{"id":2588926,"date":"2026-04-09T13:48:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T17:48:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/here-are-the-8-most-insane-things-in-the-dignidad-amnesty-bill\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T13:51:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T17:51:20","slug":"here-are-the-8-most-insane-things-in-the-dignidad-amnesty-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/here-are-the-8-most-insane-things-in-the-dignidad-amnesty-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"The 8 Most Insane Things In The &#8216;DIGNIDAD&#8217; Amnesty Bill"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhere-are-the-8-most-insane-things-in-the-dignidad-amnesty-bill%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2588926&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>This piece argues that the DIGNIDAD Act, proposed by Rep. Maria Salazar and Rep. Veronica Escobar, woudl do more than simply \u201cnot amnesty\u201d for illegal immigrants; it would create a broad and lasting pathway to legal status for millions, including DREAMers and non-DREAMers, while restricting immigration enforcement in various ways.<\/p>\n<p>Key points described in the article:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The act would establish a Dignity program with tracks for Dreamers\/DACA recipients and a separate track for other illegal entrants, including a route to permanent residency (green cards) for those who entered before age 18 and have remained continuously since January 1, 2021, plus education, work, or military requirements and background checks.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It would halt deportations while applications are pending and allow judicial review for denials without removal, effectively delaying or preventing removal in many cases.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It would open a pathway for previously deported individuals to seek relief if they meet criteria, including leeway on physical-presence requirements under certain humanitarian or public-interest justifications.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The bill would exempt participants from standard Social Security\/Medicare taxes but impose a 1% levy on adjusted gross income.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It would fund a loan-forgiveness program for lawyers who provide legal services to those in the program at so-called \u201cHumanitarian Campuses,\u201d with 75% of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/i-paid-my-way-through-college-forcing-me-to-pay-for-someone-elses-is-unjust\/\" title=\"I Paid My Way Through College. Forcing Me To Pay For Someone Else\u2019s Is Unjust.\">student loans forgiven<\/a> after four years of service.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The plan includes waivers of deportation and re-entry bans (3- or 10-year bans) for eligible participants, and a discretionary authority for the attorney general to stop deportations for family hardship.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; It contains a provision allowing DUI\/DWI offenders to remain eligible for the program under certain conditions, with the bill\u2019s text specifying exclusions that the article notes can be ambiguous in practice.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; A broader implication noted by the author is that the act could effectively end mass deportations, moving beyond special treatment for DREAMers to a wide-reaching residency pathway for many illegal entrants.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article frames the bill as seriously undermining immigration enforcement and as a form of overt amnesty, urging readers to scrutinize the text directly.<\/p>\n<p>The piece is written as a critical analysis of the bill, citing a section-by-section analysis and emphasizing potential fiscal and enforcement implications. It concludes with the author\u2019s professional background.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Despite President Donald Trump winning on the promise of &ldquo;mass deportations,&rdquo; a handful of spineless Republicans, alongside Democrats, are trying to push a mass amnesty act known as the DIGNIDAD Act &mdash; or, for English speakers, the DIGNITY Act.<\/p>\n<p>The legislation is billed as <em>not<\/em> being amnesty, but would give millions of illegal aliens &mdash; both so-called DREAMers\/DACA <em>and<\/em> non-DREAMers\/DACA &mdash; a legal status. But co-sponsor Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., insists it&rsquo;s not amnesty, so much so that she&rsquo;s screaming at people on X to &ldquo;READ. THE. BILL. BEFORE. YOU. OPEN. YOUR. MOUTH.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>So I read the bill.<\/p>\n<p>And frankly, it might be worse than just amnesty. <\/p>\n<h2>Student Loan Forgiveness For Lawyers Who Provide Legal Services To Illegals<\/h2>\n<p>According to a &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/salazar.house.gov\/sites\/evo-subsites\/salazar.house.gov\/files\/evo-media-document\/dignity-act-of-2025-section-by-section_0.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Section-by-Section Analysis<\/a>&rdquo; of the DIGNITY Act by Salazar and Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, the legislation creates a special loan forgiveness program for lawyers who provide legal services to illegal aliens at &ldquo;Humanitarian Campuses.&rdquo; &ldquo;Humanitarian campuses&rdquo; would be new facilities where illegal aliens get processed. Lawyers who complete four years of full-time service get 75% of their outstanding law school loans forgiven.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, Americans will have to pay for lawyers to keep illegal aliens here. <\/p>\n<h2>Importation Of Illegal Aliens Who Had Already Been Deported<\/h2>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/119th-congress\/house-bill\/4393\/text\">legislation<\/a> also opens the door for aliens who were previously deported to come back to the United States and seek relief if they would otherwise qualify under the legislation.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;With respect to aliens who were removed or departed the United States on or after January 20, 2017, and who were continuously physically present in the United States for at least 5 years prior to such removal or departure, the Secretary may, as a matter of discretion, waive the physical presence requirement under section 2102 (b)(1)(A) or section 2302(1)(A) for humanitarian purposes, for family unity, or because a waiver is otherwise in the public interest.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The section also stipulates the secretary of state should create a procedure for aliens to apply for the &ldquo;relief&rdquo; even if they had been deported but would otherwise have been eligible.<\/p>\n<h2>Exemptions From FICA Taxes<\/h2>\n<p>Aliens would be exempt from Social Security\/Medicare payroll taxes but have to pay a 1 percent levy on adjusted gross income, according to Salazar and Escobar&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/salazar.house.gov\/sites\/evo-subsites\/salazar.house.gov\/files\/evo-media-document\/dignity-act-of-2025-section-by-section_0.