A Republican lawmaker slammed President Donald Trump over reports that he plans to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, which offers protections for certain undocumented immigrants who arrived in the United States as children.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who represents Florida’s 27th District, wrote on Twitter:
Ros-Lehtinen, whose district covers a portion of Miami-Dade County, was referring to reports Trump is canceling or DACA, which was initiated by President Barack Obama. DACA has allowed nearly 800,000 so-called “Dreamers” ― young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the country as minors ― to receive temporary work permits and reprieve from deportation.
She called on her fellow lawmakers to step up to protect Dreamers:
Ros-Lehtinen, the first Cuban American in Congress, has said she didn’t vote for Trump in last year’s presidential election, and has been a regular critic of the president and his administration.
She voted against the Trump-backed Obamacare repeal, and has slammed the president’s decision to ban transgender people from serving in the military.
Ros-Lehtinen was first elected to Congress in 1989, and is retiring at the end of her current term.