DACA
Parker Heidorf
One of the most controversial decisions from the Trump administration in recent weeks has been rescinding (or trying to rescind, maybe?) the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, also known as DACA, program. DACA provides 884,661 undocumented teens and young adults with protection from deportation and economic opportunities. DACA does not offer citizenship, but does give permission for recipients of the program to apply for work permits, bank accounts, credit cards, etc. This would a major mistake, not just because of the continuing anti-immigrant policies of the administration, but also the impact on the economy.
DACA recipients, also called “Dreamers”, have made a significant economic impact since President Obama signed DACA into effect in 2012. According to Newsweek, after being accepted into the program, Dreamers see an average hourly wage increase to $17.46 from $10.26 when undocumented. 72% were in higher education and nearly 80% acquired a driver’s license. According to a study done by the Immigration Policy Center just a year after the program was put in place, 61% of applicants got their first job. 54% opened their first bank account. 38% got their first credit card. And the numbers have only climbed since 2013, with the number of Dreamers rising every year by the hundreds of thousands. The overwhelming majority of Dreamers are productive members of society that we should be building upon, not demolishing and deporting. 
If DACA were to be discontinued 6 months from now, all Dreamers could be immediately deported. That would be no small cost, according to Newsweek losing DACA would lose the U.S. a total of $460 billion in GDP over the next decade. Not to mention the 700,000 jobs at risk over that time period as well. For a ‘jobs candidate’, you think it would be a top priority for the President to keep around a program that brings in anywhere from 150,000-400,000 potential workers annually (Year-by-year numbers). However, DACA has been used as a bargaining chip to get the minority Democrats to budge on other stalemates in Congress. It is a misuse of a blooming program that represents what the United States has been built on, immigrants looking for a new start and the hard working middle class consumer.
Works Cited
Berman, Russell. “Trump Reverses His Stand on DACA.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 14 Sept. 2017, www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/09/daca-deal-or-no-deal-trump-democrats-dreamers/539784/. Accessed 18 Sept. 2017.
“DACA Performance Data.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, 8 June 2017.
Glum, Julia. “These 15 statistics will teach you what you need to know about DACA.” Newsweek, 5 Sept. 2017, www.newsweek.com/dreamers-daca-statistics-trump-deadline-657201. Accessed 18 Sept. 2017.
Gonzales, Roberto G., and Veronica Terriquez. “How DACA is Impacting the Lives of those who are now DACAmented: Preliminary findings from the National UnDACAmented Research Project.” Immigration Policy Center, Aug. 2013.
Kopan, Tal. “DACA decision appears to shift to Congress.” CNN, Cable News Network, 5 Sept. 2017, www.cnn.com/2017/09/04/politics/daca-congress-trump-decision/index.html. Accessed 18 Sept. 2017.
Hi Parker, your writing got me thinking about the people that might be deported and don't have anywhere to go. If some people have left their family and their past behind them then they have no place to go. The danger of losing this many people, and a majority of them left to fend for themselves, in a new land is too great. I agree with you that this loss could be overwhelming and costly to the US and I think the more people know about this, the more we can get involved. DACA has helped striving teens just like us and to take away thousands of teens future would be absolutely horrid. Thank you for sharing this piece!
ReplyDeleteIf this program were discontinued and all of its “Dreamers” deported, then the US’ economic growth would be reduced, and the production possibilities frontier would decline as well. I agree with your argument, as the rescinding of of the DACA would result in some degree of economic decline for the US.
ReplyDeleteThe Dreamers came to America when they were young. They had no choice in the matter. Therefore, making them leave the only country that they have ever known would be cruel. Also, it wouldn't be a smart choice because like you said, the US would lose $460 billion in GDP over the next decade without DACA.
ReplyDeleteBased on what I've read here, I can conclude that "Dreamers" are only a good thing for our country. In this aspect removing them sounds like a horrible decision. On top of that, removing them is just a morally grey area. Chances are they have nowhere to go and we're just displacing them to say we can. These are good hardworking immigrants, which is exactly what the U.S. was founded on in the first place.
