Opinion: Stop talking, and help the Dreamers

View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Wednesday, September 6, 2017 [NYTimes.com/Opinion »]( [David Leonhardt] David Leonhardt Op-Ed Columnist Paul Ryan offered some [warm words]( about Dreamers. Marco Rubio went further, distancing himself from President Trump’s new immigration policy by [tweeting]( a passage from the Bible. John McCain was blunter still, calling the decision [“wrong.”]( But words aren’t enough. They’re not nearly enough. Ryan, Rubio, McCain and the other members of Congress have the power to do something in response to Trump’s decision to subject the 800,000 Dreamers — law-abiding people who entered the United States illegally as children — to potential deportation. Congress can pass a law that removes the threat hanging over them and lets them continue with [their lives](. If Congress doesn’t act, yesterday’s expressions of concern are mere hypocrisy. “I have zero patience for empty virtue signalling on this,” [Susan Hennessey]( of Lawfare [tweeted]( in response to Rubio. “You’re a member of Congress. Don’t tell us how sad and pious you are; pass a law.” Greg Sargent of The Washington Post [noted]( that Congress should pass a law quickly, given the uncertainty plaguing Dreamers. Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president and chief legal officer, said Trump’s move had shifted Microsoft’s lobbying priorities. “The entire business community cares about a tax reform,” [Smith t]( NPR](. “And yet it is very clear today a tax reform bill needs to be set aside until the Dreamers are taken care of.” Smith also suggested Microsoft would try to block the federal government from deporting its Dreamer employees. From the political right, Reihan Salam [has argued]( that Trump’s move creates an opportunity for a bipartisan bill that both helps the Dreamers and rewrites immigration law to admit more skilled workers and fewer relatives of recent immigrants. It would be easy enough for Congress to pass a simpler bill, focused on Dreamers. The House passed one in 2010. It also won [55 Senate votes]( — a majority but not enough to overcome a filibuster. Among those who didn’t vote yes: McCain, [Lindsey Graham]( Susan Collins and two Democrats still in the Senate, Joe Manchin and Jon Tester. In The Times, Javier Palomarez [explains]( why he quit a Trump advisory board yesterday, Paul Krugman [breaks down]( the economics of the decision and the Editorial Board offers its [take](. Flashback: In a 1980 Republican primary debate, an attendee asked George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan about “illegal aliens.” [The responses are pretty uplifting]( given today’s immigrant-bashing administration. “We’re creating a whole society of really honorable, decent, family-loving people that are in violation of the law,” Bush said. He spoke of “six- and eight-year-old kids” who were made to feel as if “they’re living outside the law.” He concluded: “These are good people, strong people.” Reagan, for his part, took a swipe at the idea of “putting up a fence” and said the country should find a way to let the immigrants work here, earn money and pay taxes. The excerpt lasts only about two minutes and is worth watching. Related: Noah Smith of Bloomberg View [points out]( that Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, [wasn’t telling the truth]( when he said Tuesday that Dreamers had cost Americans jobs. Follow up, on taxes: Krugman, in response to [my column]( yesterday, [argues]( that the ideal top tax rate in the United States would be above 80 percent. A Krugman blog [post]( from the archives has some technical details. Storm watch: [Hurricane Irma]( has gained strength in the Caribbean and looks terrifying. “I am at a complete and utter loss for words looking at Irma’s appearance on satellite imagery,” [said]( Taylor Trogdon, a senior scientist at the National Hurricane Center. Eric Holthaus, a meteorologist who writes for Grist, [called]( it “stronger than Andrew or Katrina.” The full Opinion report from The Times follows, including Sung-Yoon Lee on [North Korea](. Editorial [Donald Trump’s Cowardice on ‘Dreamers’]( By THE EDITORIAL BOARD So that the president can make a political point, 800,000 people face deportation. OP-ED COLUMNIST [The Very Bad Economics of Killing DACA]( By PAUL KRUGMAN Bad fiscal impact, higher chance of depressions. What’s not to like? Op-Ed Contributor [Why I’m Resigning From Trump’s Diversity Coalition]( By JAVIER PALOMAREZ A president who doesn’t believe in the value of America’s Dreamers is not one I can continue to support. ADVERTISEMENT Op-Ed Columnist [Can We Talk About Tom Brady’s Brain?]( By FRANK BRUNI If we objectified football players less, maybe we’d protect them better. Op-Ed Columnist [Confederate Statues and American Memory]( By ROGER COHEN To excise history is to risk being punished by it. Remove the statuary but do not consign it to oblivion. Op-Ed Columnist [The Apostle to the Media]( By ROSS DOUTHAT Michael Cromartie and the arc of evangelical history. Contributing Op-Ed Writer [The Ivanka Trump Guarantee]( By LINDY WEST Stop wondering which of these people will save us. There is not going to be a surprise silver lining to this presidency. Op-Ed Contributor [The Way to Make North Korea Back Down]( By SUNG-YOON LEE Threats of American military action are empty bluster. But money talks. 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SALIH Kurdish leaders hope the referendum will draw the outside world’s attention to the Kurds’ dysfunctional relationship with the Iraqi government. HOW ARE WE DOING? We’d love your feedback on this newsletter. Please email thoughts and suggestions to [opinionnewsletter@nytimes.com](mailto:opinionnewsletter@nytimes.com?subject=Opinion%20Today%20Newsletter%20Feedback). ADVERTISEMENT Letters [President Trump, Don’t Forsake the ‘Dreamers’]( Readers praise the children of illegal immigrants who have qualified for DACA. To abolish the program would be cruel and misguided, they say. Letters [How to Resolve the North Korea Crisis]( Readers offer their ideas, including a peace treaty, ignoring North Korea’s leader and a huge economic aid package. SIGN UP FOR THE VIETNAM ’67 NEWSLETTER Examining America’s long war in Southeast Asia [through the course]( of a single year. 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