On Feb. 7, Nancy Pelosi, Democratic minority leader in the House of Representatives, stood more than eight hours, in defense of DACA. She repeatedly called upon Speaker Paul Ryan to bring the DACA question to the floor for a vote, fully confident that it would pass. Pelosi filled most of her marathon hours by reading into the Congressional Record dozens of letters from Dreamers, as well as some from members of Congress and other public figures in support of Dreamers.
These accidental immigrants work hard, pay taxes and regard America as their home, with English as their first language. They are enrolled in colleges or in the armed forces, or are working at meaningful jobs in technology, science, medicine, education, public service, business, law. These young people are worthy members of our body politic.
And what was our president doing while Pelosi was engaged in her courageous, record-setting “filibuster”? He was planning his military parade, ostensibly to honor the military, though it is really for him to be on display as he reviews his troops in the mode of the usual dictator. This expensive, uncustomary show of manufactured affection for a narcissistic draft dodger is yet another instance of the shabby morality Trump has brought to the presidential office.
Denton May
Dolores