House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) has privately told colleagues that he is planning to loop a solution for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program into the December spending bill, HuffPost reports. The Trump administration announced in September that it was ending DACA, which protects individuals who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children, but he first allowed a six-month reprieve so Congress could attempt to solve the issue with legislation.
Ryan "did make reference that [DACA provisions] would be something that might be part of the whole ball of wax," Republican Study Committee (RSC) Chairman Mark Walker (R-N.C.) told HuffPost. The decision could mean a huge legislative win for Democrats, especially since Republicans do not have the votes to pass the December omnibus bill all on their own. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has additionally said that she would consider voting against a spending deal in order to negotiate a DACA decision.
Several of Trump's biggest supporters have expressed public displeasure with the idea that the president is willing to protect immigrants after all. On Wednesday, the Stephen Bannon-led Breitbart News criticized Ryan for his potential willingness to work with Democrats on immigration. Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.) warned simply that Ryan "better not."
Still, "there is some risk in taking Ryan's comments too seriously," HuffPost cautions. "What he means by DACA could differ greatly from what Democrats want or believe is an acceptable solution." Read why Damon Linker doesn't believe Congress will save DACA here at The Week.