WEBVTT 00:02.100 --> 00:04.700 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JUDY WOODRUFF: We turn back now to immigration and the issue of undocumented immigrants serving 00:04.700 --> 00:06.633 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% in the U.S. military. 00:06.633 --> 00:09.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% For that, I'm joined by our White House correspondent, Yamiche Alcindor. 00:09.833 --> 00:14.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% So, Yamiche, we learned late Thursday about a decision by the U.S. military to discharge 00:15.600 --> 00:17.133 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% some of their recruits. 00:17.133 --> 00:19.733 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% Tell us about that. 00:19.733 --> 00:22.433 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Well, what we know is that the United States Army has been secretly discharging 00:22.433 --> 00:26.633 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% or quietly discharging a number of immigrant recruits, according to recent reports by the 00:26.633 --> 00:29.566 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% Associated Press, and our own reporting here at "NewsHour." 00:29.566 --> 00:34.000 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% The Associated Press is reporting that these are immigrants who joined the Army Reserves 00:34.000 --> 00:38.100 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% or the Army and were told that they could have a path toward citizenship if they were 00:38.100 --> 00:39.666 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% enlisted. 00:39.666 --> 00:41.800 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% They did that, but now they are being told that they have to go. 00:41.800 --> 00:46.433 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% The AP is reporting that there are about 40 people who are impacted by this. 00:46.433 --> 00:50.866 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% An immigration attorney that we talked here to at "NewsHour" said that she heard from 00:50.866 --> 00:53.366 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% dozens of people who are impacted by this. 00:53.366 --> 00:57.200 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% These immigrants are being told either nothing about why this is happening or they're being 00:57.200 --> 01:01.166 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% told that they are security risks because they have family abroad or because the Department 01:01.166 --> 01:04.600 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% of Defense could not complete their background check. 01:04.600 --> 01:09.600 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% We talked to someone who was a former senior Department of Defense person -- official who 01:11.500 --> 01:14.266 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% said that the government essentially wants to fast-track these people and wants to take 01:14.266 --> 01:18.066 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% a quick path, not a correct path, and that, if they were given the additional time, they 01:18.066 --> 01:20.066 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% could do that. 01:20.066 --> 01:22.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% The Pentagon and Army aren't commenting because of a lawsuit that is pending. 01:22.233 --> 01:26.800 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% In the meantime, I traveled to Salina, Kansas, to report about another group of young immigrant 01:26.800 --> 01:29.933 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% recruits in limbo. 01:29.933 --> 01:34.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% John Candido proudly wears his Army T-shirt, a gift from military recruiters who hope he 01:35.800 --> 01:37.900 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% might one day join their ranks. 01:37.900 --> 01:38.833 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% JOHN CANDIDO, DACA Recipient/Army Enlistee: I have always wanted to enlist in the military. 01:38.833 --> 01:41.000 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% It's just always been a dream. 01:41.000 --> 01:44.566 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: But his dream has been delayed for three years and counting. 01:44.566 --> 01:47.200 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% John is a so-called dreamer and a recipient of DACA. 01:47.200 --> 01:52.166 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% That's the Obama era effort to protect young undocumented immigrants brought to the country 01:52.900 --> 01:54.166 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% as children. 01:54.166 --> 01:57.566 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% That program is caught in political limbo. 01:57.566 --> 02:02.533 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% From 2014 to 2016, DACA recipients could earn a path to citizenship by enlisting in the 02:04.166 --> 02:08.533 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% military and completing basic training through a program called MAVNI. 02:08.533 --> 02:12.233 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% That stands for Military Accessions Vital to National Interest. 02:12.233 --> 02:17.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% But, by 2016, the military had identified security threats within the program. 02:19.733 --> 02:22.900 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% In response, they stopped accepting new recruits, and those already enlisted, like John, were 02:23.966 --> 02:24.733 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% subjected to increased, lengthy vetting. 02:24.733 --> 02:26.833 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% The result? 02:26.833 --> 02:28.100 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% He might be waiting indefinitely. 