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McCain-Coons proposal addressed DACA, border security but not president’s wall

WASHINGTON» Talks to resolve the legal status of young undocumented immigrants and enact new border security measures remain stalled in the closely divided Senate Monday as a new bipartisan proposal to resolve the impasse was dismissed by the White House as insufficient.

The proposal by Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Christopher Coons, D-Del., would grant permanent legal status to undocumented immigrants known as “Dreamers” and start bolstering security along the U.S.-Mexico border. It copies a plan introduced in the House that has 54 co-sponsors from both parties. But President Trump tweeted that the idea is a “total waste of time” because it doesn’t immediately authorize spending the billions to build new barriers along the border.

Trump announced in September that he would end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA) on March 5, giving Congress six months to enact a permanent solution.

Attempts to do so have sputtered and contributed to a three-day partial government shutdown last month.

In his tweet Monday, Trump added that “March 5th is rapidly approaching and the Dems seem not to care about DACA. Make a deal!”

McCain and Coons introduced their measure believing that the only potential deal in the Senate is a narrow one focused on legalizing “Dreamers” and authorizing the Department of Homeland Security to draw up a comprehensive plan for the southern border.

Coons said his proposal with McCain could be a “fresh start” and a “strong starting place” for the Senate’s upcoming debate.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has vowed to permit votes on immigration legislation this month as part of the agreement to reopen the government — but he has not said which bill he will use to begin the debate, how long the debate will run and what kinds of amendments will be permitted.

McCain, who is battling Stage 4 brain cancer, remains in Arizona and isn’t expected in Washington this week. In a statement, he said the bill “would address the most urgent priorities” of legalizing the status of Dreamers and make changes to border security and allow Congress to move on.

Like the House version, the new Senate bill would grant legal status to Dreamers who have been in the country since 2013 — a larger pool of undocumented immigrants than the 1.8 million Trump supports legalizing.