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">analysis<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Dignity participants will be exempt from paying FICA taxes. However, they will be charged a separate 1% levy on their adjusted gross income,&rdquo; the legislation reads. <\/p>\n<p>The exemption from standard payroll taxes shifts the tax burden away from aliens while they receive work authorization and protection from removal.<\/p>\n<h2>Halts Deportations<\/h2>\n<p>The DIGNIDAD Act also includes protections that prevent aliens from being removed while their applications are pending. Under the legislation, aliens applying under the Dream provision can be given an opportunity to file even if removal proceedings have started, and those denied a change of status can seek judicial review without being subject to removal. According to the analysis, &ldquo;Aliens that receive a denial of application for adjustment may apply for judicial review. Aliens seeking judicial review are exempt from removal proceedings during the review.&rdquo; The analysis also states that the Dignity Program provides, among other things, &ldquo;protection from removal proceedings, if conditions are being met.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Further, the legislation is not merely for so-called Dreamers or DACA recipients, that is, aliens allegedly brought here as children. Under the legislation, there is a separate track for illegal aliens who do not qualify as DREAMers or DACA recipients. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/119th-congress\/house-bill\/4393\/text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Section 2302<\/a> states the secretary of homeland security can register illegal aliens for the program if the alien &ldquo;has been continually physically present in the United States since December 31, 2020,&rdquo; pays a $1,000 fine, passes a background check, provides biometric data, and isn&rsquo;t disqualified by any other section.<\/p>\n<p>Such a provision, combined with a prohibition on deportations with paperwork pending, would effectively end mass deportations.<\/p>\n<h2>Grants Permanent Residency<\/h2>\n<p>The DIGNIDAD Act also includes a loophole that basically hands aliens a green card. So long as an alien has entered the country before turning 18 and has been here continuously since January 1, 2021, the alien is eligible for green card status. After meeting basic education, work or military requirements and passing a background check check, the alien can get a green card status which could eventually lead to citizenship if they want to seek it.<\/p>\n<h2>AG Can Stop Deportation For Family &lsquo;Hardship&rsquo;<\/h2>\n<p>The attorney general is given broad discretion to terminate deportation proceedings for family &ldquo;hardship&rdquo; reasons. This means the attorney general can stop removal cases when an <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >illegal alien claims extreme hardship<\/a> to a lawful permanent resident spouse, parent, or child.<\/p>\n<h2>Wipes 3\/10 Year Bans<\/h2>\n<p>Illegal aliens who are in the country illegally for more than 180 days but less than a year are currently subject to a three-year re-entry ban, according to Section 212 (a)(9)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Illegals here for more than a year are subject to 10-year bans. But the DIGNITY Act lets the Secretary of Homeland Security waive those bans for eligible participants of the DIGNITY Program so long as they meet the <em>other<\/em> requirements.<\/p>\n<h2>Illegals With DUI Or DWI Convictions Can Stay <\/h2>\n<p>During an <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RedWavePress\/status\/2042035231931146527?s=20\">interview<\/a> with Fox News&rsquo; Laura Ingraham, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-NY, who is co-sponsoring the bill seemingly had no idea that it allows for illegal aliens convicted of DUI and DWI&rsquo;s to stay in the country.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;How about multiple DUIs?&rdquo; Ingraham asked Lawler. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;That should be included [for deportation],&rdquo; Lawler agreed. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not!&rdquo; Ingraham explained to him. &ldquo;They can stay under this legislation!&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Under the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/119th-congress\/house-bill\/4393\/text\">legislation<\/a>, an alien with a misdemeanor DUI or DWI conviction would still be eligible to participate in the DIGNITY program. Section 2302 Eligibility, subsection (3), states an &ldquo;alien is ineligible for participation in the Dignity Program if, excluding any offense under State law for which an essential element is the alien&rsquo;s immigration status, and any <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/baltimore-state-attorney-low-level-crimes-will-no-longer-be-prosecuted\/\" title=\"Baltimore State Attorney: Low...level crimes will no longer be prosecuted\">minor traffic offense<\/a>, the alien has been convicted of any felony offense, two or more misdemeanor offenses, a misdemeanor offense of domestic violence&hellip;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The legislation <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/119th-congress\/house-bill\/4393\/text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">specifically carves<\/a> out &ldquo;minor traffic offense&rdquo; from convictions that could impede eligibility. While DUI\/DWI are not always classified as a minor traffic violation, first offenses are typically misdemeanors in most states. The legislation states that &ldquo;two or more&rdquo; misdemeanor offenses can make someone ineligible for the Dignity program. Therefore, an alien convicted of one DUI\/DWI may still be eligible.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump&#8217;s deportation pledge fuels DIGNITY Act push<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":2588927,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-09-at-11.05.29-AM-scaled-e1775747255666-1024x577.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[3712,77462,51639,5894],"class_list":["post-2588926","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-amnesty","tag-dignidad","tag-law-2","tag-politics"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-09-at-11.05.29-AM-scaled-e1775747255666-1024x577.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588926","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2588926"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588926\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2588930,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588926\/revisions\/2588930"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2588927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2588926"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2588926"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2588926"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}