President Trump will soon announce his decision on the fate of Obama's "Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals" or D.A.C.A. executive order. Why is must be reversed.

Once again, organized protests are taking place in Democrat-majority states in an effort to influence President Trump’s upcoming decision about the future of former President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals executive order (D.A.C.A.).  The latest series of protests have been staged as a result of efforts by Republicans and others who respect the rule of law and demand its enforcement, to end the policy. 

President Obama signed the D.A.C.A. order in June 2012.  D.A.C.A. permits the children of illegal aliens to defer deportation procedures provided they came to the United States before age 16.  However, a little-known provision allowed applicants who were under age 31 as of June 15, 2012 to apply for deferred action and remain in the country, making the policy retroactive for those who arrived after 1998.

Other restrictions apply, including being in school and having no felony convictions.  But there are fundamental flaws with D.A.C.A. that make its swift reversal necessary.  Setting immigration policy is the responsibility of Congress.  Barack Obama signed the executive order as a way to make an end-run around Congress and enact a de facto immigration policy change after the failure of Congress to pass the Dream Act.  In 2014, Obama attempted to expand the D.A.C.A. policy, but Republican governors were able to stop the administration’s effort in the courts. 

Americans have been here before.  In the 1980s, Democrats in Congress wanted amnesty for millions of illegal aliens who had invaded California, Arizona and Texas.  At that time, President Ronald Reagan signed the amnesty bill into law with the condition that Congress would adopt legislation to penalize employers who continued to violate U.S. law by hiring illegal aliens.  But as we know, Congressional Democrats failed to make good on their end of the deal, so the floodgates of illegal aliens remained open for the next 30 years. 

Illegal immigration is a costly and destructive violation of federal law.  Its effects now reached deeply into the neighborhoods and wallets of every U.S. household.  According to a report published by the Heritage Foundation, illegal aliens cost U.S. taxpayers $54.5 billion per year in law enforcement, public education, health care and other public services. 

When media networks report on the D.A.C.A. protests, they will certainly locate and interview the most sympathetic children and young adults making them appear to be innocent victims of a mean, uncaring law.  There will be charges that the reversal of D.A.C.A. will “tear families apart.”  Whether any of these cases have merit, may not be verifiable. 

Immigration law cannot be permitted to be weakened by selective enforcement based upon media orchestrated sympathy.  Our immigration policy is clearly articulated and the American people are enormously generous.  But the United States faces a $20 trillion national debt, and suffers under an invasion of illegal aliens that lawmakers and previous administrations have been unwilling to address. 

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals executive order should be reversed for one simple reason--it was illegitimate by design.  D.A.C.A. is nothing more than amnesty for 800,000 illegal aliens enacted by executive fiat, and such efforts should be emphatically opposed by all Americans.