CNN Op Ed: Pelosi and the Democrats sold out the Dreamers

[hueymahl]

Author: Greisa Martinez Rosas would qualify for the Dream Act and serves as the Advocacy Director of United We Dream, the largest immigrant youth-led organization in the country

This week, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke in Congress for eight hours straight about immigrant youth. She shared our stories and called for passage of the Dream Act. Yet, while she was speaking, Democratic and Republican party leaders were writing a budget deal that would leave protections for immigrant youth out in exchange for dollars on other projects.

*****

At a CNN town hall one year ago, House Speaker Paul Ryan told my friend Angelica that she would be safe, yet we now live in danger of being picked up and taken to detention centers by Donald Trump's Immigration and Customs Enforcement squads.

******

Earlier this week, the Senate's Democratic Leader, Chuck Schumer, crafted a deal that, cruelly, will do nothing to stop the pain and the deportations. And Thursday night, Nancy Pelosi failed to whip her caucus to use its leverage to protect us, as 73 Democrats voted with Republicans for the budget deal and secured nothing from Paul Ryan.

******

Leader Pelosi, House Democrats and the Republicans who say they stand with immigrant youth and the promise of Lady Liberty have a decision to make.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/09/opinions/pelosi-and-the-democrats-sold-out-the-dreamers-rosas/index.html

[brush]

1. Hard to go along with that headline after Pelosi's 8 hr speech and the Dems having no...

control of either house.

And trump has to sign any bills even if the Dems could initiate and pass bills, which they can't.

[hueymahl]

4. I think her point is talk is cheap

They could have used the budget extension or the debt ceiling to force the issue. Now the only shot I see to keep the Dreamers safe is to horse trade their lives for that damn wall.

[Kirk Lover]

7. Yes they could of used it to force the issue but that would be extremely politically

damaging and how is that helpful?

[Kirk Lover]

60. No politically damaging to the Democrats in general...not HER...It's not an excuse

it's realistic.

[still_one]

13. Perhaps if those self-identified progressives who refused to vote for the Democratic nominee in

2016, had instead voted for the Democratic nominee, this would not be an issue.

Those who are of the mindset that if only the Democrats had only stuck it out to prevent the debt ceiling, or the budget extension from occurring until DACA was brought up for a vote, that the republicans would have gladly acquiescence to such a tactic, are naïve at the very least.

"A majority of polled voters oppose shutting down the government over Democratic demands that a budget deal include provisions to shield from deportation immigrants who came to the country illegally as children, according to a Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll.

When respondents were asked whether they "favor or oppose Democrats voting to shut the government down" if the funding measure does not restore work permits for those protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, 58% said they oppose a shutdown.
......

"The poll suggests that a shutdown over DACA could well backfire as the public is hugely sympathetic to the 'Dreamers' but don't think closing the government is the way to handle it", said Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll co-director Mark Penn."

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/369864-poll-majority-oppose-shutting-down-government-over-daca-provision

A CNN sponsored poll found similar results:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/19/politics/cnn-poll-shutdown-trump-immigration-daca/index.html

Who do they think would get blamed for shutting down of the government?

So what did the Democrats accomplish?

They got a 6 year extension to the CHIPs program.

300 billion in additional funding will occur over two years, with at least 1/3 of that additional funding to go to disaster relief programs in response to last year's hurricanes, wildfires, etc., and the deeper cuts to the EPA, health research, foreign aid, etc. are off the table for now.

In addition, both Ryan and McConnell said they would bring up DACA for a debate and vote now that the debt limit has been raised, and funding obtained.

Will Ryan and McConnell honor their word, is anyone's guess, but the issue is front and center now, and it isn't going away.

You don't cut your nose off to spite your face, and having the government shutdown over this would do just that, especially in light of the very real possibility that the votes aren't there, and even a greater possibility that Trump would veto it without his "wall"

Perhaps the Dreamers should be focusing their attention on the republicans, who just happen to have the majority in Congress.

In 2016 every Democrat running for Senate in those critical swing states, lost to the incumbent, establishment, republican, and those Democrats that were running, were quite progressive.

It is way past due that the LIE that keeps getting propagated among certain circles that there is no difference between republicans and Democrats stop, and people pull their heads out of their butts, and vote Democratic

In case anyone isn't aware, the 2018 election is 9 months away.

[Beartracks]

14. "In case anyone isn't aware, the 2018 election is 9 months away."

This bears repeating.



==============

[EffieBlack]

17. This is one of the clearest explanations of this issue I've seen in a long time

THANK YOU!

