[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 6, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2266-S2267]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                  DACA

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I spent 5 weeks in my home in Springfield, 
IL, following orders--good ones--to suggest that I had to get out of 
circulation and so should everyone else. It was an interesting moment. 
My wife and I think it may have been the longest stretch we had ever 
spent under the same roof together. We got along, which is good, and I 
got to field the neighborhood a little more than I usually do as I 
travel back and forth almost every week.
  I got to know the people a little more, waving from a distance. I 
looked around and noticed that almost every lawn had a sign on it 
saying: ``We love healthcare workers.'' Many people had signs in their 
windows to back that up too, and we should. These doctors, these 
nurses, and these people who work in nursing homes caring for the 
elderly and making certain they are in a good, safe environment are 
important, and they are risking their lives for the people whom we 
love. We thank them over and over. But there is one part of that group 
that I would like to highlight for just a few moments on the floor of 
the Senate. I want to spend a few minutes talking about one special 
group of healthcare workers--immigrants.
  One in six healthcare and social service workers--3.1 million out of 
18.7 million--are immigrants. When they come on television and give us 
a breakdown of what is going on in emergency rooms and the likelihood 
of our success in communities in dealing with this coronavirus, you 
must notice so many times and think that they may be newcomers to the 
United States. Many of them are.
  These immigrants are playing a critical role in the battle against 
this pandemic. Yet the President of the United States and many around 
him continue to disparage immigrants, falsely claiming that they are 
just a drain on society, that all they are doing is taking our jobs 
away and we really wouldn't miss them if they were gone. So I came to 
the floor today to tell a story about one of them, an immigrant health 
hero. I will be joined by some of my colleagues who have similar 
stories to tell.
  We are inviting people to share their own stories on social media 
using the hashtag ``immigranthealthheroes.'' I will put up the hashtag 
here so that if anyone wants to check in, they can do so.
  Many of these healthcare workers are young immigrants who came to the 
United States as children. They are known as Dreamers. They are 
American in every way except for their legal immigration status. They 
were brought here at an early age by parents who didn't give them a 
vote on the decision, grew up in the United States, went to our 
schools, sometimes all the way through college and professional school, 
want to make a life in this country, have no criminal record, and are 
just looking for a chance.
  It was 9 years ago when I joined Republican Senator Dick Lugar on a 
bipartisan basis asking President Obama to use his executive authority 
to protect these Dreamers from deportation. He responded and created 
the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA.
  DACA provides temporary protection from deportation for Dreamers if 
they register with the government, pay a substantial fee, and go 
through a criminal background check. More than 800,000 Dreamers came 
forward and received President Obama's DACA protection.
  DACA unleashed the full potential for these Dreamers that they never 
dreamed they would have, and they started contributing to America as 
soldiers and teachers and small business owners.
  More than 200,000 DACA recipients are now categorized as ``essential 
critical infrastructure workers''--``essential critical infrastructure 
workers.'' Who came up with that name? It is the definition of 
President Trump's own Department of Homeland Security. One out of four 
of these DACA protectees are essential critical infrastructure workers, 
and among these essential workers are 41,700 DACA recipients in the 
healthcare industry. They include doctors, intensive care nurses, 
paramedics, and respiratory therapists.

  But on September 5, 2017, President Trump repealed DACA. Because of 
that action by the President, hundreds of thousands of Dreamers face 
losing their jobs, but, more importantly, they face being deported, 
many to countries they barely remember, if they remember at all.
  The courts stepped in and blocked the President from enforcing this 
DACA decision, but he took on the appeal of that decision, and now it 
is in the Supreme Court, just across the street.
  I was proud to lead 172 current and former Members of Congress on a 
bipartisan brief asking the Supreme Court to rule against President 
Trump's repeal of DACA. These young DACA recipients are being protected 
while the case is being considered by the Supreme Court, but a decision 
could come down any day--could come down any day--that basically makes 
these young people subject to deportation and takes away any legal 
right

[[Page S2267]]

