Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and other Democrats are having an internal debate over legislative strategy regarding protection for young immigrants in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which covers an estimated 750,000 to 800,000 people.
Democrats generally want legislation that would allow the so-called Dreamers, who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children, to remain, but Democrats who are up for re-election in 2018 in states won by President Donald Trump are against risking a government shutdown because of the DACA issue, according to The Hill.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., said they would not vote for a spending bill that did not include DACA protection.
"Any bill that funds the government also must include a fix for DACA," Harris said, according to The Hill.
Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said last month that protecting DACA recipients was about "basic decency and morality," The Hill reported.
Democrats know that in 2020 they must rally the party's baseline voters including Hispanics, and immigrant rights advocates are putting pressure on Democrats to take a stand, The Hill report said.
However, Schumer has told colleagues behind the scenes that a shutdown is off the table, The Hill reported.
"We don't think we're going to get to that. There are good negotiations occurring between Democrats and Republicans to come up with a good DACA program as well as some good border security," Schumer said Tuesday, according to NPR.
"The Democratic leaders who are negotiating aren't talking about shutdown," one Democratic senator said, according to The Hill.