House Passes DREAM Act; Uphill Battle in Senate

09 Dec 2010

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass the DREAM Act on Wednesday night, sending the immigration reform bill to the Senate. The DREAM Act would provide a path to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who entered the United States when they were children.

“This is about a commitment to our future,” said Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Speaker of the House. “It’s about a recognition of what these young people can mean for our country.”

The DREAM Act proposes to give “conditional” green cards to undocumented immigrants if they graduate high school and enter college or military service. After ten years, these individuals would be eligible to receive permanent residency and, eventually, citizenshp, as long as they meet all other requirements.

While the House vote is good news for supporters of the DREAM Act, there will be a tough fight in the senate. While many Republican senators originally supported the bill, the majority of Republican senators now oppose it, considering the bill a mass amnesty for illegal immigrants. For the bill to pass the Senate, it will need the support of the majority of Democrats and a few Republicans.