Support for Secure and Succeed Act: What They Are Saying

President Trump: “The Grassley bill accomplishes the four pillars of the White House Framework: a lasting solution on DACA, ending chain migration, cancelling the visa lottery, and securing the border through building the wall and closing legal loopholes. I am asking all senators, in both parties, to support the Grassley bill and to oppose any legislation that fails to fulfill these four pillars – that includes opposing any short-term “Band-Aid” approach. The overwhelming majority of American voters support a plan that fulfills the Framework’s four pillars, which move us towards the safe, modern, and lawful immigration system our people deserve.”

Department of Homeland Security: “The Secure and Succeed Act includes recommendations made by the frontline officers of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This bill is a reasonable compromise that follows the framework laid out by the President.”

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: “The Secure and Succeed Act is fair and addresses both sides’ most pressing concerns, conforming to the conditions the president has put forward. It offers a compassionate resolution for 1.8 million illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. In exchange, this solution delivers funding for President Trump’s promise to fully secure the border, reforms our approach to extended family chain migration, and reallocates our arbitrary visa lottery into a more sensible, merit-based system. This legislation is a fair compromise that addresses the stated priorities of all sides. It’s our best chance of producing a solution that can actually resolve these matters -- which requires that a bill pass the Senate and pass the House and earn the president’s signature. It has my support.”

U.S. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn: “This proposal provides a common-sense, permanent solution for nearly two million people who find themselves in limbo. The Secure and Succeed Act gives us the opportunity to help these individuals and build the trust of the American people by securing our borders and enforcing our immigration laws.”

U.S. Senate Republican Conference Chairman John Thune: “There’s a lot of interest in our caucus on the president’s proposal, because it’s leaning pretty forward on where our guys have been on a path to citizenship. But it also gets a lot of components that our folks would like to see addressed.” (Politico, 02/11/2018.)

U.S. Senator Roger Wicker: “Anything that goes left of this wouldn't even get taken up in the House. The president is not going to sign anything that doesn't secure the four pillars,' said a senior administration official familiar with his thinking. 'We took a lot of blowback. If you want the middle ground between Democrats and Republicans, this is the bill.”

U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley: “This legislation is a reasonable approach to shielding children illegally brought to our country through no fault of their own while also taking the meaningful steps to ensure nobody finds themselves in the same situation in the future. This is a rare opportunity to fix a real problem and protect the country in a thoughtful and compassionate way. We simply have to correct the loopholes in current law that allow dangerous criminals to enter and remain at large in our country. Our proposal is supported by the President, who’s come a long way to reach a compromise. This is the only Senate proposal that has any chance of passing the House and being signed into law. If my colleagues are serious about actually finding a real and permanent solution to the DACA crisis, they should be ready and willing to support this compromise.”

U.S. Senator David Perdue: “President Trump has been very clear on what he will sign into law, and this is it. This is a great deal and the only solution that fully addresses the four pillars in the President’s framework. Now it is up to Republicans and Democrats in both chambers. If people really want to solve the DACA situation, secure our border, and fix the flaws in our current system that incentivize illegal immigration, they should be eager to support this plan.”

U.S. Senator Thom Tillis: “This is a common-sense compromise that accomplishes a number of goals that both parties have long supported. It offers a fair and compassionate solution for DACA youth to earn naturalization, and it effectively secures our borders to help prevent future illegal immigration and stop drug and human trafficking. It also provides a path forward for modernizing our broken immigration system so it can be more merit-based and reflective of the changing economic and labor needs of our nation. This legislation is the only proposal that the President supports, and the open amendment process will give Senators the opportunity to improve the baseline proposal and get it signed into law.”

U.S. Senator James Lankford: “We have a unique opportunity to finally get something done on the four immigration areas that leaders in Congress and the President agreed must get done - DACA, border security, the visa lottery, and family sponsorship reform. It’s important to do this in a way that prevents repeating this conversation again ten years from now. I call on my colleagues to put aside partisanship and posturing to have an honest debate about decades-long immigration issues and practical solutions that can pass both Houses of Congress and be signed into law. There are many immigration proposals being floated in the Senate that the House will not pass and the President won’t sign. Too many families are counting on us to do the right thing. Now is the time to get this done.”

U.S. Senator Tom Cotton: “This is the only bill that has a chance of becoming law, and that’s because it’s the only bill that will truly solve the underlying problem. It will protect those eligible for DACA but also make sure we don’t end up back here five years from now. By addressing our border security needs and limiting family sponsorship to the nuclear family, it goes far beyond the other half measures that have been proposed. This bill is generous, humane, and responsible, and now we should send it to the president’s desk.”

U.S. Senator Joni Ernst: “We must ensure a path forward for those who were brought here through no fault of their own as children, while also enforcing our laws, putting an end to illegal immigration, and strengthening our border security. This framework is a step toward addressing the legal, economic, and security concerns that are present in the current debate and the unique challenges that the DACA-eligible population faces, and I urge my colleagues to support this proposal."

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin: “I could support that.” (Politico, 2/14/18.)

Bipartisan Policy Center: “The reality is if every initial proposal is declared a nonstarter, Congress will never start the negotiating process, and we will never solve this problem. If, as expected, a version of Trump’s proposal is introduced in the Senate for consideration this week and the amendment process is fair and open, rather than pillory it as imperfect, both sides should embrace it for what it is — a place to start the conversation and seek compromise.” (Theresa Cardinal Brown, “On DACA, not all bitter pills are poison,” Roll Call, 02/12/2018.)

Former Congressman Jack Kingston: “.#SenatorPerdue, #Cotton, #Lankford intro common sense immigration package. Goal is to balance #DACA & #BorderSecurity. @sendavidperdue @jameslankford @TomCottonAR @SenJoniErnst #ImmigrationReform” (@JackKingston, 02/12/2018.)