Take Two translates the day’s headlines for Southern California, making sense of the news and cultural events that affect our lives. Produced by Southern California Public Radio and broadcast from October 2012 – June 2021. Hosted by A Martinez.
There's a new immigration bill in the Senate, and we can probably just call it "DACA 2.0."
Yesterday, Republican Sens. Thom Tillis, James Lankford, and Orrin Hatch introduced the SUCCEED Act, which they hope can replace the program that protects young people brought to this country illegally by their parents.
"It, in theory, should cover people who are already enrolled in the DACA program. And then some," said Politico reporter Seung Min Kim in an interview with KPCC's Josie Huang.
In her reporting, Kim found that there's bipartisan support for immigration reform -- and DACA recipients are among the most sympathetic of immigrants who entered the US illegally. So while there are conservatives who want to see these people become citizens, they want that path to be conservative in principle.
"They really want to prioritize fairness," Kim said. "And, you know, Republican senators strive to do that by actually creating a pathway to citizenship that is long, that is arduous, but that is definitely possible."
To hear the full interview and learn more about the SUCCEED Act and its departures from the DACA program, use the blue media player above.