DHS/DREAMERS/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security offered a degree of assurance to Senate Democrats critical of the administration’s tough immigration enforcement agenda during a confirmation hearing Wednesday [11-8-17].
Kirstjen Nielsen told members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee she would prioritize the arrest of undocumented immigrants who have committed crimes, and said contact information about so-called Dreamers—young people brought to the U.S. illegally as children—whose protections from deportation are set to expire won’t be shared routinely with immigration enforcement officers.
Ms. Nielsen also said she doesn’t favor the construction of a wall along the entire southern border, echoing recent statements by administration officials and by Mr. Trump himself, whose call for a border-length barrier had been a staple of his presidential campaign…
If confirmed, Ms. Nielsen, 45 years old, would be the sixth secretary of Homeland Security and would enter the job with by far the lowest profile. An expert in cybersecurity, she was chief of staff at the department under former Secretary John Kelly earlier this year. She followed him to the White House when he was named chief of staff and serves as principal deputy chief of staff there.
Members of the committee didn’t say how they would vote, but it didn’t appear that her nomination, which needs 51 yes votes in the Senate, was in any jeopardy. A committee vote is scheduled for Thursday.”
-Laura Meckler, “Homeland Security Nominee Says ‘Dreamers’ Won’t be Targeted for Deportation,” The Wall Street Journal online, Nov. 8, 2017 08:16pm