ReplyDeleteI agree that trying to cancel the DACA program would lead to detrimental economics effects. If these undocumented teens and young adults can’t get work permits, bank accounts or credits cards, economic productivity may decrease with the production of goods and other resources decreasing. If they are willing to work and help the economy, I don’t see the problem with it. However, Trump may be basing his decision on the goal of full employment that states the government is responsible for providing suitable jobs for all citizens who are willing and able to work. Is a problem with undocumented workers supposedly taking jobs from citizens?
ReplyDeleteHey Parker,
ReplyDeleteYou did an excellent job of making a connection between DACA and the economy that many would just think of as a social issue. In terms of the economy you are correct that deporting these young DACA recipients would causes a great loss of economic growth. Which you can see in the GDP. I however think that you could have gone a little more in depth with some better economic vocabulary which would have made your argument even stronger. Like you mentioned it could expand the workforce, which I think could be good considering we are almost at full economic employment.
$460 Billion in GDP is a huge lost for the US economy affecting it for years to come. Dreamers come here to work so in other words they come here to improve the US economy. Dismissing DACA is one the things that will harm the Economy and cause a huge lost of man power.
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ReplyDeleteWhile I don’t agree on anyone living in the United States illegally, I disagree with the decision on revoking the DACA. It was not decision of these children to cross the border illegally. Instead of deporting these people from a country that they have probably lived in nearly their whole life, I think the government should use its resources to help these “dreamers” become full U.S. citizens. Does it make sense to lose all of these people who help benefit the country’s workforce, tax income, society, and more? The United States government needs to change their mind about this idea.
Although illegally entering our country is obviously very bad, I don't see the point in already kicking people out who have been living here and aren't causing any problems in our lives. Not to mention $460 billion loss in GDP is a massive loss which will cause a negative impact on the US economy.
ReplyDeleteDACA should not be revoked because not only does it help out national GDP at almost 460 billion dollars it also lowers our unemployment rate because almost everyone with the dream program is able to get a job and help the economy. If this program was shut down and immigrants were forced out that would dent our economy for a long time due to the lack of average funds.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the previous comments on DACA not being revoked. As most everybody can agree that undocumented immigration is a problem that needs to be solved, the moral and economic consequences of deporting individuals that are beneficial to our country and economy would be a very misguided decision. As demonstrated in the amount of these DACA visa recipients pursuing higher education and other postsecondary options, the decision to kick out these human resources would be a disastrous one as it would remove a large group of highly skilled innovators, business owners, and other talented individuals from our workforce.
ReplyDeleteI like that you brought up this topic because it is a current topic. Although, I do disagree on some areas. You said "or a ‘jobs candidate’, you think it would be a top priority for the President to keep around a program that brings in anywhere from 150,000-400,000 potential workers annually" one of our biggest issues is that a lot of Americans can NOT find work. President Trump has said this from the beginning of this campaign that America needs more workers and other countries need to stop taking our jobs. For instance Ford has moved down to Mexico along with many other U.S jobs. There are plenty of Americans looking for open work. A lot of people have taken advantage of this opportunity but as President Obama stated years back, this was not intended to be permanent. He said at one point in time or another, this will end. It does not make you a citizen but helps the people who didn't have a choice at the time. President Trump has given congress 6 whole months to come up with another plan that President Obama had left us to clean up. Although all the heat is on Trump, more people should look at the bigger picture and notice he's not the one who made the primary decision on ending this, Obama already had that intention when he created it.
ReplyDeleteWe are in a pretty good place with jobs at the moment, 4.4% unemployment is better than most. I get what you're saying, Americans need jobs. However, these people are still working in America, earning American money, and spending it at American stores and facilities. I would argue they are as American as you and me, just without a few papers. And yes, this is temporary, but it was going to run out on its own, as there is an age limit. By that time Dreamers could possibly go for their citizenship, and that would be a win-win economically. Ending it early would be deporting 880,000 workers and a chunk of the GDP, because make no mistake, that's what Trump would have done if the public outrage was not there. That's another thing, I'm not completely sold Trump even knew what he was doing. He sent Sessions out to announce it and then backtracked the next day and then almost dealt the protection of Dreamers to the democrats. He didn't get the economic impact, he just thought he was getting rid of some immigrants.
