here is a sample from that site.
“My name is José Castillo, and I am 22 years old. When I was four years old, my parents took my little sister and me and packed up everything they owned. We got on a plane and headed to the United States to escape a country in its early stages of turmoil.”
“My parents gave up everything they had to provide us with a sliver of a chance, one they knew we wouldn’t have in Venezuela. They made it a point to raise us well while shielding us from racism and their fears of deportation. Eventually, we came to understand just how many doors were closed to us. Disheartened and frightened for our future, we prayed for something, anything. DACA was that something.”
“DACA has given me hope and a real chance, but more importantly, it has given me a voice. I can proudly tell my story to anyone who is willing to listen. DACA’s removal would rip that away from us.”
Anthony Villarreal, Wounded Warrior
Here is a story of another young man, about the same age as José. Quoting from the Wounded Warrior Project, “On June 20, 2008, in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province, Anthony Villarreal’s life changed in an instant when a roadside bomb blew up the truck he was driving, setting off a secondary explosion from his vehicle’s ammunition.”
“’More than 30 percent of my body surface was burned. My right hand had to be amputated and my left fingers as well. I had third-degree burns everywhere. I was in a coma for three months, and it was like I was having an out-of-body experience – like watching yourself sleep. I didn’t think I had lived through it. In a way, I didn’t.’”
“Anthony’s journey back to life started with two grueling years at Brooke Army Medical Center and more than 70 surgeries….”
Make Military Service the DACA Pathway
There is not an American alive who would deny citizenship to any ‘Dreamer’ who had served his or her country and jeopardized life and limb, as Mr. Villarreal did. It would be an easy policy to justify, and would put an end to any objections to naturalization.
On the USCIS website, the Naturalization Through Military Service: Fact Sheet states, “The President signed an executive order on July 3, 2002, authorizing all noncitizens who have served honorably in the U.S. armed forces on or after Sept. 11, 2001, to file for citizenship under section 329 of the INA. Section 329 also covers veterans of certain designated past wars and conflicts. The authorization related to the War on Terrorism will remain in effect until a date designated by a future presidential executive order.”
There is some doubt whether DACA enrollees are currently eligible for this program. If they are not, it is a simple matter to include eligibility in the new law. If the President’s proposal does not include military service as the pathway to citizenship, Congress should do so. It is possible to establish border security, end chain migration, and allow the ‘Dreamers’ to serve in the military. No one will question their loyalty or their rights after that.
