Education Secretary Miguel Cardona is announcing Tuesday that “Dreamers” are eligible for emergency grants for college students in COVID-19 relief bills, reversing the Trump administration policy that enforced the federal ban on giving most taxpayer benefits to immigrants who are in the country illegally.
“The pandemic didn’t discriminate against students,” Mr. Cardona told reporters in a conference-call briefing about the new policy.
Pressed by reporters about the legality of his decision, Mr. Cardona said he considers all students to be eligible, including those who are noncitizens.
Democrats are “swindling law-abiding citizens,” said Rep. Virginia Foxx, the top Republican on the House Education and Labor Committee.
“Secretary Cardona’s decision to give free money to illegal immigrants and foreign students is an insult to every American,” said Mrs. Foxx, of North Carolina. “The law is clear. Federal funds are for hardworking citizens. President Biden is fueling an immigration crisis, and this final rule exacerbates the emergency at the southern border.”
Mr. Cardona’s decision also drew fire from the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington organization that advocates for stronger immigration policies.
“This is bad policy and even worse politics,” said R.J. Hauman, the group’s government relations director.
Similar to previous coronavirus relief packages passed by Congress last year, the $1.9 trillion package signed by President Biden in March included emergency grants that colleges give students to pay for such things as rent, food or transportation. Half of the $36 billion for colleges and universities is supposed to be spent on the aid for students.
President Trump’s education secretary, Betsy DeVos, infuriated congressional Democrats when she denied the aid to Dreamers, the nickname for immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children.
Mrs. DeVos said that a provision in the federal 1996 welfare reform law prohibits noncitizens from receiving federal aid.
The Trump administration also denied aid to international students.
That Mr. Cardona would take that position was expected. It is the latest example of the Biden administration and congressional Democrats pivoting away from the Trump-era stance to more welcoming policies for undocumented immigrants and Dreamers in particular.
Mr. Biden has called for Dreamers to get a path to citizenship and a bill passed by the Democratic-controlled House would do just that.
The president also angered those calling for tighter immigration policies last month when he said Dreamers would qualify under his proposal for tuition-free community colleges.
• Kery Murakami can be reached at kmurakami@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.