DREAM Act passes House, Senate vote next

Ryan Hagen, Staff Writer
San Bernardino County Sun
Posted: 12/08/2010 08:37:04 PM PST

The House of Representatives voted Thursday night to allow children who entered the country illegally but meet certain conditions to become citizens after attending college or serving in the military for two years.

The bill, known as the DREAM Act, still faces a steep hurdle because Republicans in the Senate - which is scheduled to vote on a slightly different version today - strongly oppose what they say is a mass amnesty bill.

If it doesn't pass the Senate soon, the measure - formally known as the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act of 2010 - will likely languish in the next, more conservative Congress.

But some local activists who have campaigned heavily for the bill said they were celebrating Wednesday night and hopeful about the future after the long-debated bill passed 216-198.

"When it got to 216, I was ecstatic," said Gladys Castro, a UC Berkeley student from Fontana(Fontana is a suburb of San Bernardino - Dan). "I'm not going to stop fighting until I become a citizen and become an American in all ways."

Castro's parents illegally brought her to the United States from Mexico when she was 8, but she said she fully identifies with this country.

"I've been in the country for 10 years now, and I'm American in every way but on paper," she said.

But opponents say the DREAM Act would encourage more illegal immigration and make life harder for citizens already struggling with 9.8percent unemployment.

"By granting mass amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants, Americans will face even more competition for scarce jobs," Rep. Gary Miller, R-Brea (Orange County - Dan.), said in a statement. "Americans don't want amnesty for those who have broken our nation's immigration laws; they want an opportunity to go back to work."

Estimates differ on the number of immigrants covered by the bill, with supporters saying the version of the bill passed Wednesday would allow about 300,000 illegal immigrants to become citizens.

The bill applies to those under the age of 30 who have lived in the United States for five years, came to the country before the age of 15, pass a criminal background test and have a high school diploma or GED equivalent. They could then become citizens by serving in the military or attending college for two years.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the House version of the bill would reduce deficits by about $2.2billion over the next 10 years.

Miller takes issue with what he says are faulty assumptions in that estimate, however. He also said the bill would increase deficits after 10 years had passed.

Students in the Inland Empire have pushed for this legislation through rallies, phone calls to voters nationwide and visits to legislators' offices in California and Washington.

That fight will continue until the DREAM Act becomes law, said Diana Ortiz, a student at Pomona College in Claremont (Pomona and Claremont are suburbs of Los Angeles, and Pomona College is a very prestigious and liberal Ivy League College - Dan.) who has coordinated with national DREAM Act advocates.

Ortiz, now 18, came to the country illegally when she was 6.

"Whatever the vote comes out (in the Senate), we're going to keep fighting because this is our dream and our only hope," Ortiz said. "We just want to make it so our achievements are not in vain, that we can help our society by exercising our degrees."

All but eight Republicans voted against the bill, which has no cap and no ending date. Some said it would allow even the most dangerous criminals and terrorists to become citizens.

Comment:

Just read the post below this one for my comment. No need to repeat myself except to add this: No matter what they do, they'll find a way to give the White working class the shaft one way or the other. Democams or Republicrats, what's the difference? Little to nothing, that's what. My father said it best: Republicans will stab you in the back first chance they get. Democrats will shake your hand, call you "pal", and THEN stab you in the back. Wise man, my father!

BTW, as I indicated in a note within this article, Pomona College is a very presitigious Ivy League school. In 1980 when I was applying to colleges, the tuition there was $10,000 a year - and that was 30 years ago. It must be at least $20,000 a year by now. If this Ortiz girl is an illegal, how the hell can she afford that kind of money? Surely her parents, being illegals don't earn that much. Then how? I'll tell you how. Government financial aid, or perhaps a private scholarship. This wetback gets government assistance to go to a fancy college. When I enquired about going there, I didn't qualify for that kind of government aid. Why? Because I'm White, and they had to save the money to give it to some lousy border jumper, so I had to settle for a state university. Real fair, huh? Deny a citizen, and give the money to an illegal instead. That's our system for you! Even if she had better grades than me, the fact is she's an illegal and I'm a citizen, therefore I deserved the money more than she for that reason alone.