1 00:00:02,100 --> 00:00:04,700 JUDY WOODRUFF: We turn back now to immigration and the issue of undocumented immigrants serving 2 00:00:04,700 --> 00:00:06,633 in the U.S. military. 3 00:00:06,633 --> 00:00:09,833 For that, I'm joined by our White House correspondent, Yamiche Alcindor. 4 00:00:09,833 --> 00:00:14,833 So, Yamiche, we learned late Thursday about a decision by the U.S. military to discharge 5 00:00:15,600 --> 00:00:17,133 some of their recruits. 6 00:00:17,133 --> 00:00:19,733 Tell us about that. 7 00:00:19,733 --> 00:00:22,433 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Well, what we know is that the United States Army has been secretly discharging 8 00:00:22,433 --> 00:00:26,633 or quietly discharging a number of immigrant recruits, according to recent reports by the 9 00:00:26,633 --> 00:00:29,566 Associated Press, and our own reporting here at "NewsHour." 10 00:00:29,566 --> 00:00:34,000 The Associated Press is reporting that these are immigrants who joined the Army Reserves 11 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:38,100 or the Army and were told that they could have a path toward citizenship if they were 12 00:00:38,100 --> 00:00:39,666 enlisted. 13 00:00:39,666 --> 00:00:41,800 They did that, but now they are being told that they have to go. 14 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:46,433 The AP is reporting that there are about 40 people who are impacted by this. 15 00:00:46,433 --> 00:00:50,866 An immigration attorney that we talked here to at "NewsHour" said that she heard from 16 00:00:50,866 --> 00:00:53,366 dozens of people who are impacted by this. 17 00:00:53,366 --> 00:00:57,200 These immigrants are being told either nothing about why this is happening or they're being 18 00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:01,166 told that they are security risks because they have family abroad or because the Department 19 00:01:01,166 --> 00:01:04,600 of Defense could not complete their background check. 20 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:09,600 We talked to someone who was a former senior Department of Defense person -- official who 21 00:01:11,500 --> 00:01:14,266 said that the government essentially wants to fast-track these people and wants to take 22 00:01:14,266 --> 00:01:18,066 a quick path, not a correct path, and that, if they were given the additional time, they 23 00:01:18,066 --> 00:01:20,066 could do that. 24 00:01:20,066 --> 00:01:22,233 The Pentagon and Army aren't commenting because of a lawsuit that is pending. 25 00:01:22,233 --> 00:01:26,800 In the meantime, I traveled to Salina, Kansas, to report about another group of young immigrant 26 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:29,933 recruits in limbo. 27 00:01:29,933 --> 00:01:34,933 John Candido proudly wears his Army T-shirt, a gift from military recruiters who hope he 28 00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:37,900 might one day join their ranks. 29 00:01:37,900 --> 00:01:38,833 JOHN CANDIDO, DACA Recipient/Army Enlistee: I have always wanted to enlist in the military. 30 00:01:38,833 --> 00:01:41,000 It's just always been a dream. 31 00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:44,566 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: But his dream has been delayed for three years and counting. 32 00:01:44,566 --> 00:01:47,200 John is a so-called dreamer and a recipient of DACA. 33 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:52,166 That's the Obama era effort to protect young undocumented immigrants brought to the country 34 00:01:52,900 --> 00:01:54,166 as children. 35 00:01:54,166 --> 00:01:57,566 That program is caught in political limbo. 36 00:01:57,566 --> 00:02:02,533 From 2014 to 2016, DACA recipients could earn a path to citizenship by enlisting in the 37 00:02:04,166 --> 00:02:08,533 military and completing basic training through a program called MAVNI. 38 00:02:08,533 --> 00:02:12,233 That stands for Military Accessions Vital to National Interest. 39 00:02:12,233 --> 00:02:17,233 But, by 2016, the military had identified security threats within the program. 40 00:02:19,733 --> 00:02:22,900 In response, they stopped accepting new recruits, and those already enlisted, like John, were 41 00:02:23,966 --> 00:02:24,733 subjected to increased, lengthy vetting. 42 00:02:24,733 --> 00:02:26,833 The result? 43 00:02:26,833 --> 00:02:28,100 He might be waiting indefinitely. 