Eliza Collins

USA TODAY

President Trump is weighing whether to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program put in place under President Obama, which protects nearly 800,000 young people from deportation. But Republican lawmakers are urging him to leave the order in place and let Congress handle it.

“I actually don’t think he should do that. And I believe that this is something Congress has to fix,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., told WCLO, a local radio station.

In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorial board Friday afternoon, Ryan said he didn't agree with Obama's decision, but now "a lot of these kids don’t know any other home but this country, so I think it’s something that Congress needs to get on top of and fix.”

“I think there’s a way to do this humanely," Ryan continued. “They were brought here through no fault of their own; this is what they know, and so I think there is a way to fix this and I believe the president agrees with that.”

Nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children — called DREAMers —were given temporary protection from deportation in an executive order issued by Obama. Critics have accused Obama of overstepping his power by issuing the order since laws should be made by Congress, but the issue is complicated. Many people also feel it would be difficult to kick out the program’s recipients who have given their information to be part of the system.

Trump, who campaigned on the promise to end the program, has expressed sympathy for DREAMers since he took office. On Friday, when reporters at the White House asked whether DREAMers should be worried, Trump responded: “We love the DREAMERs. We love everybody ... we think the DREAMERs are terrific."

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters a decision would be coming Tuesday.

"He loves people and wants to make sure this decision is made correctly," she said.

“I’ve urged the President not to rescind DACA, an action that would further complicate a system in serious need of a permanent, legislative solution,” Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, a member of GOP leadership, said in a statement posted Friday on Twitter. “Like the president. I’ve long advocated for tougher enforcement of our existing immigration laws. But we also need a workable, permanent solution for individuals who entered our country unlawfully as children through no fault of their own and who have built their lives here. And that solution must come from Congress.”

Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake, who has been a frequent Trump critic, called for "immediate action."

Colorado Republican Rep. Mike Coffman announced Thursday that he would use a special procedure to try to force a vote on bipartisan legislation — called the Bridge Act — that would essentially extend the program for three years. A companion bill has also been introduced in the Senate.

Another bill that would deal with DREAMers has been introduced in the House by a Rep. Carlos Curbelo of Florida and other Republicans. A companion bill is being drafted in the Senate by Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, according to his spokesman Daniel Keylin. That bill would extend protections on a provisional basis for up to 10 years, but then DREAMers could apply for permanent legal status.

A group of GOP lawmakers sent a letter Friday afternoon urging Ryan to take action.

“We did not support the way that President Obama established this program and usurped Congressional law making authority," the letter reads. "However, these individuals have come forward and provided the federal government with their personal information and biometrics. It would be wrong to go back on our word and subject these individuals to deportation.”

Greisa Martinez, advocacy director for the United We Dream Network, a group made up of DACA enrollees, said the majority of Americans support DACA and will be watching closely to see how their members of Congress respond to Trump’s threats against the program.

“You’re either opposed to the drive to kill the DACA program publicly, or you are complicit in our suffering,” said Martinez, a DACA enrollee herself. “When you’re confronting white supremacy, silence is consent.”

Contributing: Gregory Korte and Alan Gomez

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