Manufacturing group calls on Congress to fix DACA, protect immigrants

The largest national manufacturers trade association has called on Congress to act in the wake of President Trump’s rescinding of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program instituted by former President Barack Obama.

National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) President and CEO Jay Timmons called the U.S. immigration system “broken” and said previous Congresses and administrations “have missed many opportunities to fix the problem, and they have failed by inaction. And that is exactly why DACA exists in the first place. DACA, however, is not the problem — far from it.”

Timmons believes that DACA was designed to protect “the most vulnerable of the immigrant community” who are “best positioned to contribute to America’s success in the future.”

“The children and young people who have been protected by DACA know America as their only home, and the solution to our broken system is not sending them off to another country,” Timmons said, adding the U.S. is “a nation of immigrants.”

He continued: “Our communities and our economy are made stronger by the bold ideas and amazing talents that people looking for a better life bring to America. Throughout our history, immigration has strengthened and advanced the core principles that make America exceptional: free enterprise, competitiveness, individual liberty and equal opportunity.”

Timmons ended by stating that manufacturers are now calling on Congress to “step up to provide real reform—reform that is dignified and addresses all areas of concerns, including border security, a pathway to legal status and an improved legal immigration system that works. Our country is exceptional, and to remain so, we must continue to strive to be a nation that attracts talented, hardworking individuals — and those yearning for freedom — to our shores.”