Barletta Signs Letter Urging House To Strike DACA Provision From Defense Bill

Press Release

Congressman Lou Barletta, PA-11, has joined two dozen of his colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives in signing a letter to House Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions asking that he remove controversial immigration language from the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) when the bill comes before his committee next week.

The language, inserted during the Armed Services Committee's review of the bill, urges the Secretary of Defense to declare that illegal immigrants benefitting from President Obama's unlawful Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program be eligible to enlist in the U.S. military. DACA abuses the practice of prosecutorial discretion by halting the deportation of illegal immigrants and granting them work permits if they claim to have arrived in the U.S. before age 16 and have been present for five years, among other criteria. Barletta is also a cosponsor of an amendment to strike this provision.

Barletta issued the following statement:

"I was disappointed to learn that some of my colleagues thought it appropriate to use the NDAA, which authorizes the funding for our nation's military, to encourage the enlistment of certain illegal immigrants into the Armed Services. These kind of provisions have no place in legislation aimed at protecting our national security, especially at a time when we face the growing threat of violent Islamic extremism.

"The House has already made clear its position on a number of occasions that DACA is unlawful and should be defunded. Tactics to validate this program through a must-pass bill to help our dedicated men and women in uniform are shameful and will not be tolerated. I will continue to fight to get this provision removed, and cannot lend my support to the NDAA until it is."

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