[betsuni]

19. THANK YOU!

[Demsrule86]

31. The new deal give 10 years for CHIP...that is pretty damn good...hate these it's the Dems

fault posts...it is not.

[still_one]

34. 10 years. that is far better than I realized, I thought it was 6 years

[Demsrule86]

38. It was in the first agreement...the second was better.

[still_one]

42. excellent, thanks Demsrule86

[JustAnotherGen]

36. Well done!

[mcar]

50. +1000!

[Adrahil]

16. And failed spectacularly.

Using the budget as leverage would not have worked. We saw part I of that already.

[Hortensis]

23. I think that in 600 PAGES they had MANY issues that

they HAD to deal with right then and not later, not just One True (politically motivated) Issue .

Huey, what about community healthy clinics? What'd the bots push on that issue? Nothing. That's right. It's decent and moral and both left and right approve Democrats fighting for them--or would if they knew about it. [Crickets.]

Back to immigrants then since that's the one political issue of choice. How about all the others, legal and illegal, who are being badly hurt, Huey? Should they be sacrificed to today's One True Issue?

600 pages of legislation, hundreds of issues.

Btw since we're on the subject of Democratic Party "selling out" its people, I've been wondering about that awful betrayal called Obamacare that failed everyone and even killing many people. 2017 was filled with outraged demands to repeal it (for the demanders on the left, eventually replacing it with single payer). That, not DACA, was The One True Issue pushed here on DU.

Why the silence in 2018? Obamacare's bleeding and on its knees but still not repealed. Of course single payer's still nowhere in sight, but we knew all through 2017 that that had to be for some while. Are all those righteous repealers really just going to leave a bloody, broken mess and pretend it's not there?

[betsuni]

24. +1

[pnwmom]

25. Trump would have been happy to shut down the government OR to fail to raise the debt ceiling.

The latter, etc., would have caused a financial crisis that he would have LOVED to blame the Democrats for.

[Demsrule86]

35. We are headed for economic trouble ...layoffs my brother is laid off now...and markets reminde me

of 07 and 08. Trump would love to blame what is coming on the Democrats

[Demsrule86]

30. No they couldn't. It would not work and would be counter productive...guess people should have voted

for HIllary...the day after the election I said Sarandon and Turner, the JPR crowd and any who didn't vote for Hillary sold out the Dreamers. We have no power. The Republicans won't give us DACA in the way you describe and probably not at all...we have no power and sadly, there is little we can do. Vote in the midterms and stop blaming Democrats...the GOP did this. They need to be blamed. Had Hillary been elected, the Dreamers would be fine.

[Lucinda]

12. +1

[FSogol]

2. Trash thread.

[msongs]

3. what happened to McConnells promise of a DACA vote? its all zzzz's lately nt

[Demsrule86]

39. It is set for next week.

It is coming. But there are no promises from the House...and Nancy did a good job putting the GOP House on the defense. The last ditch effort is that the terrible vision of millions of dreamers being deported many to their deaths will sway the GOP House. It is nine months before an election...anything could happen. Hopefully millions will take to the streets to fight this. We may need to hide Dreamers also until we get rid of Trump and the GOP scourge.

[OhioBlue]

5. "leave protections for immigrant youth out in exchange for dollars for other projects"

I don't see it this way at all. The Dems are trying on DACA - but negotiating with bullies can be impossible. I always think of the story of the two women who both claimed to be a child's mother... the king couldn't decide who was lying so he said he was going to cut the child in two and give half to each woman. The first woman agreed and the second said no, let her have the child. That's how the king knew that the second was actually the mother. A majority of republicans would rather cut the metaphorical child in two than compromise even if they know it is good for the country and the just and moral thing to do.

It wasn't like the Rs asked Dems, hey do you want DACA or funding for disaster relief?

CHIP should have been a clean funding.. but it wasn't because Rs aren't going to vote for something that they know Dems prioritize without using political leverage. So they tied it to the previous CR and forced Dems to vote against it - now there is a commercial written for every dem incumbent that they voted no on CHIP to be used in their reelection campaigns. Same with disaster relief and community health centers... neither should have been leverage - both sides should have agreed in clean bills, but Rs don't play like that. They use anything and everything as a political tool.

We won't get DACA until Rs need it as leverage and it will probably be in a poison pill of a bill.

