Business Leaders to President Trump and Congressional GOP: Pass the DREAM Act to Protect DREAMers
Business leaders from across the country recognize the important contributions of DREAMers to our economy and are urging President Trump and Congressional Republicans to ensure they can stay in the U.S. The business community is urging Republicans to bring the DREAM Act to the Floor for a vote to provide a permanent legislative solution for DREAMers.
Hundreds of CEOs and industry executives from companies including Adobe, Amazon, Airbnb, Fitbit, Etsy, Hyatt Hotels, Netflix, Salesforce, Starbucks, and Warby Parker sent a letter to Congressional leaders urging passage of the DREAM Act. From the Letter:
“With the rescission of the DACA program, it is urgent that Congress immediately pass the bipartisan Dream Act- or similar legislation - that gives Dreamers the permanent legislative solution they deserve.…. Further, without congressional action, our economy would lose $460.3 billion from the national GDP and $24.6 billion in Social Security and Medicare tax contributions.”
In addition, a number of business leaders have issued statements calling for legislation that will provide a permanent legislative solution to allow DREAMers to stay in the country they call home:
Randel K. Johnson, Senior Vice President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce: “The U.S. Chamber of Commerce was disappointed when President Trump decided to terminate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.… The only logical action here is for Congress and the president to work together and craft legislation that will provide some certainty to the DACA recipients that allows them to remain in the U.S. and continue on with their lives.” [Statement, 9/27/17]
Javier Palomarez, President & CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce: “The USHCC vehemently opposes the President’s inhumane and economically harmful decision to terminate DACA, which was enacted to shield almost 800,000 individuals who were brought to this country through no fault of their own, and who have already been vetted for criminal backgrounds.… Our association stands committed to working with members on both sides of the aisle, to achieve a compassionate and sound solution on this issue. It is now up to our Congress to unite and pass meaningful legislation that will protect Dreamers.” [Statement, 9/5/17]
Joshua Bolten, President and CEO of Business Roundtable: “Business Roundtable strongly opposes a termination of DACA without a viable replacement in place. We urge Congress and the President to work together to enact a legislative solution before this deadline expires. Failure to act would have a significant negative impact on businesses that rely on employees who are here and working lawfully.” [Statement, 9/5/17]
Craig Silliman, Executive Vice President of Verizon: “The Dreamers are a truly valuable resource for our economy and our society. The DACA program has ensured that they could continue to be a part of our schools and companies and communities, but now there is a risk that this program will end. I’m hopeful that we can all come together as a nation to find ways to preserve DACA and benefit from the passion, energy and drive of the Dreamers.”[Statement, 8/31/17]
David L. Cohen, Senior Executive Vice President of Comcast NBC Universal: “Comcast NBCUniversal, including Telemundo, wants to add our voices to the growing coalition of businesses, faith groups, and community organizations urging Congress to pass legislation to protect Dreamers in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.… It is important to recognize the hard work and importance to our economy of the nearly 800,000 Dreamers.” [Statement, 9/6/17]
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook: “The decision to end DACA is not just wrong. It is particularly cruel to offer young people the American Dream, encourage them to come out of the shadows and trust our government, and then punish them for it…. It’s time for Congress to act to pass the bipartisan Dream Act or another legislative solution that gives Dreamers a pathway to citizenship.” [Facebook, 9/5/17]
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple: “I am deeply dismayed that 800,000 Americans — including more than 250 of our Apple coworkers — may soon find themselves cast out of the only country they've ever called home…. Apple will work with members of Congress from both parties to advocate for a legislative solution that provides permanent protections for all the Dreamers in our country.” [CNN Money, 9/5/17]
Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs: “Immigration is a complex issue but I wouldn't deport a kid who was brought here and only knows America. Congress must address.” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
Bob Iger, CEO of Disney: “The Dreamers impacted by this cruel and misguided decision make significant contributions to our economy and our country…. I urge Congress to take immediate bipartisan action to pass legislation that will protect these innocent people.” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
Michael Bloomberg, CEO and Founder of Bloomberg: “Bloomberg is lucky to have Dreamers. They're helping power our company & economy. Business leaders want a solution -- Congress must lead.” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google: “Dreamers are our neighbors, our friends and our co-workers. This is their home…. Congress needs to act now to defend DACA.” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan: “America is and always has been a country of immigrants…. We should do everything in our power to continue to attract the best and brightest because they make us stronger as a people and as an economy. And, when people come here to learn, work hard and give back to their communities, we should allow them to stay in the United States.” [Statement, 9/5/17]
Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft: “I’m very disappointed with today’s decision to end DACA. Hundreds of thousands of young people who have been educated in the United States and have played by the rules their whole lives will be forced to live under the threat that they will be separated from their families, friends, and communities…. I hope that Congress will quickly pass a permanent fix to allow these young people to stay in the country without the destructive fear of deportation.” [Facebook, 9/5/17]
Brad Smith, President and Chief Legal Officerof Microsoft: “We believe this means that Congress now needs to reprioritize the fall legislative calendar and move quickly with new legislation to protect these 800,000 Dreamers. This means that Congress should adopt legislation on DACA before it tries to adopt a tax reform bill. This is the only way, given the number of legislative days Congress has scheduled over the next six months, we realistically can expect Congress to complete DACA legislation in time.” [Statement, 9/5/17]
Logan Green and John Zimmer, co-founders of Lyft: “Dreamers add to our communities and economy. Ending DACA is wrong - we now must work together to ask Congress to act.” [Twitter, 9/5/17]
Chuck Robbins, CEO of Cisco: “So proud of Cisco Dreamers - we stand with you all - we need the US Congress to act quickly to resolve this situation.” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
Aaron Levie, CEO of Box: “Congress must act immediately to allow Dreamers to stay. This should be priority # 1 given the confusion and stress ending DACA will cause.” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
Randy Falco, CEO of Univision: “DREAMers are our students, soldiers, first responders, coworkers, neighbors, and friends…we will continue to stand by them, including those talented DREAMers working at our company to advance our mission.” [Statement, 9/5/17]
Linda Moore, President and CEO of TechNet: “Ending DACA will be highly disruptive to the U.S. economy…Whether you agree with DACA or not, ending it without anything to replace it creates unnecessary uncertainty for our economy and for almost 800,000 young people in this country who have passed background checks, paid fees, and are contributing to our economy, pursuing their studies, or even serving in our military…the President's action now makes it an urgent priority for Congress to turn its sympathy for these young people into a law that ends the uncertainty they face.” [CNN Money, 9/5/17]
Dara Khosrowshahi, CEOof Uber: “It's against our values to turn our backs on #DREAMers. Everyone deserves a chance to work, study and contribute - the #AmericanDream!” [Tweet, 9/5/17]
BSA Software Alliance: “The tech sector – and all sectors of our economy and our society – are made stronger by the contributions of immigrants. We call for a thoughtful approach to immigration policy that upholds our values while supporting our country and our economy. We are disappointed by the administration’s announcement and urge Congress to swiftly enact legislation to reinstate DACA protections and make them permanent thereby preventing any ambiguity about DREAMers’ status in the United States. [Statement, 9/5/17]
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