02:28.100 --> 02:30.133 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% JOHN CANDIDO: My whole life is just limbo. 02:30.133 --> 02:33.766 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And it's just kind of, you're on an island by yourself waiting, while the rest of the 02:33.766 --> 02:35.733 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% world is just going on. 02:35.733 --> 02:39.433 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TODD WEILER, Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense: That's my big concern, is that 02:39.433 --> 02:41.566 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% we're throwing the baby out with the bathwater. 02:41.566 --> 02:45.433 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Army veteran Todd Weiler oversaw troop recruitment for the Department 02:45.433 --> 02:48.233 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% of Defense during the Obama and Clinton administrations. 02:48.233 --> 02:53.200 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% TODD WEILER, There are some legitimate security concerns that need to be addressed, but to 02:55.166 --> 02:58.466 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% lump the DACA recipients in with folks from Iran or Iraq that you may have concerns about, 03:04.633 --> 03:06.700 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% it just doesn't make sense to me. 03:06.700 --> 03:11.600 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: MAVNI started under President George W. Bush as a way to recruit immigrants 03:13.000 --> 03:15.066 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% with much-needed foreign language or medical skills. 03:15.066 --> 03:19.633 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% In 2014, President Obama opened the program up to DACA recipients, promising them a path 03:20.266 --> 03:21.900 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% to citizenship. 03:21.900 --> 03:24.100 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% Do you think the country is now breaking a promise it made to you? 03:24.100 --> 03:26.133 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% JOHN CANDIDO: Oh, absolutely. 03:26.133 --> 03:29.566 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I know if I had a contract with the government and then I backed out, or I kept giving them 03:29.566 --> 03:32.733 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% infinite deadlines, that probably wouldn't go very well. 03:32.733 --> 03:34.733 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% You know, I swore in. 03:34.733 --> 03:35.733 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% I did the paperwork. 03:35.733 --> 03:36.733 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% I did everything. 03:36.733 --> 03:37.733 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% I signed on the dotted line. 03:37.733 --> 03:39.400 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% I held up my end of the deal. 03:39.400 --> 03:41.433 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% But the government's just like void. 03:41.433 --> 03:46.033 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: About 900 DACA recipients are currently serving in the military or have 03:47.500 --> 03:49.533 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% signed contracts to serve, according to the Pentagon. 03:49.533 --> 03:53.633 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Immigration lawyers told the "NewsHour" around 300 are still waiting to ship off to basic 03:53.633 --> 03:55.166 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% training. 03:55.166 --> 03:57.566 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% Weiler fears that these men and women are now vulnerable. 03:57.566 --> 04:00.200 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TODD WEILER: They came out of the shadows. 04:00.200 --> 04:02.866 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% They signed up for the military. 04:02.866 --> 04:07.866 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% If we're not going to honor that contract, then we need to figure out how we're going 04:09.800 --> 04:14.400 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% to separate with these folks, and in a way that doesn't flag them for deportation. 04:16.400 --> 04:19.033 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: Our military is very depleted, but it's rapidly 04:19.033 --> 04:21.066 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% getting better. 04:21.066 --> 04:23.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And in a short period of time, it will be stronger than it has ever been. 04:23.833 --> 04:26.200 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Another frustration for John? 04:26.200 --> 04:28.266 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% Reports of troop shortages across the military. 04:28.266 --> 04:33.033 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JOHN CANDIDO: They're like, oh, we're having crazy shortages for pilots, medics, and they're 04:35.000 --> 04:37.566 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% issuing out waivers, because more waivers where people have smoked marijuana before. 04:37.566 --> 04:39.066 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% They have criminal records. 04:39.066 --> 04:41.400 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% I'm like, I have none of those things. 04:41.400 --> 04:43.400 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% Can I please just enlist? 04:43.400 --> 04:46.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: John's family came to the United States from Brazil on a tourist visa 04:46.933 --> 04:48.400 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% when he was 8. 