The Sins of their Parents

While some of the conversation around the ending of the DACA program has centered on the constitutionality of President Obama's executive action (or the lack thereof), a lot of the discussion has focused on the fact that these folks are here illegally and therefore they need to be sent home, or that they're taking jobs away from Americans and for that reason they must be sent home; or even that they're criminals and for that reason, they need to be sent home.

Here's a snippet from the statement by Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III on the "orderly transition and wind-down" of the DACA program making those points:

The decades-long failure of Washington, DC to enforce federal immigration laws has had both predictable and tragic consequences: lower wages and higher unemployment for American workers, substantial burdens on local schools and hospitals, the illicit entry of dangerous drugs and criminal cartels, and many billions of dollars a year in costs paid by US taxpayers. Yet few in Washington expressed any compassion for the millions of Americans victimized by this unfair system. Before we ask what is fair to illegal immigrants, we must also ask what is fair to American families, students, taxpayers and job seekers.

No one really thinks that any significant portion of the Dreamer population is made up by gang-banging drug dealers who are stealing jobs from Americans.  And, if Congress is again unable to craft and pass immigration reform legislation,  I see no reason to punish this particular segment of immigrants for the sins of their parents.

Seriously -- under what other circumstances do you think it's appropriate to punish children for the crimes of their parents?

• What would be the correct punishment for children of people who operate meth labs, partake of child pornography, or rob banks?
• What would be the appropriate punishment for college-graduate, gainfully employed, tax-paying children of gang members?
• How, exactly, would you punish Henry and Nancy, whose father murdered their mother, my friend and former coworker, eleven years ago next month? 

I know, I know -- there's nothing to worry about. The administration has promised that deporting the DACA people will not be a priority, but who can believe that? 

Why should any of these people trust the government now, when it was the government that promised them they would be safe if they came out of the shadows, gave their information, paid the price to obtain and renew their temporary green cards, got jobs or started companies, paid their taxes, and maybe enlisted and served honorably defending our country in the military?

Speaking of the military and trusting Trump, maybe someone should ask the LGBT community about that?