44 00:02:28,100 --> 00:02:30,133 JOHN CANDIDO: My whole life is just limbo. 45 00:02:30,133 --> 00:02:33,766 And it's just kind of, you're on an island by yourself waiting, while the rest of the 46 00:02:33,766 --> 00:02:35,733 world is just going on. 47 00:02:35,733 --> 00:02:39,433 TODD WEILER, Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense: That's my big concern, is that 48 00:02:39,433 --> 00:02:41,566 we're throwing the baby out with the bathwater. 49 00:02:41,566 --> 00:02:45,433 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Army veteran Todd Weiler oversaw troop recruitment for the Department 50 00:02:45,433 --> 00:02:48,233 of Defense during the Obama and Clinton administrations. 51 00:02:48,233 --> 00:02:53,200 TODD WEILER, There are some legitimate security concerns that need to be addressed, but to 52 00:02:55,166 --> 00:02:58,466 lump the DACA recipients in with folks from Iran or Iraq that you may have concerns about, 53 00:03:04,633 --> 00:03:06,700 it just doesn't make sense to me. 54 00:03:06,700 --> 00:03:11,600 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: MAVNI started under President George W. Bush as a way to recruit immigrants 55 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:15,066 with much-needed foreign language or medical skills. 56 00:03:15,066 --> 00:03:19,633 In 2014, President Obama opened the program up to DACA recipients, promising them a path 57 00:03:20,266 --> 00:03:21,900 to citizenship. 58 00:03:21,900 --> 00:03:24,100 Do you think the country is now breaking a promise it made to you? 59 00:03:24,100 --> 00:03:26,133 JOHN CANDIDO: Oh, absolutely. 60 00:03:26,133 --> 00:03:29,566 I know if I had a contract with the government and then I backed out, or I kept giving them 61 00:03:29,566 --> 00:03:32,733 infinite deadlines, that probably wouldn't go very well. 62 00:03:32,733 --> 00:03:34,733 You know, I swore in. 63 00:03:34,733 --> 00:03:35,733 I did the paperwork. 64 00:03:35,733 --> 00:03:36,733 I did everything. 65 00:03:36,733 --> 00:03:37,733 I signed on the dotted line. 66 00:03:37,733 --> 00:03:39,400 I held up my end of the deal. 67 00:03:39,400 --> 00:03:41,433 But the government's just like void. 68 00:03:41,433 --> 00:03:46,033 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: About 900 DACA recipients are currently serving in the military or have 69 00:03:47,500 --> 00:03:49,533 signed contracts to serve, according to the Pentagon. 70 00:03:49,533 --> 00:03:53,633 Immigration lawyers told the "NewsHour" around 300 are still waiting to ship off to basic 71 00:03:53,633 --> 00:03:55,166 training. 72 00:03:55,166 --> 00:03:57,566 Weiler fears that these men and women are now vulnerable. 73 00:03:57,566 --> 00:04:00,200 TODD WEILER: They came out of the shadows. 74 00:04:00,200 --> 00:04:02,866 They signed up for the military. 75 00:04:02,866 --> 00:04:07,866 If we're not going to honor that contract, then we need to figure out how we're going 76 00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:14,400 to separate with these folks, and in a way that doesn't flag them for deportation. 77 00:04:16,400 --> 00:04:19,033 DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: Our military is very depleted, but it's rapidly 78 00:04:19,033 --> 00:04:21,066 getting better. 79 00:04:21,066 --> 00:04:23,833 And in a short period of time, it will be stronger than it has ever been. 80 00:04:23,833 --> 00:04:26,200 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Another frustration for John? 81 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:28,266 Reports of troop shortages across the military. 82 00:04:28,266 --> 00:04:33,033 JOHN CANDIDO: They're like, oh, we're having crazy shortages for pilots, medics, and they're 83 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:37,566 issuing out waivers, because more waivers where people have smoked marijuana before. 84 00:04:37,566 --> 00:04:39,066 They have criminal records. 85 00:04:39,066 --> 00:04:41,400 I'm like, I have none of those things. 86 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:43,400 Can I please just enlist? 87 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:46,933 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: John's family came to the United States from Brazil on a tourist visa 88 00:04:46,933 --> 00:04:48,400 when he was 8. 