Former Vice President Joe Biden called the Trump administration's decision to end DACA "cruel" and "not America" in a tweet Tuesday afternoon.
Short for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, DACA is a program enacted in 2012 by President Barack Obama to shield 800,000 illegal immigrants from deportation who were brought to the U.S. as children.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced Tuesday that DACA had been rescinded, and President Donald Trump has called on Congress to put forward legislation to replace the program. According to CNN, "the move sets a clock for Congress to act to preserve the program's protections before the DACA recipients begin losing their status March 5, 2018."
Biden, Obama's vice president, condemned the decision for "DREAMers" as "not America."
"Brought by parents, these children had no choice in coming here. Now they'll be sent to countries they've never known. Cruel. Not America," he wrote.
Brought by parents, these children had no choice in coming here. Now they'll be sent to countries they've never known. Cruel. Not America.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 5, 2017
Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez wrote Trump had "secured his legacy as a champion for cruelty."
NEW: DNC Chair @TomPerez on DACA decision: 'Donald Trump has secured his legacy as a champion for cruelty." https://t.co/8mRFr0wh4q pic.twitter.com/q66Mszwi1j
— Evan McMurry (@evanmcmurry) September 5, 2017
Rep. Adam Schiff (D., Calif.) called Trump "the worst President in modern history" over the move.
Donald Trump again shows that no child is too young or vulnerable, no step is too low, and why he is the worst President in modern history. https://t.co/bA7Jo7QJot
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) September 5, 2017
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) said the DACA drawdown was "heartless," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) called it an act of "cowardice," and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) called it "bigoted."
Americans know how heartless ending #DACA is; ripping apart families & telling ppl who have worked hard to become Americans they must leave.
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) September 5, 2017
Trump just gave a masterclass in cowardice²: he cancelled #DACA, and then trotted out Sessions because he was too scared to do it himself.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 5, 2017
Subjecting Dreamers to mass deportation is part of the bigoted policies that are a cornerstone of @realDonaldTrump’s admin. #DefendDACA
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) September 5, 2017
Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.) said Trump's decision was the "wrong approach," while House Speaker Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) said Obama's policy was never viable and hoped for Congress to work together to create a "permanent legislative solution."
INBOX: Statement on DACA program from Speaker Paul Ryan pic.twitter.com/M9rYIZeQ0K
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) September 5, 2017
https://twitter.com/AndrewBHanna/status/905091289498226689?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mediaite.com%2Fonline%2Fwhat-a-shameful-shameful-day-twitter-reacts-to-trump-ending-daca-program%2F
Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) told the Miami Herald that Trump will have to lead and make his legislative criteria clear as Congress takes up the matter.
In a statement, Trump blamed Obama for bypassing Congress and said the drawdown of DACA would be gradual to give Congress time to act.
"As I've said before, we will resolve the DACA issue with heart and compassion—but through the lawful Democratic process—while at the same time ensuring that any immigration reform we adopt provides enduring benefits for the American citizens we were elected to serve," Trump said. "We must also have heart and compassion for unemployed, struggling, and forgotten Americans."