The Hill News

The following op-ed was written in response to a previous post, "The DREAM Act: Causing, not solving, a problem, by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas).

Following the events of last week, DREAM Act supporters have much to cheer. They can let out a sigh of relief and know that the fight for the DREAM Act is moving in the right direction.

On Tuesday morning, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley (D) signed the DREAM Act into state law, granting undocumented students equal opportunity to achieve higher education. This marked a historic event that will hopefully lead to more support for the cause. Stat! e DREAM Acts have been gaining momentum as state legislative chambers in Illinois, Connecticut and California have approved their respective bills.

Hours later, President Obama, during his speech on comprehensive immigration reform, announced his full support for passing the federal DREAM Act in Congress. He noted that undocumented immigrants are people who present an opportunity for future job creation in America. Some of our most successful companies, such as Intel, Google, Yahoo and eBay, were founded by immigrants.

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