Top House conservative: Border security, not wall, required for DACA fix

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) on Thursday said that he would not demand that border wall funding is included in a legislative solution for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program as long as border security is addressed and funded.

“I don’t know that it’s border wall funding, but it’s certainly a secure southern border,” the conservative lawmaker told reporters at a Bloomberg event in Washington.

“Dealing with DACA has to start with a secure southern border in some shape or fashion. Certainly we support the border wall, but that doesn’t go over great in L.A.,” he said in response to a question from a Los Angeles Times reporter.

{mosads}President Trump announced on Tuesday that he would phaseout the Obama-era program, which allows immigrants brought into the U.S. illegally as minors to stay under certain conditions.

If Congress does not act in six months, some 800,000 people who grew up in the U.S. would face deportation.

The border wall Trump promised during his campaign has been a frequent point of contention in Washington, with conservatives often looking to pair it with other must-pass legislation.

Democrats, who are vehemently opposed to wall funding, have offered full-throated support for alternative border security measures.