I am writing to thank U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, R-4th Dist., for voting recently to pass the Dream and Promise Act, which would return unauthorized young immigrants covered by Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals to the non-deportation status they had under President Barack Obama.
Smith is just one of nine Republicans nationally to vote for the Democrat-sponsored bill, which passed 227-197. Smith’s vote shows that not everything has to be so partisan these days.
More than 200,000 DACA recipients work in essential industries and are on the frontlines in hospitals, shops and grocery stores and behind the scenes in industries like food service and logistics that all of us — including myself — depend on each day. They have been vital to our nation’s continued public health response and economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, and I believe our laws should reflect that.
The Dream Act would protect “dreamers” like me, people who have lived and worked in the United States for an average of two decades. It awaits Senate action. Congress should do its job and get this done.
It’s vital that the Senate, including Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker, both D-N.J., follow the House’s lead and pass this important law.
Pamela Chomba, Newark
Fix gun background-check system now
How many times does this country have to hear about and grieve mass shootings without any change coming? Roughly 100 Americans die every day from gunfire. The vast majority of mass shootings, when defined as incidents when four or more people or shot, are domestic violence.
By this definition, America has had up to 106 mass shootings this year. The majority don’t make the papers. This is a uniquely American crisis.
The Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021 (HR-8) passed the U.S. House earlier this month. Improving this system has a 77% approval rating in some national polls. This is not about confiscation. It is not about the myth that “registration leads to confiscation.” Gun-law opponents have been pushing this myth for years, but nobody has come for law-abiding owners’ weapons.
This is about the reality that our background check system is outdated, overwhelmed and in desperate need of updates. Both sides of the aisle should be able to agree that they need to do more to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people. In Boulder, Colorado, the National Rifle Association recently won a court battle to block a city ban on “assault” rifles and, 10 days later, 10 people were killed by a gunman who used one.
The victims in Boulder and Atlanta are only a fraction of those who have lost their lives to guns since these incidents occurred. Take the power away from the gun lobby and put it back in the hands of the people who put lawmakers in their seats.
Brett Sabo, Red Bank
Note: The writer is NJ City Gun Violence Lead for the organization Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.
May the best qualified get the nod
President Joe Biden has repeatedly mentioned that his first nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court, should a vacancy occur, will be a Black woman.
In the words, surprisingly, of (liberal comedian) Bill Maher, “…people don’t want to be given a job because they filled the quota, they want to be hired because they are good … .”
Biden should pick the most qualified judge for this distinguished position regardless of race. If, in fact, his nominee is a Black woman and she is truly the most qualified candidate, then, by all means she should be nominated.
Greg McLaughlin, Belle Mead
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