The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has written a letter pleading with House Republicans to fix the DACA program for young undocumented immigrants and reject cuts to legal immigration demanded by the White House and conservatives as part of any deal.
The letter comes ahead of meetings Thursday between House conservatives, moderates and leadership to negotiate a solution after a faction of Republicans supportive of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals teamed up with Democrats on a "discharge petition" that would force House votes on the issue.
House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin has supported Trump’s efforts to cut legal immigration through family-based green card sponsorships and elimination of the diversity visa lottery.
"It is long past time to protect the Dreamers and secure our border," the Chamber’s executive vice president, Neil Bradley, wrote in the letter. "We hope the House acts on the bipartisan solutions that exist to address these issues. If there is a desire to address other issues, the Chamber urges the House to reject significant cuts to legal immigration and to consider including measures that provide certainty to other groups of individuals who are at risk of losing their legal ability to work in the United States."
Bradley said the administration’s moves to beef up scrutiny on H-1B visas for skilled workers would have a detrimental impact on the workforce, and that without "Congressional action, more than one million individuals would lose their legal ability to work in the United States."
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.