House votes down move to block certain immigrants from joining the military

Small win for us; I think it means the status quo stands with regards to only very few DACA recipients being able to join the armed services.

House votes down move to block certain immigrants from joining the military

San Antonio Rep. Joaquin Castro, a Democrat, joined members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus this week to decry the proposed blocking of certain immigrants living in the U.S. illegally from serving in the military. (Katie Leslie/Staff)
Update: This post was updated at 2:40 p.m. with voting results.

WASHINGTON — The House narrowly voted down measures Thursday that would have blocked people who received deferred immigration status from serving in the U.S. military.

At issue was a pair of amendments brought by Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., and Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, to the House’s annual defense spending bill that would have prohibited using funds to enlist people allowed to stay through President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program.

Gosar’s amendment to block money to enlist DACA recipients who were made eligible for service only through a specialized military program failed by a 210 to 211 vote. King’s amendment to prohibit funds to enlist DACA recipients in the service altogether was rejected 207 to 214.

Some Republicans say the inclusion of deferred action recipients in the service is effectively a backdoor amnesty program. But Democrats, including San Antonio Rep. Joaquin Castro and Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, fought the proposal this week and accused House Republicans of playing Donald Trump-esque politics on immigration matters.

“What we’re seeing with these amendments is part of a larger pattern of hostility towards Hispanic Americans on behalf of the Republican Party,” Castro said during a news conference with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Wednesday, adding that the GOP lawmakers are acting “in the spirit of Donald Trump.”

People living in the U.S. illegally are generally barred from joining the military, though the secretary in any armed forces branch has the authority to enlist such people if they have skills deemed critical to national security.

In late 2014, the Obama administration said that people allowed to stay under a deferred action immigration permit are eligible to serve in the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest, or MAVNI, program. That program was designed to recruit noncitizens with rare medical, tech or language skills to assist the military. As of April 2015, Spanish was not one of the eligible languages.

Gosar and King accuse Obama of using that program as a way to expedite citizenship for people living in the U.S. illegally.

“It’s time that we stop playing politics with the defense authorization and ensure that a provision meant to allow military readiness isn’t hijacked in order to provide backdoor amnesty to DACA aliens,” Gosar said in a statement last month.

Gosar’s measure had won support from Texas Reps. Randy Weber, R-Friendswood; Lamar Smith, R-San Antonio; and Brian Babin, R-Woodville. Dallas Rep. Pete Sessions spoke in favor of the measure during debate on the House floor Wednesday.

Their amendments were part of the House’s $576 billion annual Department of Defense Appropriations Act, which passed by a 282 to 138 vote, and came as the Supreme Court weighs a challenge brought by Texas to the lawfulness of the president’s deferred deportation programs.

Gallego, a Marine who served in the Iraq war, said the legislation smacks of Trump’s anti-immigrant statements. Trump, the GOP’s presumptive nominee, has called for a ban on all Muslims seeking entry into the U.S.

“As someone who has served on the front line in Iraq, going door to door searching for insurgents … what matters out there is not your status; what matters is your heart,” Gallego said at a news conference Wednesday, adding: “These politicians do not understand that.”

Democrats are hoping to capitalize on Trump’s controversial rhetoric in congressional elections this fall by tying vulnerable Republican lawmakers to the presidential candidate. Gallego sees the King and Gosar amendments as anti-Latino, he said, because they target the president’s immigration program that could help millions of Hispanic immigrants.

The Arizona Democrat said about 150 people with specialized language skills have joined the specialized military program through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in the past few years.

According to the Department of Defense, about 109,000 people from around the world have received citizenship by serving in the U.S. military since Sept. 11, 2001.

Hector Barajas, an Army vet who runs the Deported Veterans Support House in Tijuana, Mexico, for military members ousted from the U.S., supports the inclusion of DACA recipients in the service.

Barajas came to the U.S. as a child and grew up in Compton, Calif., before joining the military with a green card. He was later stationed at Fort Sam Houston in Texas.

“There should be a path towards citizenship” for people who want to serve, he said, adding: “It shouldn’t be blocked.”





http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.c...military.html/

Fucking hate Steve King!

Yes, sir!

so what about DACA who has already signed the military contract and waiting for to be shipped? I don't quiet understand but will DACA mavni be safe as of now?

As long as your N-400 is filed successfully there should be nothing to be concerned about. Also, the current DACA is unaffected.

What is the excuse?