Yvonne Gonzalez
Rep. Joe Crowley, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, visited UNLV, where students, activists and community leaders gathered for a roundtable on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program on Friday, Oct. 27, 2017. He is joined by moderator Homero Gonzalez, philanthropy chairman of the UNLV Hispanic Law Student Association La Voz, and Congressional District 3 candidate Susie Lee, a Democrat whose campaign organized the roundtable.
Friday, Oct. 27, 2017 | 6:20 p.m.
The chairman of the House Democratic Caucus made stops in Nevada on Friday, expressing support for Democratic candidates for office and listening to concerns of young immigrants.
Rep. Joe Crowley, D-N.Y., visited the UNLV, where students, activists and community leaders gathered for a roundtable on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Some students who spoke came to the U.S. as toddlers.
Attendees said President Donald Trump’s decision to sunset DACA created uncertainty not only for themselves but for their families, several of which were of mixed immigration status. These families, they said, were worried that they might be split apart.
There are a few plans in Congress to help young immigrants, including the long-proposed Dream Act. About two dozen signatures are still needed on a Democrat-backed petition that would bump the legislation straight to floor consideration, while Republicans support their own options.
“The glaring thing that I don’t like about (the GOP plans) is that some do not provide an ultimate path to citizenship,” Crowley said. “For some of them, the timeframe for that is very, very long, too long in my opinion. So I’m open to discuss and have conversations about them.”
Crowley said he thinks the immigration demands that came out of the White House recently would be rejected in negotiations on DACA. The White House has asked for more enforcement hires and a border wall. House Speaker Paul Ryan has said DACA relief could be included in a budget deal to be completed around mid-December.
“The notion or idea that they’re actually looking to be supportive of something is a good indication that I think they understand that the American people recognize that this is an issue that needs to be dealt with,” Crowley said. “We may differ on some of those avenues, but I do recognize that I think it’s a positive that they’re actually trying to find some way forward.”
Crowley said after the event that he was supporting Democratic candidates for office, including Congressional District 3 candidate Susie Lee, whose campaign coordinated Friday’s roundtable. She is facing fellow Democrat Jack Love in the primary to fill the seat of Rep. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., who is running against Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev.
A crowded field of candidates are running for Rosen’s seat, including Republicans Victoria Seaman, a former Nevada assemblywoman, and state Sen. Scott Hammond.
A spokeswoman for Crowley said Rosen’s seat and the Congressional District 4 race where Rep. Ruben Kihuen, D-Nev., is running for re-election are both important for Democrats to hold if the party is to take a majority in the House. Kihuen faces primary opponent Amy Vilela in the primary, with Las Vegas Councilman Stavros Anthony the only Republican in the race so far.