[Cha]

6. Or we get enough Dems in Office..

GOTV out Election Day for Dems

[oasis]

8. That's the spirit, Cha.

[Cha]

9. Mahalo, oasis!

[OhioBlue]

10. Absolutely but we can't do that until November and they won't be seated until Jan

and I think the protected status for dreamers runs out in March. Dems in Congress will still have to navigate to try and get DACA passed or at least protection extended until then and they may have to make a compromise that none of us like.

[Cha]

11. You're right, OhioBlue.. we need

all kinds of backup plans and ways to keep DACA.

I know the Dems in Congress want to make it so. It's insane not to.

[Demsrule86]

40. And the GOP may not be willing to compromise...that is what I fear.

I would give them their shitty wall and pretty much anything they want short of taking down Medicare etc. but I don't know if it will happen. Anything we give we can take back when we get power. (no deals on Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security).

[mcar]

51. We have a good chance, Cha

As long as people vote for Democrats!

[GulfCoast66]

15. Anyone on the left who blames the Democratic Party for the plight of DACA kids...

Are either total dumbasses or people who resent that they are not Democratic Party leaders and will happily lose to republicans if it allows them to gain power.

So we shut down the government to get DACA. You think the republicans care? Hell, they hate the federal government. They would happily let the Democratic Party shut it down. Till the election for all they care.

Do not confuse the fact that 70% of Americans want legal DACA with 70% who really care all that much. Most Americans at the end of the day could give a shit. And will blame us if we are seen as shutting it down.

This House of Representatives will never vote for a DACA fix.

The only reason we are here is because trump killed DACA. If I were DU king blaming the Democratic Party for the plight of DACA kids would be an automatic hide.

[LBM20]

21. Exactly. Americans DO NOT WANT THE GOVERNMENT SHIT DOWN, PERIOD!!

[a la izquierda]

32. Perhaps you should have a listen...

To Pod save America. The guys worked in various capacities in the Obama White House.
They all agree the Democrats sold out the Dreamers.

I’ll listen to them and their views as opposed to random dude on the internet.

[GulfCoast66]

37. Knock yourself out...

And I ‘listen’ to all sides of a debate and then make up my own mind.

And just because some random dude who happened to score a job in the Obama White House believes something does not make it correct. These folks make my point...people how have no power in our party attacking those who do.

No one, including you, have presented a scenario where the Democratic Party shutting down the government helps the Democratic Party or the DACA kids. The Republicans would just sit back, watch our poll numbers crash and wait for us to cave.

We shut down the government for DACA kids we lose this fall.

[Demsrule86]

41. I agree with every word in this post...

This is the reality of our situation.

[Hekate]

18. DU Op-Ed: The Goddam GOP Sold Out the Dreamers

Put the blame where it belongs.

[Raine]

20. The Democrats don't control anything

what the heck else could they do that wouldn't come back on them and cause even more pain for everyone!

[TeamPooka]

22. Trump put the Dreamers in a boat and drilled holes in the bottom

But it’s our fault because the GOP won’t let us fix the boat
Sure

[chillfactor]

26. SORRY but I do not agree.....

Pelosi gave quote a speech on the House floor in support of the Dreamers ....the rethugs are the ones who have blocked legislation in regards to rhe Dreamers especially Ryan who has sold his soul to the devil.

[mfcorey1]

27. The article is crap. The dems try to keep it in the news, but

they have no power. Is there any other group in Congress speaking out for the Dreamers? I hope the Dreamers don't suck up this divisive attempt. That's all it is.

[Mike Nelson]

28. Pelosi and the Democrats...

...need more support, not less.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

29. blames Dems for Repugs attacking dreamers

TrumPutin created the problem. Repugs embrace and extend the problem.
Therefore, according to that author, Democrats sold the Dreamers out.

At a CNN town hall one year ago, House Speaker Paul Ryan told my friend Angelica that she would be safe, yet we now live in danger of being picked up and taken to detention centers by Donald Trump's Immigration and Customs Enforcement squads.

By the author's own admission, all of the threat comes from Republicans. All of it.

The author can kiss my ass and call me sweety. I have no interest in anything it has to say on any topic ever again.

[hexola]

33. He who turn and run away...live to fight another day.

I waiting to see where this strategy goes...

Its not over!

[Vinca]

43. Unless the author can give us a theory about how a minority party suddenly turns into a majority,

I say baloney. The Dreamers have every Democratic vote. They should be concentrating on Republicans. If enough Dreamer entrepreneurs wave money at the GOP, they'll turn them around.

[bigtree]

44. this is way off

give them a damn chance, They don't have the majority, and ANY Dreamer legislation will need support from the republican leadership AND a sufficient number of republican votes to advance it into law.

