DREAMing of Economic Growth SOURCE: AP/Ross D. Franklin During
an election year dominated by concerns about our economy,
policymakers and voters easily draw connections between domestic
issues, such as education, Medicare, or tax policies, and the
health of our economy. But so far public discourse hasn’t
connected the dots between immigration policies and the economy.
There is no clearer example of how sensible immigration policies
would lead to significant economic gains than the DREAM Act. The
DREAM Act proposes to create a roadmap to citizenship for
immigrants who came to the United States as children and aspire
to be citizens but lack documentation. To qualify for
citizenship under the DREAM Act, these immigrants must have been
in the United States for more than five years and must have
arrived before the age of 16. They must also meet a set of
specific requirements, including finishing high school and
completing at least two years of either college or military
service. A report released last week by the