DACA youths rely on dealmaker Trump
Suddenly, in Washington deal-making is busting out all over, most significantly between President Donald Trump and his new BFPNFs -- Best Friends, Probably Not Forever -- in Democratic leadership.
Suddenly, in President Trump's telling, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are jolly "Chuck" from Brooklyn and "Nancy" from San Francisco, not "clown" and "incompetent," their earlier tags in Trumpspeak.
Suddenly, Trump was on his phone Thursday morning, calling the two Democratic leaders to gush about the televised news reactions to the fiscal deal he reached with Chuck and Nancy, much to the consternation of Trump's Republican allies who were blindsided by the deal.
"The press has been incredible," Trump told Pelosi, according to an unnamed source quoted by the New York Times. Even Fox News was positive, Trump gushed to Schumer, according to the Times.
That sounds like our reality TV president. For all the rhetorical shots he takes at "lying media" and "dishonest press," the former host of "The Apprentice" still yearns for favorable reviews.
Later in the day, Trump was spreading his joy on TV himself, vowing to cut more deals in a bipartisan way, harvesting votes on the Democratic side when he can't get a win from the Grand Old Party's votes alone.
Suddenly, a day after announcing he would rescind President Barack Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which shields from deportation undocumented immigrants who came to this country as minors, Trump was hinting at more deals. He could work to turn DACA into permanent law in exchange for something Trump wants -- like, perhaps, Democratic support for his proposed "beautiful wall" on the Mexican border.
"Congress now has 6 months to legalize DACA (something the Obama Administration was unable to do)," Trump tweeted. "If they can't, I will revisit this issue!"
And, suddenly, while many wondered what that "revisit" will mean, Trump basked in admiration of his statesmanlike pose. Still, Pelosi urged Trump to tweet reassurance to the nearly 800,000 young undocumented immigrants who received work permits and other protections under DACA.
And Trump did. "For all of those (DACA) that are concerned about your status during the 6 month period," he tweeted early Thursday, "you have nothing to worry about -- No action!"
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