Trump's art of the deal for dreamers Debt ceiling and now DACA. Do we dare hope Don, Chuck and Nancy will continue beautiful working friendship?: Our view

The Editorial Board | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Has President Trump reached a compromise with top Dems on DACA? The top House and Senate Democrats said Wednesday they had reached agreement with President Donald Trump to protect thousands of younger immigrants from deportation and fund some border security enhancements — not including Trump's border wall.

After seven months of catering to the Republican base, President Trump has started cutting deals with Democrats through his new pals, Sen. Charles Schumer and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, or as he calls them, "Chuck and Nancy."

The two Democratic leaders reached an agreement with Trump on the debt ceiling and hurricane relief last week. Now they appear close to a deal on the so-called DACA program, which protects from deportation nearly 800,000 immigrants brought illegally to America as kids.

It is not certain the arrangement discussed at the White House on Wednesday night will hold up. Already, it has sparked a fierce backlash from conservatives, as well as opposition from the far left, where anything other than resistance to Trump is considered treasonous. But assuming a deal gets done, it will provide something for both sides.

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Trump and fellow Republicans would get more border-security money (though no wall) and escape from the corner they have put themselves in by threatening to deport U.S.-educated, well-integrated residents who have the overwhelming support of Americans.

Democrats would see a practical and merciful Obama-era policy codified into law, despite the Trump administration's recent moves to rescind the DACA program. Most important, the "dreamers" would no longer have to worry about being exiled to countries that they might have few connections to.

The deal has wider implications as well; namely, if Democrats and Republicans can agree on DACA, they can do so on other matters. These sorts of bipartisan compromises represent how Washington is supposed to work but too rarely does.

Several important issues have been bottled up by partisan politics, though they have widespread popular support, and possibly even majorities within Congress willing to back them.

The most obvious is a simplification of America's unwieldy tax code. A plan could advance now if both parties were to gang up on the special interests.

Improving and expanding America’s crumbling infrastructure is another area ripe for a deal, and perhaps should have been Trump’s first order of business after taking office. States have been able to fund road and transit improvements with higher taxes, often on gasoline. But at the federal level, Congress refuses even to adjust the 18.4-cent-a-gallon tax for inflation, thanks to purity enforcement groups that have gotten members to forswear any and all tax hikes.

The most intriguing idea for compromise is a comprehensive reform of the immigration system that goes well beyond DACA. In 2013, the Senate passed such a measure with a bipartisan supermajority. The measure, which would have blended enhanced enforcement with a path to legality for millions of undocumented workers, would have passed the House as well, but for a strident minority that kept it from coming to a vote.

Why Trump, who rode anti-immigrant rhetoric to the White House, is suddenly cutting deals is anyone’s guess. The best is that it is a natural outgrowth of his failures in trying to legislate strictly along party lines by working with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan. Also in question is how far Trump can go in bucking the GOP’s base, and how far Schumer and Pelosi can go with Democrats.

But Don and Chuck and Nancy and Mitch and Paul have the opportunity to open some doors that have been shut for a long time. It is time to go through them.

USA TODAY's editorial opinions are decided by its Editorial Board, separate from the news staff. Most editorials are coupled with an opposing view — a unique USA TODAY feature.

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