GOP elected officials, including Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., are working on “a conservative-Republican alternative” to the DREAM Act, in an effort to reach out to Latino voters before the November presidential election.
The DREAM Act, which was first introduced in Congress 10 years ago, would grant those who entered the U.S. illegally before the age of 16 conditional permanent resident status for a period of six years, after which they would be eligible to become legal permanent residents if they obtain at least an associate-level college degree or serve in the military for two years.
Rubio tells the National Review in an interview published Friday that “Democrats and the Left are terrified of losing this issue,” and that they do not want to solve but rather use it as a political tool.
“If and when we are able to come up with a conservative-Republican alternative DREAM Act that deals with the issues of these kids without undermining our heritage as a nation of laws, when we do that, we are going to expose the political reality behind this,” Rubio says.
The Hill reported early this week that Rubio had no “specifics to announce yet,” about his alternative DREAM Act. “This stuff has to be done responsibly. We’re working toward that and hopefully very soon,” Rubio told the paper.
Rubio is drafting what earlier this month he called a a bipartisan solution that “does not reward or encourage illegal immigration by granting amnesty, but helps accommodate talented young people like Daniela [Pelaez], who find themselves undocumented through no fault of their own.”
Pelaez, a Miami high school valedictorian whose order of deportation set off a series of protests in South Florida and other parts of the U.S., met with Rubio. She has been granted another two years in the U.S. by immigration authorities while her case makes its way through immigration courts.
Rep. David Rivera, R-Miami, who also met with Pelaez on the heels of the Miami protest, announced he would file the Studying Towards Adjusted Residency Status Act (the S.T.A.R.S. Act), which would allow undocumented immigrant youth who meet certain criteria to adjust their residency status.
“Sens. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) are also working on a [DREAM Act alternative] bill, although its details are being kept secret, according to congressional sources. Senate sources expect it to be unveiled after GOP front-runner Mitt Romney has clinched the presidential nomination,” The Hill reported.
Rubio endorsed Romney this week, praising the GOP presidential candidate’s experience with the private sector and the free enterprise system and his conservative credentials.
http://coloradoindependent.com/11711...n-of-dream-act