they have to work. If the Court rules in favor of President Trump on 
DACA, 200,000 essential American workers will be sidelined and 
deported, even as we fight this pandemic.
  Last month, I sent a letter to the President--37 of my colleagues 
joined me--urging him to extend the work authorization for DACA 
recipients, not to make their future depend on what happens in the 
Court. The President has the authority to say that, at least until the 
end of the calendar year--or beyond, I hope--we are not going to deport 
these young people, and we are not going to take their jobs away, 
particularly those in the healthcare industry.
  But if you consider President Trump's attitude toward immigrants, you 
know he is likely to forge ahead with his decision to deport the 
Dreamers. That means we have to do our part.
  I worked with Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, chairman of the 
Senate Judiciary Committee, to include a provision to automatically 
extend work authorizations for DACA recipients in the CARES Act that 
Congress just passed a few weeks ago. We presented it to the leaders on 
a bipartisan basis. We had the approval of Senate Democratic leader 
Chuck Schumer and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, but not the 
Republican leader in the Senate. He stopped us from extending this 
protection. I don't know what his situation is in Kentucky, but I can 
tell you that in Illinois, we need every one of these healthcare 
workers we have today. We can't afford to lose them. To think that 
41,000 DACA recipients and another 11,000 TPS critical healthcare 
workers would be deported would mean that many Americans who count on 
these great professionals are going to get less care and perhaps 
terrible results.
  As Congress debates the next legislation to address the COVID-19 
pandemic, I will continue pushing for this provision. It is not too 
much to ask that if these people simply want to be working in ERs and 
hospitals, risking their lives for all of us, that they at least have 
the peace of mind to know that they can stay until the end of the 
calendar year. That is all I am asking for. Is it too much to ask? Some 
of them are suffering, and their families are suffering too. All they 
want is the authority to stay here.
  Last year, the House of Representatives passed the Dream and Promise 
Act, based on the Dream Act, with a strong vote. Senator McConnell has 
refused to call it in the Senate. It could help us. I wish he would 
consider it.
  I have come to the floor over 100 times and told the stories of 
Dreamers. I don't think there is any better way to make the case--meet 
them, know them, realize what they brought to America and what they 
bring each day.
  Today, I want to tell you the story of this man. His name is Manuel 
Bernal. He works in the emergency department at the Advocate Christ 
Medical Center.
  Manuel was brought to the United States when he was 2 years old. He 
grew up in Memphis, TN. He always wanted to become a doctor. He wrote 
me a letter, and he said:

       Early on, I developed an appreciation for the medical 
     profession when I witnessed the compassionate care received 
     by a loved one at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

  Manuel graduated in the top 10 percent of his hospital class. He was 
a leader of several high school honor societies. In his spare time, he 
was a swimmer, a football player, and volunteered at the St. Jude Club 
and the Key Club.
  He continued his education at the University of Tennessee at 
Chattanooga. He graduated summa cum laude in biology with a minor in 
chemistry. In college, he worked as a medical scribe for doctors in the 
emergency room at a small community hospital in Chattanooga. After this 
experience, he decided he wanted to go all the way. He wanted to become 
an emergency room physician. He continued his education at Loyola 
University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

  Allow me a few seconds to praise this wonderful school. He was one of 
dozens of DACA recipients at Stritch, which was the first medical 
school to admit DACA students. They do not receive any special 
treatment in the selection process, and they are not eligible for a 
penny in Federal financial assistance. Many of them borrowed money from 
the State of Illinois to complete their medical education in the hopes 
that once they are licensed, they can come back and practice in our 
State, which they promise to do.
  Here is what Manuel says DACA means to him:

       DACA has undoubtedly opened up many doors for me. It meant 
     allowing me to obtain my dream of serving others through 
     emergency medicine. If DACA ended, I would be forced to stop 
     doing not only what I love doing but what I trained so hard 
     to do.

  Today, Dr. Manuel Bernal is an emergency room resident at Advocate 
Christ Medical Center in Chicago, one of the busiest trauma hospitals 
in our city. His supervisor told him he did not have to treat COVID-19 
patients because he is only a resident, but he stepped forward and 
volunteered to do it anyway.
  Manuel's DACA is set to expire in October, 5 months from now. Will 
America be stronger if this doctor leaves? Will they be better at 
Advocate Christ Medical Center, the trauma hospital, if Manuel was 
forced to leave this country? I can't imagine anyone would answer yes.
  Manuel and hundreds of thousands of other Dreamers are counting on 
the Supreme Court to reject President Trump's abolition of DACA and 
counting on us who serve in the Senate to solve this crisis President 
Trump alone created. As long as I am a U.S. Senator, I will continue to 
come to the floor of the Senate to advocate for Manuel and for 
thousands of others who simply want a chance to prove themselves to 
earn their way into America's future. It would be an American tragedy 
at this moment when we face this national emergency to lose these brave 
and talented young people. They are saving lives every day, and they 
are risking their own to do it. Can we ask anything more of anyone else 
in this country? We must ensure that Manuel and hundreds of thousands 
of others in our essential workforce are not forced to stop working 
when their services are needed now more than ever.
  Ultimately, we need to pass legislation that is just common sense, 
that says these young people who came here as kids and have worked 
doubly hard under the greatest of pressures and have made a success of 
their lives, like this young man, can stay in America and be part of 
our future. He is truly a healthcare hero, and he is an immigrant. He 
is an immigrant healthcare hero, and there are thousands just like him 
across America. We need them now more than ever.
  I see that Senator Cortez Masto is here. I know she wants to speak on 
this subject.
  I yield the floor to her.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Cotton). The Senator from Nevada.

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