Older Illegals Getting Irritated at Precious Dreamers

There is apparently a growing divide among illegal immigrants thanks to the outsized focus Washington and the media has put on Obama’s so-called Dreamers and their fate. According to a feature story in the Los Angeles Times, the sense of entitlement among some Dreamers – people who were brought to this country by their parents when they were underage – has older illegal immigrants viewing them with suspicion and irritation. There is even, the article points out, a divide within the Dreamer community itself, with some pursuing any legislation that would give them amnesty and others only willing to settle for a clean bill that doesn’t include tougher security measures.

“I’m very bitter. These DACA kids definitely have this sense of entitlement,” said 35-year-old illegal immigrant Sam Paredes. “People fought for them and they got DACA and they got their work permit and then they went to sleep, instead of working to fight for the rest of us.”

Of course, what Paredes perhaps does not understand – what so many REPUBLICANS do not understand – is that this is exactly why many of us on the right are extremely wary about giving permanent DACA status to anyone here illegally. Who does not believe that the moment we give amnesty to a million or so illegals, that group will not turn right around and start advocating for the rest of them? Who does not believe that once we push this bill through, another amnesty bill – this one aimed at all 11 million – will not be close behind?

After all, you can say that the Dreamers are a special case because they were brought here without any say in the matter, but that’s really not their prime selling point. That wouldn’t make any difference if Dreamers were known to be a crime-committing, welfare-leeching lot who were a drain on society. No, their selling point is that they are a relatively “clean” bunch of “kids” who are working and going to college and joining the military and so on. Obviously, these stories are cherry-picked, but the perception is the program’s strength. As it happens, though, it’s just as easy to find a hundred thousand 40-year-old illegals with a similar record and make the same case all over again.

Even now, there are Dreamer activists who think they should hold out for the best bill possible.

“One group wants clean legislation that will provide a pathway to legalize DACA recipients but with no strings attached, such as doing away with the visa lottery,” the LA Times reports. “The second group is willing to take whatever they can get as long as they get some sort of immigration relief.”

It’s hard for us to imagine belonging to that first group. America doesn’t OWE you amnesty. You are here, right now, today, only because of our country’s extraordinary graces. Why would you possibly believe that you have any room for negotiation? It’s this: Accept what we give you or pack your bags, because you could be headed back to Mexico tomorrow. Period. How is this a discussion?

Maybe we should just have a 3 month period where ICE deports ONLY Dreamers, and then we can move on to a more productive conversation about immigration reform.