04:48.400 --> 04:51.600 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% That visa eventually expired, but his family never left. 04:51.600 --> 04:56.600 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% John, who is 28 now, only learned he was undocumented eight years ago, when he married his wife, 04:57.266 --> 04:58.733 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% Jordan (ph). 04:58.733 --> 05:00.866 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% JOHN CANDIDO: You thought you were home your whole life. 05:00.866 --> 05:02.966 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And then, like, somebody turned the light on, and you're not in your house. 05:02.966 --> 05:05.766 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: He had hoped that, by promising to serve, he could finally make up for being 05:05.766 --> 05:07.600 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% in the country illegally. 05:07.600 --> 05:08.866 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% The day he enlisted was emotional. 05:08.866 --> 05:10.066 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% JOHN CANDIDO: I swore in. 05:10.066 --> 05:13.033 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% I cried there. 05:13.033 --> 05:17.100 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I didn't even cry on my daughter's birth, which is bad, but, you know, it was rolling 05:17.100 --> 05:19.133 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% down my face. 05:19.133 --> 05:21.766 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: John, who currently installs phone lines, sees the military as a way to 05:21.766 --> 05:23.833 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% a better life. 05:23.833 --> 05:28.166 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% But Congressman Steve Russell, a Republican from Oklahoma and a retired Army lieutenant 05:28.166 --> 05:32.166 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% colonel, says military service shouldn't be used to resolve immigration problems. 05:32.166 --> 05:34.233 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% REP. 05:34.233 --> 05:36.266 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% STEVE RUSSELL (R), Oklahoma: I don't have any issue with serving alongside immigrants. 05:36.266 --> 05:40.000 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% My goodness, if that were the case in the military, then I probably never could have 05:40.000 --> 05:42.133 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% served a day. 05:42.133 --> 05:46.066 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% But, nevertheless, we don't need to change what the good policies are to accommodate 05:48.000 --> 05:50.033 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% somebody's agenda or somebody's scenario. 05:50.033 --> 05:54.366 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Russell thinks DACA recipients should have to become permanent residents 05:54.366 --> 05:56.833 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% prior to serving in the military. 05:56.833 --> 06:01.366 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% He supports a proposal by President Trump to create an eventual path to citizenship 06:01.366 --> 06:06.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% for dreamers, in exchange for funding a wall on the southern border and curbing other types 06:06.233 --> 06:07.233 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% of legal immigration. 06:07.233 --> 06:09.300 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% REP. 06:09.300 --> 06:11.133 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% STEVE RUSSELL: We see a lot of unfortunate stories with those in a DACA status. 06:11.133 --> 06:13.700 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% That is why I think we need to resolve it. 06:13.700 --> 06:18.700 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I think President Trump, honestly, had probably the best deal laid on the table early on. 06:20.100 --> 06:21.600 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: John also backs the president. 06:21.600 --> 06:25.233 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% He blames Congress, not Mr. Trump, for his uncertain status. 06:25.233 --> 06:28.600 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JOHN CANDIDO: I honestly feel like Trump is doing his best, the administration is doing 06:28.600 --> 06:31.133 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% its best. 06:31.133 --> 06:33.433 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: He is desperate for a final decision, even if it means returning to Brazil. 06:33.433 --> 06:35.933 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% So, deportation is better than limbo for you? 06:35.933 --> 06:36.933 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% JOHN CANDIDO: Yes. 06:36.933 --> 06:38.200 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% At least it's an answer. 06:38.200 --> 06:40.800 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% At least it's a no, instead of a maybe. 06:40.800 --> 06:43.000 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% I would prefer no deportation. 06:43.000 --> 06:47.900 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% I would prefer to enlist and go to basic and show how American I am. 06:47.900 --> 06:49.833 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% And, you know, I really want to be here. 06:49.833 --> 06:52.200 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% But it's just at least -- at least it's an answer. 06:52.200 --> 06:57.200 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% YAMICHE ALCINDOR: For now, John Candido continues to wait, until a policy change from Washington 06:58.600 --> 07:00.966 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% or a go-ahead from the military decides his fate. 07:00.966 --> 07:04.833 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Yamiche Alcindor in Salina, Kansas.