Grijalva Signs Discharge Petition Calling on Vote for DREAM Act

September 27th, 2017

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Grijalva released the following statement after joining 191 Democratic Members of Congress in signing a discharge petition demanding that the DREAM Act, a bi-partisan bill currently co-sponsored by 200 Members, come to the floor for a vote. The “Succeed Act,” a conservative legislative proposal was also introduced on the same day.

“The only thing the bill introduced by Sen. Tillis and Sen. Lankford succeeds in doing is ensuring that DACA recipients who have time-and-time again proven themselves to be positive members of our society be treated as second-class citizens – at best,” said Rep. Grijalva. “The Succeed Bill is tailored to the extreme wing of the Republican Party who see immigration as a threat to our country, rather than an asset. It extends the vetting process to the point where an individual who meets all the qualifications would need to wait 15 years to qualify for citizenship. This is not what a legislative fix to DACA looks like. This is a poor attempt at a bill that only forces DREAMers back into the shadows of uncertainty. If Republicans were serious about helping the more than 2.5 million young individuals in our country, they would take a second look at passing the bi-partisan DREAM Act in a clean manner, without poisonous provisions.

“We have called upon House Republican Leadership to allow a vote on the DREAM Act to come to the floor. On every occasion, those calls have been unanswered even with a vast majority of Americans in favor of a legislative fix for our DREAMers. That is why, I joined my Democratic colleagues in signing the discharge petition. We cannot allow our DREAMers and their futures to hinge on Trump’s erratic behavior. These DREAMers like Ruben, Donald and Dalia have a potential and drive that we should be embracing not discouraging. They represent the best of our country. They deserve a vote on a clean bill.”

Rep. Grijalva is highlighting the stories of DACA recipients in Arizona’s Third Congressional District. You can view them on Rep. Grijalva’s Instagram.

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