Obama Demands 'Pathway to Citizenship' for Illegal Alien 'Dreamers' Amid Pandemic
Former president argues DACA illegals 'deserve permanent immigration status'
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Former President Barack Obama has weighed in on the coronavirus crisis by demanding that illegal alien "Dreamers" are awarded a "pathway to citizenship" amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Ex-POTUS argues that DACA illegals "deserve permanent immigration status" because they are "risking their lives fighting on the frontlines of this pandemic."
Obama insists that the Chinese coronavirus crisis provides a perfect opportunity to give amnesty to about 3.5 million illegal aliens who are enrolled and eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
The former U.S. president has spoken out as roughly ten million Americans have filed for unemployment in just three weeks.
Obama took to social media to call for an amnesty for DACA illegal aliens in response to the coronavirus crisis.
“Dreamers have contributed so much to our country, and they are risking their lives fighting on the frontlines of this pandemic,” he said on Twitter.
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“They deserve permanent immigration status and a pathway to citizenship—as they are Americans in every way but on paper,” Obama added.
Dreamers have contributed so much to our country, and they are risking their lives fighting on the frontlines of this pandemic. They deserve permanent immigration status and a pathway to citizenship—as they are Americans in every way but on paper. https://t.co/e4IYqX3WIy
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) April 13, 2020
Center for Immigration Studies Research Director Steven Camarotta has noted that DACA illegal aliens make up about 0.2 percent of the nation’s nearly 15 million healthcare workers.
In New York, where a staggering number of DACA illegal aliens reside, they still only account for about 0.2 percent of the state’s healthcare workers, according to Camarotta.
Obama’s lobbying for a DACA amnesty in the middle of the coronavirus crisis comes as House Democrats — including Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Joaquin Castro (D-TX), Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — have sent a letter to the Trump administration demanding DACA illegal aliens have their work authorizations extended.
“Support of DACA recipients during the current pandemic is particularly critical as over 200,000 DACA recipients are in occupations and industry groups that render them ‘essential critical infrastructure workers,’ according to DHS guidance,” the House Democrats wrote in their letter.
President Donald Trump signed the CARES Act on March 27, making $2.2 trillion in stimulus funds available for families and U.S. businesses hurting under the coronavirus-induced lockdown.
The relief package not only provides up to $10 million in forgivable loans for each small business but also $1,200 to single Americans who make $75,000 or less a year, according to The Daily Caller.
While the stimulus package was by a wide margin in both chambers of Congress and was considered essential in the fight against COVID-19, not everyone was completely satisfied with the bill.
“I was appalled to learn hardworking, taxpaying immigrants were left out of the $2 trillion CARES Act,” California Rep. Lou Correa said in a statement released on April 3.
Correa, along with 49 other House Democrats, supports the Leave No Taxpayer Behind Act which, if passed into law, would allow illegal aliens to tap into the funds provided by the CARES Act.
“By casting out immigrants, we are placing some of our most vulnerable residents in grave danger,” Correa continued.
Among the sponsors of the Leave No Taxpayer Behind Act are Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.
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All three are members of the so-called “Squad” within the House Democratic caucus, a group of four first-term progressive women.
All four Squad members have either called for the current relief package to include illegal aliens or allow them to tap into a future coronavirus relief bill.
A DACA amnesty would put more citizen children of illegal aliens — known as “anchor babies” — on federal welfare, as Breitbart News reported.
Meanwhile, American taxpayers would be left potentially with a $26 billion bill.
Additionally, about one-in-five DACA illegal aliens, after an amnesty, would end up on food stamps, while at least one-in-seven would go on Medicaid.
