The Roanoke Times was kind enough to print my op-ed urging Republicans to follow in the footsteps of the president and the long history of the Republican Party on civil rights — and let those who have known no other country but America become citizens outright:
President Trump has demonstrated a willingness to break from populist orthodoxy. Both parties should seize this moment to end the limbo a patchwork of Obama-era executive orders and lax immigration enforcement have created, and do so in a manner that reflects the hopes of America — not our fears.
This is not just an economic or immigration issue. The decision on what to do with America’s Dreamers is a policy direction that will define the moral compass of the Republican Party for a generation or more.
Feel free to read it all and tell me what you think. I will have to admit — I am more than just a little saddened to see that VPAP has not included it in their morning clips (though that could change) if for no other reason than I really did want to get Republicans talking about the DREAMers in a more productive way — but that’s more me whining than anything else… a humble plea, as it were, to friends. By the way, if you don’t get VPAP’s morning news roundups, click here and be one of the 10,000 coolest Virginians.
Back to topic.
For myself, DACA stands entirely independent of the wider issue of what to do with 8 to 20 million immigrants who are physically present in the United States illegally. Certainly border security is important; certainly decades of lax enforcement of laws doesn’t legitimize its breach (though this question presented in the light of marijuana use, speeding tickets, or sexual ethics presents very different “rule of law” answers to be sure — one standard really doesn’t seem to apply).
Yet the question of what to do with 800,000 Dreamers seems morally clear cut, especially when they involve a 43-year old doctor whose parents fled Communist Poland when he was just 3 years old or a 29-year old ordained Catholic priest who came to America at the age of 2.
A friend of mine once recounted a story while on embassy duty in Bulgaria during the 1980s, where a family of a mid-ranking government official presented himself for asylum. The family was promptly turned away, whereupon the father kissed his neatly dressed wife and his three smartly dressed children before walking out of the embassy compound.
Immediately, a van pulled up and three men pulled the father inside. The Marine on duty said you could hear the gunshot “pop” inside the van before made it around the block. The family — or what remained of it — was eventually granted asylum.
Trump seems willing and even eager to extend citizenship to the DREAMers in exchange for strict border security. That’s the deal — Republicans should seize on this and force the Democrats to the table, and if they are unwilling? Then lead on it as Republicans.
We have until February 8th to find out whether we still possess such mettle.
