U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday said he remained adamant about the need to create a pathway for U.S. citizenship for so-called Dreamer immigrants, but it “remains to be seen” if that will be part of a $3.5 trillion budget measure.
“There must be a pathway to citizenship,” Biden told reporters as he returned to the White House after spending the weekend at his home in Wilmington, Delaware.
Dreamers are immigrants brought to the United States as children who are protected from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
Democrats hope to provide legal status to some immigrants in the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation measure they plan to pass with a simple majority, but details have not been released.
Asked if the reconciliation measure needed to include the pathway to citizenship, Biden said that “remains to be seen.”
Senate Democratic leaders this month told other members the budget measure would open the door to legislation on climate measures, social spending, and extension of a child tax credit.