WASHINGTON, DC – FWD.us President Todd Schulte issued the following statement today after Acting ICE Director Matt Albence confirmed that the Department of Homeland Security will pursue deportations for Dreamers if “DACA is done away with by the Supreme Court”:

“In an era of 30-second news cycles, we urge everyone to focus on this breaking news: Acting Director Albence’s comments make crystal clear that ICE is actively preparing to deport hundreds of thousands of DACA recipients if the Supreme Court allows President Trump to terminate the program. This is in direct contradiction to the assumptions and statements of some Members of Congress and a number of Supreme Court Justices who wrongly believe Dreamers won’t be at risk for deportation.

“ICE has made it clear that this belief of these lawmakers and justices is absolutely wrong. Contrary to the assumption expressed by Chief Justice Roberts at the DACA oral argument in November–that ‘[b]oth [the Obama and Trump] administrations have said they’re not going to deport the people’–it is now clear that the Trump Administration plans to deport DACA recipients if the Supreme Court allows it to do so. We have already seen efforts to go after some DACA recipients by reopening deportation cases even if the individual’s DACA status has not lapsed. The Acting ICE Director’s statements make it crystal clear that not only would nearly 700,000 DACA recipients lose their ability to work legally and be subject to immediate deportation if DACA ends, but that ICE would act purposefully to arrest and deport DACA recipients.

“As we await a ruling from the Supreme Court, the urgent threat facing nearly 700,000 DACA recipients and their families is real. Terminating DACA will have massive and devastating consequences.”

Background
On January 23, Acting ICE Director Albence Matt Albence confirmed that the Department of Homeland Security will pursue deportations for Dreamers if “DACA is done away with by the Supreme Court.”

At a media briefing, Albence said, “Those individuals may have DACA, but that doesn’t prevent us from going through the removal process, such that… if they get ordered removed, and DACA is done away with by the Supreme Court, we can actually effectuate those removal orders.”

Notably, during oral arguments at the Supreme Court in November, some Supreme Court Justices made it clear that they believed President Trump’s assurances that ending DACA would not mean deporting Dreamers. Chief Justice John Roberts said, “Both administrations have said they’re not going to deport the people.” This is simply untrue and runs counter to what Acting Director Albence confirmed on January 23 (quoted above).