Lynden Melmed: Allowing documented ‘Dreamers’ to remain in the country can boost national security

(Lynden Melmed is a partner with Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP and a leader on the Council on National Security and Immigration. Previously he served as counsel to Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and chief counsel of USCIS.) In the United States, turning 21 is usually a time to celebrate. However, for documented “Dreamers,” celebration is far from mind. These young people are legal immigrants whose parents came to the country on work visas. In the past when the parents and children entered the country, it only took a few years to obtain a green card. But due to bureaucratic delays and archaic legal restrictions, it now takes decades for many families to obtain green cards. Children who turn 21 during the process lose their immigration status and must immediately leave the country. Take, for example, the story of Texas resident Athulya Rajakumar, who testified alongside me earlier this year at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Athulya arrived in the United States at age 4 after her mother obtained a work visa. They applied for green cards once they were eligible, but after years in the queue, Athulya turned 21 and must now prepare to leave the U.S. Her story resonates with me because my parents also immigrated to Texas when I was a young child.

It only took my family a few months to obtain green cards and establish a life in America. In contrast, Athulya’s family has faced a decadeslong bureaucratic minefield, one that ultimately harmed the family and the U.S. Behind the human toll is a policy failure that affects all Americans. Most of the documented Dreamers — referred to as such because of the never-passed proposals in Congress called the DREAM Act — are highly educated, with 87% receiving a degree in STEM-related fields, such as science, engineering or math. The United States has invested in their education from a young age through college. If they are forced to leave our country, they will move to other countries who, at best, will compete against us and, at worst, will be our adversaries. It is no surprise that the leading technology companies have weighed in with their concern that ”their skills and talent will go to our global competitors” and that former Homeland Security officials have said that “keeping these individuals in the country bolsters our national security and helps ensure we retain immigrants who embody the American spirit. Calling for these workers to be excluded makes America less secure and is not consistent with conservative principles.”