Thread by @benwikler

Quick thread on what's happening with the Dream Act. TL;DR: Congress is going home for Christmas while leaving Dreamers out in the cold. Accountability is underway. And the fight's not over. 1/

Trump ended DACA protections on Tuesday, Sep 5—and called on Congress to fix it. They should have acted immediately.

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The next day, he met w McConnell, Ryan, Schumer, & Pelosi. Trump was feuding w McConnell bc of ACA repeal fail. Gov shutdown was looming on Sep 30. Unexpectedly, Trump agreed to D proposal to fund gov only until Dec 8—which Rs knew would give Ds leverage.
washingtonpost.com/powerpost/hous…

Then Trump met w Schumer & Pelosi again—and agreed to a deal to protect Dreamers, w/o a border wall. It was amazing. Seemed almost too good to be true.
nytimes.com/2017/09/13/us/…

In fact, it *was* too good to be true. The alt right rose up. Trump's most xenophobic advisers pushed him hard. Trump immediately went back on his word, and the apparent deal fell apart.
thedailybeast.com/how-stephen-mi…

In retrospect, clearly, Ds should've demanded Dream as part of the September funding agreement. They were making a deal with the Devil. Devil doesn't keep his end of bargains. @UNITEDWEDREAM @IndivisibleTeam @NILC_org called it at the the time. unitedwedream.org/2017/09/immigr…

Dems promised to hold the line going forward & get Dream done. Huge majority support for Dream act—in both parties. Focus became Dec 8—the new deadline for a gov spending deal. @UNITEDWEDREAM led a huge coalition, spanning the progressive movement, to press Rs & Ds for action.

(Point of personal pride: @MoveOn has stood with Dreamers every step of this fight. Our members have made 10s of 1000s of calls to Congress, made & shared videos viewed 12m times online, led dozens of protests—and is ramping up fight now.)

Many elected Dems have shown extraordinary leadership—rallying the grassroots and engaging & educating Republican colleagues about need for Dream Act. Negotiations, outreach, & whipping have been constantly underway this fall. But...

As Dec 8 approached, Ds said they needed a few more weeks to reach a deal. Agreed to a stopgap funding bill pushing shutdown deadline to Dec 22. Activists went to the mat. Dreamers skipped final exams to come to DC to help protest in final push. And then...

... Dec 22 loomed, final moment of Congress before Christmas. Rs basically let all negotiations skate (Dream, CHIP, disaster relief, overall spending deal) as they hyper-focused on their tax heist. Meanwhile, Senate Dems didn't draw a red line.

Result: Congress leaves town, Dreamers left in limbo. Another short-term spending deal, this time with a Jan 19 deadline.

Activists built a pressure campaign designed to crescendo this week. Congress whiffed. Broke their pledge to have this done by end of year. Now pressure rises even more—plus accountability for failure so far.

Congress MUST pass a clean Dream Act by Jan 19. Another short-term funding extension not acceptable. Rs know that if Ds cave again, they lose their leverage. Indeed, that's the hard-right's plan. cnn.com/2017/12/22/pol…

Dems are now operating on borrowed time—borrowed from the harrowing ordeal that this government is imposing on Dreamers. Thousands have already lost DACA protections. 122 more every day.

Every day that Dream is not passed is another fracture in the progressive unity that has powered our movement this year. If Jan 19 comes and goes without Dream, these fractures turn into a dangerous chasm.

If Republicans insist on shutting down the government on January 19 in order to help Trump break his own agreement on Dreamers, that is on them.

But if Dems abet Trump by agreeing to a spending deal in January that funds the deportation of Dreamers rather ensuring their protection, they will be making a profound moral and political mistake. The chance of serious primary challenges vs Dems will spike.

If Dems cave on Dream, the threat of primary challenges is very real. In our surveying, @MoveOn members make that clear. Ds have already missed their deadline. Every additional day raises the stakes.
front.moveon.org/new-survey-pri…

Meanwhile, between now and Jan 19, MoveOn and our allies will pull out all the stops to ensure that Repubs make an acceptable deal and Dems hold the line—and pass Dream, CHIP, & relief for Puerto Rico & other disaster-hit areas before Jan 19. It's time to win. Join us.