Poll: Pa. residents overwhelmingly support path to citizenship for Dreamers, TPS recipients | Thursday Morning Coffee

Good Thursday Morning, Fellow Seekers.

Congress and the Trump White House might be deadlocked on immigration reform, but Pennsylvanians have a pretty clear idea of where they want their elected leaders to go, a new poll by an immigration advocacy group has found.

More than seven in 10 Pennsylvanians (71 percent) say they support a path to citizenship for “Dreamers,” or undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children by their parents, as well as those with ‘temporary protected status,’ who cannot return to their home countries because of armed conflicts or natural disasters.

The survey by Immigration Hub, a national advocacy organization, also sampled the opinions of residents in Michigan and Colorado, finding broad, bipartisan support in each of those battleground states for providing a path to citizenship for the affected immigrant groups.

Yes, the poll is by an advocacy organization, and you get what you pay for — so caveat emptor, as they say.

But it’s also important to note that its results do track with national polling on the issue. That includes a 2018 Gallup poll, that found 83 percent of Americans backing citizenship for DACA beneficiaries.

The White House rolled out an immigration plan last week that calls for, among other things, emphasizing merit-based immigration even as it neither reduces nor increases the number of people allowed to legally enter the United States, NPR reported. The plan, however, does not address the fate of some 11 million people who are now in the country illegally.

Experts have said the White House’s plan could hurt a roiling U.S. economy – which needs more low-skilled workers, not fewer, Vox reported Monday.

On Tuesday, the majority-Republican Senate Judiciary Committee approved a billproviding a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants, while investing billions of dollars in new border security measures and overhauling the legal immigration system, Politico reported.

Three Democrats joined with 10 Republicans to approve the bill, setting up a Senate floor debate for early June, Politico reported.

The majority-Democrat House Judiciary Committee, meanwhile, was expected to vote Wednesday on legislation providing a pathway to citizenship for 1 million undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children and are protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program begun under the Obama administration, CNN reported.

The panel broke the legislation, popularly known as the “Dream and Promise Act,” into separate bills for consideration. Undocumented immigrants who are TPS beneficiaries are covered under that separate legislation, CNN also reported.

“Voters want solutions and not carnival barking and policies that separate families,” Immigration Hub Director Tyler Moran said in an email. “The Dream and Promise Act is just that. The bill protects over 1 million community members, colleagues and neighbors who are Dreamers and TPS holders from being deported from the only country that they know.”

The Pennsylvania survey, conducted on Immigration Hub’s behalf by the progressive-leaning Change Research, from May 5-9, sampled the opinions of 1,479 Pennsylvanians. The poll had a margin of error of 2.5 percent.

Mr. Allen comes to Harrisburg.

Washington journalist Mike Allen, a co-founder of the ur-site for politics junkies, Politico; creator of the daily, must-read ‘Playbook,’ and now the founding editor of Axios.com, was in Harrisburg on Wednesday night, where he was keynoting for the Hospital and Health System Association’s annual dinner.

The event took place at the Harrisburg Hilton.

In a 45-minute address to assembled industry types, Allen talked about President Donald Trump’s mastery of social media; his television addiction (he’s set up a viewing room off the Oval Office, horrifically and terribly, and (not to put too fine a point on it) misogynistically, formerly referred to as “The Monica Room;” the hollowing out of local news coverage; (don’t remind us) and the digital skills of the various Democratic presidential campaigns.

It will not surprise you to learn that Allen considers Pennsylvania kind of a big deal in the 2020 firmament.

Pennsylvania, he said, “is one of the most fascinating states. And we’ll be spending a lot of time here over the next two years.”

Our Stuff.
Stephen Caruso has a look at efforts to change so-called “prison gerrymandering,” or the practice of counting inmates where they’re incarcerated, instead of their hometowns, for redistricting purposes.

Elizabeth Hardison goes deep on a bill that would ease professional licensure requirements for returning inmates who want to find employment as barbers, cosmetologists, or any of the other scores of professions for which the state issues professional licenses.

Sarah Anne Hughes caught up with Gov. Tom Wolf and LG John Fetterman as they got hands-on training for the overdose-reversal drug Naloxone.

In this week’s edition of The Numbers Racket, we take a look at the big cities with the highest homicide rates, and tell you where Philadelphia and Pittsburgh fit into the picture.

On our Commentary Page, a University of Pittsburgh scholar explains why a new ‘adversity score’ isn’t going to make the SAT any better or less discriminatory. 

Elsewhere.
The Inquirer would like you to meet the new faces on Philadelphia City Council.
A new study says Harrisburg is a great place to live for new college graduates, PennLivereports.
The Post-Gazette has the tale of two upsets on the Pittsburgh and Allegheny County councils.
The Morning Call explains why Allentown’s mayoral hopefuls didn’t mobilize the support they needed to unseat incumbent Mayor Ray O’Connell.

Here’s your #Philadelphia Instagram of the Day:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxzV1h3jnzu/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

You’re going to see more community gardens blooming across Philadelphia this year, WHYY-FM reports.
Immigrant families are avoiding food stamps and other social safety net programs, WHYY-FM also reports.
Voter turnout ‘wowed’ Philly in Tuesday’s primary, BillyPenn reports.
The Incline has its ‘Big List of Winners’ in Tuesday’s primary election.
Public housing authorities are ‘reeling’ as HUD singles out immigrants, Stateline.org reports.
Politico goes inside the Dems’ ‘2020 survival strategy.’
Abortion rights groups have their 2020 list of targeted races, Roll Call reports.

What Goes On.
State Rep. Patty Kim, D-Dauphin, holds a working wage event at 2 p.m. at the Broad Street Market in Harrisburg.

WolfWatch.
Gov. Tom Wolf has no public schedule today.

You Say It’s Your Birthday Dept.
Have a birthday you want celebrated? Email us at [email protected].

Heavy Rotation.
Here’s a classic from Bloc Party, it’s ‘Banquet.’

Thursday’s Gratuitous Baseball Link.
New York beat Baltimore 7-5 on Wednesday. Sigh.

And now you’re up to date.