WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - President Donald Trump's decision to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program has raised concerns among the undocumented immigrants protected by the Obama-era policy, but House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., thinks Congress has the time to find a solution.
Ryan said in an interview with the New York Times on Thursday that Trump made the right decision to terminate DACA but give Congress six months to address the issue as the program is wound down.
'We've got a timeline, six months, now we've got to go find where the consensus is on how to come to it with a solution,' Ryan said. 'And the six months gives us the kind of time we need.'
On Tuesday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions officially announced the decision to rescind DACA, which provides certain illegal immigrants who were brought to the country as children protection from deportation and eligibility to apply for work permits.
Sessions noted that DACA would be wound down to create a time period for Congress to act to address the approximately 800,000 undocumented immigrants granted protection under the program.
In the interview with the Times, Ryan suggested that legislation to deal with the DACA issue should be tied to addressing border security.
'The DACA dilemma is a symptom that stems from the fact that we do not have control of our borders,' Ryan said. 'So it is only reasonable that while fixing this serious, real problem, we also try and address the root cause of that problem, and that is border security.'
'I think when you combine these two issues, I think you can find a compromise,' he added. 'And I think six months is enough time for us to figure that out.'
Trump also addressed the concerns of the undocumented immigrants protected by DACA in a post on Twitter on Thursday.
'For all of those (DACA) that are concerned about your status during the 6 month period, you have nothing to worry about - No action!' Trump tweeted.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested at a subsequent news conference that Trump made the tweet at her request.
(Photo: Gage Skidmore)
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