DHS mulling deadline extension for Dreamers to reapply for DACA: report

A Justice Department official said Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is considering extending the deadline for some young immigrants to reapply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) protections.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate said in court that DHS is considering an extension of the deadline because a pair of recent hurricanes devastated the U.S. in recent weeks, according to Reuters.

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The program temporarily shields from deportation some young people brought to the U.S. illegally as children. President Trump rescinded the program last week, giving beneficiaries until Oct. 5 to apply to renew their protections for two years.

According to Reuters, federal court Judge Nicholas Garaufis pressed the Trump administration on Thursday to extend the deadline, saying that doing so would offer a reassurance to the DACA’s hundreds of thousands of beneficiaries and give Congress more time to act to enshrine the program’s protections into law, as Trump directed.

Trump has pushed Congress over the past week to act swiftly to pass legislation similar to the DREAM Act — a measure offering a reprieve from deportation to those immigrants affected by DACA. 

In a tweet last week, the president said that if Congress failed to act on the matter before DACA is phased out in six months, he would revisit his decision to rescind the program. 

But on Thursday, Trump said that he is not considering offering citizenship to DACA beneficiaries.

“We’re looking at allowing people to stay here,” he said. “Everybody’s on board. They want to do something. We’re not talking about amnesty. We’re talking about taking care of people.”