This idea that the govt. shtdown was going to produce a bill is just completely false. There isn't a bill yet, there wasn't one to vote on during the shutdown debate, so it's nonsense to say Pelosi and Schumer prevernted anything from happening.

Schumer will produce a bipartisan bill, same with Pelosi,. They need support, not this ridiculous bashing like that's doing something productive.

Where's the fucking op-ed criticizing republicans? I swear, for people all worked up over the politics of Dems, they don't seem to have a political clue how to actually work with these legislators.

[Mr. Ected]

45. So are the Dreamers to turn to Republicans for help now?

Since the Democrats sold them out?

I cry bullshit. There's a time and place for everything. This is not the time nor the place.

Donald Trump unilaterally created this debacle. Place the blame where it belongs.

[Stinky The Clown]

46. BULLSHIT

Clown Out!

[Squinch]

47. 65 percent of Latinos voted for Hillary. That still leaves 35% who voted for Trump(R).

Against 71% who voted for Obama. We could have really used those missing 6%.

I'm not casting aspersions. Just pointing out the numbers, because if we're going to lay blame among Democrats, there is no demographic that escapes it.

Hell, I'm a white woman. Don't even get me started on what the majority of white women did.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/cp/opinion/election-night-2016/heres-what-happened-with-the-latino-vote

[GulfCoast66]

48. If we shut down the government for DACA we might get those 6

But will lose way more that that from people who care about DACA but care way more about having government open.

Because at the end of the day, most white people who want DACA will never make it a primary decider in how they vote. They care, but not all that much.

[Squinch]

49. Your analysis makes me sad, but I think you might be right.

[missingm]

57. Reminds me of the wife who voted for Trump, only to see her husband deported

She wasn't Hispanic herself, but obviously a lot of people foolishly threw their votes to Trump on the word of a very well known liar.

It is bad enough fighting the 30% of the US who have no empathy or are truly misled.

[CrispyQ]

52. Yeah, because the dems have so much power & influence in Congress.

This commentary is a stinkin' crock of shit.

[Hoyt]

53. Think they will extend DACA, just like CHIP. But, damn GOPers have to scare people to death before

doing the right thing. There is no rationale for that.

IMO, it was a good idea to get the budget stuff out of the way, and move on to DACA and other important stuff.

[workinclasszero]

54. What does it take to make people realize that the democratic party has no power

in Washington DC to do ANYTHING?!?!?!?!?

I'm so sick of this shit!

Attacking the ONLY PARTY that will EVER help you while the evil stinking republican slime monsters that are in TOTAL CONTROL laugh their asses off!

[bronxiteforever]

55. Elections have consequences. GOP controls all 3 levers of power.

That is a fact that can’t be protested away.

The GOP may very well deport dreamers. A large group of the GOP hates immigrants. The consequences of that action will rest on the GOP and the Nation for decades to come.

[vi5]

56. Look, there probably wasn't much that could be done...

..my issue is less with the fact that they did what they could with what they had. It's people on here and elsewhere in the party who insist on spinning everything like some kind of victory. Many of the same folks now going "Well what else could they do? It was a losing gambit." were on here 2-3 weeks ago praising Schumer's grand bargain with McConnell like it was some sort of brilliant move. The whole 12 dimensional chess thing.

People have to start being able to just fucking admit when we lose, admit that there are certain causes and demographics or whatever else that Dems are in fact willing to compromise on more than others and use that information to move forward a better way next time.

That's the problem that many of us have with the whole "Don't criticize Dems ever!!!" thing and the whole "They know what they are doing and we don't. Trust them!" thing. It just leads to the same damn results every single time. If we don't start actively and actually trying to get better and figure out different ways to move forward and improve we are going to find ourselves right back in the same spot again and again. We've been seeing variations of this play out since the Bush years, and then we wonder why certain people or demographics don't want to take the whole "Trust us!" approach seriously.

[Tom Rinaldo]

58. "Let Down", OK, maybe a case can be made for that, but "Sold Out - NO

Democrats fought for Dreamers, Republicans sold them out. Some of them could have signed a discharge petition with unanimous Democratic support to force a vote a House vote on a clean Dreamer Bill - Ryan could not have stopped that if a few dozen Republicans supported a discharge petition, but they wouldn't.

Democrats did not sell out Dreamers - Republicans who claim to support them did. The only argument is whether Democrats have fought hard enough for them so far, but let's not get confused over who stands with them and who does not.