Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., announced Tuesday that he would support a bipartisan bill with his Democratic Colorado colleague Sen. Michael Bennet to shield beneficiaries of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program from deportation.
“Children who came to this country without documentation, through no fault of their own, must have the opportunity to remain here lawfully,” Gardner said in a written statement. “I’m proud to join with Senator Bennet and co-sponsor the Dream Act to provide certainty to the thousands of law-abiding Coloradan Dreamers and demonstrate bipartisan leadership on this important issue.”
I’m proud to cosponsor the bipartisan #DreamAct with @SenBennetCO that provides certainty to law-abiding Dreamers. Congress must act now. pic.twitter.com/cb9cttH5oQ
— Cory Gardner (@SenCoryGardner) September 5, 2017
This move represents a pivot from the Colorado Republican’s previous “security-first” approach to immigration, which led to him trying to block DACA in 2013 after it was first introduced by the Obama administration in 2012.
In the statement, Gardner added that he had “long called for” comprehensive immigration reform, saying finding a legislative fix to the DACA scheme signified “an important step.”
The Dream Act, proposed by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.,; and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., would allow eligible illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. before the age of 18 a pathway to legal residence.
Gardner joins a cast of high-profile GOP members hitting out at President Trump for his decision to rescind DACA, including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.