89 00:04:48,400 --> 00:04:51,600 That visa eventually expired, but his family never left. 90 00:04:51,600 --> 00:04:56,600 John, who is 28 now, only learned he was undocumented eight years ago, when he married his wife, 91 00:04:57,266 --> 00:04:58,733 Jordan (ph). 92 00:04:58,733 --> 00:05:00,866 JOHN CANDIDO: You thought you were home your whole life. 93 00:05:00,866 --> 00:05:02,966 And then, like, somebody turned the light on, and you're not in your house. 94 00:05:02,966 --> 00:05:05,766 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: He had hoped that, by promising to serve, he could finally make up for being 95 00:05:05,766 --> 00:05:07,600 in the country illegally. 96 00:05:07,600 --> 00:05:08,866 The day he enlisted was emotional. 97 00:05:08,866 --> 00:05:10,066 JOHN CANDIDO: I swore in. 98 00:05:10,066 --> 00:05:13,033 I cried there. 99 00:05:13,033 --> 00:05:17,100 I didn't even cry on my daughter's birth, which is bad, but, you know, it was rolling 100 00:05:17,100 --> 00:05:19,133 down my face. 101 00:05:19,133 --> 00:05:21,766 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: John, who currently installs phone lines, sees the military as a way to 102 00:05:21,766 --> 00:05:23,833 a better life. 103 00:05:23,833 --> 00:05:28,166 But Congressman Steve Russell, a Republican from Oklahoma and a retired Army lieutenant 104 00:05:28,166 --> 00:05:32,166 colonel, says military service shouldn't be used to resolve immigration problems. 105 00:05:32,166 --> 00:05:34,233 REP. 106 00:05:34,233 --> 00:05:36,266 STEVE RUSSELL (R), Oklahoma: I don't have any issue with serving alongside immigrants. 107 00:05:36,266 --> 00:05:40,000 My goodness, if that were the case in the military, then I probably never could have 108 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:42,133 served a day. 109 00:05:42,133 --> 00:05:46,066 But, nevertheless, we don't need to change what the good policies are to accommodate 110 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:50,033 somebody's agenda or somebody's scenario. 111 00:05:50,033 --> 00:05:54,366 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Russell thinks DACA recipients should have to become permanent residents 112 00:05:54,366 --> 00:05:56,833 prior to serving in the military. 113 00:05:56,833 --> 00:06:01,366 He supports a proposal by President Trump to create an eventual path to citizenship 114 00:06:01,366 --> 00:06:06,233 for dreamers, in exchange for funding a wall on the southern border and curbing other types 115 00:06:06,233 --> 00:06:07,233 of legal immigration. 116 00:06:07,233 --> 00:06:09,300 REP. 117 00:06:09,300 --> 00:06:11,133 STEVE RUSSELL: We see a lot of unfortunate stories with those in a DACA status. 118 00:06:11,133 --> 00:06:13,700 That is why I think we need to resolve it. 119 00:06:13,700 --> 00:06:18,700 I think President Trump, honestly, had probably the best deal laid on the table early on. 120 00:06:20,100 --> 00:06:21,600 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: John also backs the president. 121 00:06:21,600 --> 00:06:25,233 He blames Congress, not Mr. Trump, for his uncertain status. 122 00:06:25,233 --> 00:06:28,600 JOHN CANDIDO: I honestly feel like Trump is doing his best, the administration is doing 123 00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:31,133 its best. 124 00:06:31,133 --> 00:06:33,433 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: He is desperate for a final decision, even if it means returning to Brazil. 125 00:06:33,433 --> 00:06:35,933 So, deportation is better than limbo for you? 126 00:06:35,933 --> 00:06:36,933 JOHN CANDIDO: Yes. 127 00:06:36,933 --> 00:06:38,200 At least it's an answer. 128 00:06:38,200 --> 00:06:40,800 At least it's a no, instead of a maybe. 129 00:06:40,800 --> 00:06:43,000 I would prefer no deportation. 130 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:47,900 I would prefer to enlist and go to basic and show how American I am. 131 00:06:47,900 --> 00:06:49,833 And, you know, I really want to be here. 132 00:06:49,833 --> 00:06:52,200 But it's just at least -- at least it's an answer. 133 00:06:52,200 --> 00:06:57,200 YAMICHE ALCINDOR: For now, John Candido continues to wait, until a policy change from Washington 134 00:06:58,600 --> 00:07:00,966 or a go-ahead from the military decides his fate. 135 00:07:00,966 --> 00:07:04,833 For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Yamiche Alcindor in Salina, Kansas.