Washington, DC – Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a senior member of the House Committees on Judiciary and Homeland Security and Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations, released the following statement regarding her intent to amend the Maxibus Appropriations bill to be considered by the House this week to protect DACA-status individuals from being deported:

“Hurricane Harvey destroyed lives and caused unprecedented damage throughout the Texas Gulf Coast region and into parts of Louisiana and Mississippi. People struggling to recover and rebuild are in desperate need of federal funding untainted by the cynical whims that far too often define our politics.

“That is why this week I have introduced a bold amendment to prevent Congress from appropriating funds to implement the Trump White House decision to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program or DACA. In light of Hurricane Harvey and the other pressing challenges facing our nation and this Administration, the last thing we should be doing is denying the American Dream to 800,000 Dreamers.”