Over the weekend, the federal government entered lockdown mode when Congress failed to agree on a funding rubric before the previous one’s time was up, Vox reports. As a result, parts of the federal government closed its doors until a resolution between the Republicans and Democrats came to a somewhat happy medium.
While each party aimed to strong-arm the other, the DREAMers were left in the crosshairs. Amid Monday’s temporary resolution (Jan. 22), Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients played a somewhat central role in the contention. Democrats proposed that they would not agree to a new funding bill until Republicans backed up its deportation/immigration protection services for those under the DACA program. As a result, no less than nine votes on the Dems’ side were needed to prevent a shutdown to get Republicans to take their immigration proposal seriously, but those votes were withheld.
This morning, news broke that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer [D-NY] and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell [R-KY] decided to approve a temporary spending bill on Sunday (Jan. 21) that’ll carry the federal government until Feb. 8, when it’ll likely shut down again if a resounding decision on DACA isn’t met.
I am deeply disappointed that today’s outcome fails to protect Dreamers. They deserve better from the elected leaders of the only country many of them have ever called home.
— Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) January 22, 2018
Let’s be real. This deal is a kick in the stomach. We need to build a movement so powerful that politicians from both parties are more afraid of the forces of decency than they are of white supremacists.
Statement from @MoveOn . pic.twitter.com/t2UzBoANXq
— Ben Wikler (@benwikler) January 22, 2018
DACA was created by President Barack Obama in 2012. The program sought to provide legal working papers for children who immigrated to the U.S. and remained well into adulthood. Those that signed up were also pegged for deportation protection services. Vox states that Donald Trump placed a timeline on Congress’ approval of DACA which expires in March.
The last government shutdown occurred in 2013.