In response to President Trump's plan to end DACA in the coming months, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo says $170,000 in funding has been secured from nonprofits to pay DACA renewal fees for state residents who need it in the next two weeks.
DACA is the Obama-era program that shields from deportation some undocumented immigrants brought here as children. The Trump administration announced on September 5 that the program would be revoked after a delay of six months and has called on Congress to come up with a lasting solution.
Raimondo called Trump's decision to end the program "cruel-headed and wrong." She says Trump has pulled the rug out from under DACA recipients.
Businesses in her state need DACA recipients as employees and DACA recipients sometimes take jobs that other people don't want, Raimodo said. She rejected Attorney General Jeff Session's assertion that DACA recipients take jobs from Americans.
“That's been proven statistically to be untrue,” Raimondo said. “It's not what's happening in Rhode Island. And actually, if these folks aren't allowed to live here legally, I think it will hurt the economy. They contribute to the economy, they pay taxes, they start businesses."
Raimondo says DACA recipients in Rhode Island are some of the hardest working people in the state.
DACA recipients who are eligible to renew their status must do so by October 5.
