Congressman Lance: DACA protection is consistent with Republican principles

Congressman Leonard Lance

Representative, 7th Congressional District

Westfield, New Jersey

Dear Congressman;

I am reaching out to you on the matter of protection from deportation for children of undocumented immigrants – “Dreamers” – as one of your constituents, a fellow Republican, and a member of a school board of education.

Support for DACA legislation is consistent with Republican principles that I am certain you hold dear, as I do. One is the value of family as the fundamental building block and guiding light of democracy; another is fiscal responsibility. Based upon these principles, you have an obligation as a Republican to protect these residents and aspiring citizens, without any more restrictions than those to which we hold our own “citizen” children.

First of all: yes, we have a sovereign right to decide who comes into our country, under what circumstances, and in what numbers. However, we have failed – for whatever reason – to accomplish this. Given that these children could not be expected to understand immigration law when they came here, or disown their parents (many of whom were fleeing chaos, violence and poverty, as you or I would do for our families), can we agree that they are innocents caught in the middle of the endless immigration debate?

Do you remember when we Republicans used to tout “family values,” and endure criticism from examples of hypocrisy? I, for one, never understood this value to include some, and not others.  Either America treats the rest of the world based on its principles, or it does not really believe in those principles at all. There is nothing I would not do to give my children a better life; can we not take some pride in the fact that America still represents that hope?

Finally, as a school board member in a community that is more than half Hispanic, my obligation – legally and morally – is to see that all of our children are prepared for success and to participate as productive members of our society. If we wanted to, the law precludes our board from standing at the door of the school and deciding who gets in; rather, we pledge to one another that we will see that they all have the best possible education, given the available resources.  Including pension payments made by the state on our behalf, Wharton Borough Schools spent $18,900 on each student, while the statewide average is $20,385 for 2015-16.

As fiscally responsible Republicans with an obligation to educate each child to the best of our ability, will we not treat this extraordinary expense as an investment in the future to be protected?  If my community is over 50% Hispanic, although I have no way of knowing which kid is DACA-protected (assuming those who qualify have applied), that’s an investment in one year of as much as $7.5 million in these children in our small community.

Congressman Lance, I write to you not as a political adversary, but as one who presumably, based on party affiliation, shares your values. And our values as Republicans requires that you join forces politically with anyone, of any party, who is willing to stand up for those values and support legislation that gives my neighbors, and your neighbors, an unqualified path to (minimally) permanent residency in our country, that we love.

Paul Breda

Wharton, NJ