Syracuse University has provided opportunities and support resources for students covered by Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, reflecting the way Americans think the federal government should approach Dreamers. With the federal government pushing a DACA decision until March, it’s clear politicians are nowhere near a resolution the way the university — and most Americans — are.

It may seem like the divisiveness in Washington, D.C. surrounding the DACA program is reflective of how Americans view the policy, but a recent Quinnipiac University poll shows the immigration issue isn’t as contentious among ordinary people. The poll reported that 81 percent of 1,333 registered voters supported “allowing undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children to remain in the United States and eventually apply for citizenship.” Which is, in essence, what DACA stands for.

President Donald Trump has urged the GOP to compromise on immigration, but there’s been little movement on the Democrats’ side. Still, we need a deal that both creates a path to citizenship for Dreamers, undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children and raised here, and funds enhanced border security.

Trump included a path to citizenship for Dreamers in his four-pillar immigration plan, but a deal is yet to come. Kristi Andersen, professor emerita of political science at SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, said she believes congressional Republicans are responding to their base, including donors and people in the administration, rather than what the American people generally want.

“So they are offering protection for Dreamers as part of a compromise, that is, ‘here is something we and our supporters really don’t want, but we’ll let you have it,’” Andersen said in an email. “But really, it’s something everyone wants — so it isn’t a legitimate compromise offer, and Democrats are calling them out on that.”

It’s possible Republicans are trying to use the protection of Dreamers as a way of getting what they ultimately want without having to make a real sacrifice. But on the opposite end, Democrats aren’t willing to budge on the idea of increasing border infrastructure.

While national polls often show a lack of support for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, a recent Harvard Harris poll showed that 54 percent of those surveyed support “building a combination of physical and electronic barriers” across the border. But based on the Democrats’ muted response to Trump’s State of the Union address and the subsequent government shutdowns over Dreamers, there’s a noticeable disconnect between what Americans want and what their representatives are willing to give.

When it comes down to it, the entire immigration debate seems to revolve around the word “wall.” If most people want increased border security through physical structures in addition to carving a path to citizenship for Dreamers, then the lack of compromise is over semantics. Democrats also want better border security but can’t support infrastructure branded as a wall, while the Republicans seem to need that word as part of a deal.

The irony of it all is that most would think both parties would want to do something that’d boost their image heading into the midterm elections. But it’s the very image and wording of a deal that’s holding up compromise, despite the public wanting just that.

 
Daniel Loftus is a freshman broadcast and digital journalism major. His column appears biweekly. He can be reached at dploftus@syr.edu and followed on Twitter @danielploftus.

Published on February 15, 2018 at 1:08 am