DeleteI think DACA shouldn't be removed because as shown by evidence in this piece, it would create way too much downfall, increase in open jobs nobody can fill, less highly educated people, economic drop, and just overall money loss for everyone. Although America does have its immigration problems, removing this will not solve it as much as some are hoping it will. There are 800,000 people who are within this program who will be deported back to their 'home'lands, even if they don't remember it at all due to young age. To them, their home land is America, not the place where their parents were. It Will be a disastrous result if the DACA program were to be removed from the US, so many future business people, skilled creators, engineers, teachers, doctors, and so much more could be lost.
ReplyDeleteDACA was never intended to be permeant, those words were from Obama when he created it.
Delete"Let us be clear: this is not amnesty, this is not immunity, this is not a path to citizenship. It's not a permanent fix. This is a temporary stopgap measure that lets us focus our resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and hope to talented, driven, patriotic young people." His quote exactly
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ReplyDeleteI agree with your statement that DACA should not be discontinued. It brings a lot of good aspects to our economy, and as you mentioned, the GDP. I would say that there is an issue with immigration that needs to be solved, with undocumentation, though I feel this program is controlled and helping economic growth. These dreamers put in America are here for a reason, and will do anything to get better opportunities than they would in other countries. If this policy were to be revoked, the unemployment rate would raise since there would be so many jobs not fulfilled. Therefore, I agree that DACA should not be revoked, because it would truly hurt the economy.
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ReplyDeleteIf you are a president you should be able to look at a program from start to finish and see how it will help the Unites States. That is what president Obama did when he signed this into action. President trump is not looking and seeing that this could help the United States. If he takes away this program that could mess us up pretty bad and make us loose money. What is the united states going to do then? We can not loose out on money we are already in so much debut as it is!. This people have worked hard enough to get here and into this program so they should be allowed to stay. If they can obtain things like a drivers license and bank account. I feel as though presidents these days need reality checks.
ReplyDeleteWhile I understand the controversy of illegal immigrants in America, repealing DACA would be very harmful not only to those protected by it, but to the economy. By removing DACA, those protected by it would essentially lose all progress and accomplishments they’ve already made in America and deport them back, where they’d have to start over. These people would be removed from their homes and lives that they’ve grown attached to. In addition, since people protected by DACA would be deported any financial support they’ve brought to the country would fade away, which would only cost the economy.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe president Trump cares about the good effects undocumented minors have on the United States. $460 billion is an immense amount of money lost in GDP over the fact that president Trump is a racist. The statistics obviously show the great impact undocumented kids have made; Trump doesn't view the United States as a "melting pot". If the United States are so worried that these kids will take better higher jobs than they can get the individuals have to try harder in schooling and in working. These minors come over to America hoping and fighting for a good future. They have striven to be their best; and they deserve to work where they have earned a job.
ReplyDeleteDuring the presidential campaign, Donald Trump vowed to end DACA and needs to stand by that promise if he wants to avoid serious backlash from his support base. Although DACA is intended to help illegal immigrants avoid deportation (in the short-term) and receive work permits in the U.S., a lot of illegal immigrants within the program are using forged documents and deception to misrepresent their age and arrival dates. While you mentioned that it would cost the U.S. about $460 billion to repeal DACA and remove the illegal immigrants, many of the illegal immigrants will continue to commit additional crimes while in America, thus weakening the U.S. economy and national safety. I do agree that immediately removing all illegal immigrants from America is quite extreme, but the U.S. government needs to limit needs its sanctuary policies and amnesty orders to focus on the well-being and hard-working American population.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that the young people under DACA have the complete right to be here, get a job, and recieve an education. They didn't make the choice to come to America, and this is the only country they know. Although they do take up a lot of the US jobs, they did work hard to get that job and continue to work hard to keep that job.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it would be a mistake to take away DACA. A lot of these people don't even remember where they were born, and the only home they know is the US. Not only is this their home, but as you said they're working and paying taxes just like any other American. They may even be going to school, public or private, and they pay just like every other person. They are not different, they might have been born somewhere else, but this is their home and they deserve to be protected.
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