In 1986, Congress passed a major
immigration law that gave amnesty to about three million people who entered the
U.S. unlawfully. But children were excluded. This gave rise to a
problem known as “split families.” A dad or mom could legalize his or her presence; children could not. They faced deportation.
On October 7, 1987, a Republican
senator, Sen. John Chafee (R-RI), tried to fix this. He offered an amendment to
an unrelated bill that would give children excluded from the 1986
law a path to legalization. The Senate defeated the amendment by a 55-45 vote.
Enter President Reagan, who fixed the children part. On October
21, 1987 Reagan’s INS Commissioner, Alan C. Nelson, announced INS’ (now called
ICE) “Family Fairness” executive action. It was not an executive order. All presidents
have “plenary powers” over immigration, meaning they control the gate into and
out of the U.S. This was a gate-keeping action.
The INS’ memo explained the “clear”
Congressional intent in 1986 to exclude family members from the legalization
program. Nevertheless, the INS said it would defer deportation for children
living in a two-parent household with both parents legalizing, or living with a
single parent who was legalizing.
Interesting to note, that was similar
to President Obama’s DACA program—DACA standing for Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals. It means that DACA recipients remain deportable, but the
executive branch is essentially putting them at the back of the long
deportation line, behind criminals and others.
President Bush also strengthened
family unification started by President Reagan. His INS Commissioner Gene
McNary, issued a memorandum, "Family Fairness: Guidelines for
Voluntary Departure under for the Ineligible Spouses and Children of Legalized
Aliens (Feb. 2, 1990)."
That memo was in effect for
28 years until President Trump’s ICE recently embarked on a policy of family
separation. Again, it’s allowable under a president’s plenary powers. But it is
cruel.
PHOTO CREDIT: Downstream.com
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