<p>Multiple reports are claiming that President Trump said he would consider a pathway to citizenship for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program.</p>
<p>Such a pathway ;would ;be open to Dreamers with no criminal record, and would take place over a period of 10-12 years.</p>
<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to morph into it. It&rsquo;s going to happen at some point in the future over a period of 10 to 12 years,&rdquo; Trump told reporters. &ldquo;If they do a great job, I think it&rsquo;s a nice thing to have incentive of, after a period of years being able to become a citizen.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>These comments came as Trump dropped in unannounced during a briefing about the Administration&rsquo;s agenda on immigration &#8211; and just before Trump departed for a trip to Davos, Switzerland.</p>
<p>Trump&rsquo;s suggestions about citizenship contradict his Justice Department and Homeland Security secretaries, who have told Congress that the DACA program is illegal and cannot be maintained or extended. A reveal of the Administration&rsquo;s agenda on immigration was moved from Monday to Thursday to give aides time to reconcile their plans with Trump&rsquo;s comments.</p>
<p>This gesture of sympathy towards Dreamers is somewhat at odds with Trump&#8217;s hardline demands for a crackdown on illegal immigration. ;</p>
<p>Just this week, the Justice Department sent a threatening letter to 23 jurisdictions believed to be violating a federal law that requires communication between local police and immigration authorities. Jurisdictions that fail to prove they are not violating the law ;risk losing federal grants. ;</p>
<p>A handful of Democratic mayors protested the letter by declining an invitation to the White House. ;</p>
<p>&ldquo;The mayors who choose to boycott this event have put the needs of criminal, illegal immigrants over law-abiding America,&rdquo; said Trump just hours before his comments about a potential pathway to citizenship for DACA recipients. ; ;</p>
<p>&#8212;</p>
<p>When Trump ended DACA in September, he left it to Congress to come up with a solution that ;could allow Dreamers to live and work in the US legally.</p>
<p>The phaseout is scheduled to begin on March 5th. When asked if he would consider extending the deadline, Trump said, &ldquo;Yeah I might do that. I&rsquo;m not guaranteeing it.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>Democrats and Republicans are struggling to find a compromise that will also satisfy Trump, who is pushing them to include $30 billion for additional border security.</p>
<p>Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is hopeful that Trump&#8217;s newfound support for a pathway to citizenship could help Congress reach a deal. &ldquo;Finally, with this statement we are on track to solving the immigration problem, which is the political key to rebuilding our military.&#8221;</p>