Mitt Romney said during the Republican primary that he would veto the DREAM Act, the law that would allow children of illegal immigrants legal status if they completed some college or military service. But when President Obama used an executive order this year to enable qualifying young immigrants to avoid deportation, Romney accused Obama of playing politics just months before the election.
That was then. Now, in an apparent bid to win Latino support, Romney says he would let Obama’s temporary work visa plan stand. That means up to 1.7 million young immigrants who qualify for Obama’s program would not be deported under President Romney.
Romney is promising comprehensive immigration reform, though he hasn’t offered details. His decision to let Obama’s stopgap policy stand will likely cost him the support of conservatives, who consider it “amnesty.” And it’s not likely to change the minds of those who already see him as a flip-flopper who will do whatever it takes to get elected.
