Dingell to bring deported Detroit man’s wife to Trump’s first State of the Union

Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) announced on Thursday that she will bring the wife of Jorge Garcia, who was deported after 30 years in the U.S., to President Trump’s first State of the Union address. 

“Jorge’s wife Cindy has shown incredible resilience and courage in the face of these impossible circumstances. I am honored that she will join me at the State of the Union to be a voice for the hundreds of thousands of aspiring Americans who are part of the fabric of our communities, and who deserve a pathway to legal status in the country they call home,” Dingell said in a statement. 

“It is time for Congress and the President to find the political will to do what is right, not what is convenient, and fulfill this nation’s promise to those who come here seeking a better life and those who call this nation home,” she continued. 

{mosads}Jorge Garcia, who was deported to Mexico on Monday, was brought to the U.S. when he was 10 years old by a family member who was in the country illegally, according to the Detroit Free Press, and had been pursuing lawful residence since 2005. 

He was informed last year that he was too old to qualify for the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, and was told by Immigration and Customs Enforcement that he needed to return to Mexico.

Trump announced last year that he would end DACA, but gave Congress time to come up with a legislative fix for its recipients, who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children. 

Other House Democrats, including Reps. John Lewis (Ga.), Maxine Waters (Calif.), Frederica Wilson (Fla.) and Pramila Jayapal (Wash.), have announced they will not attend the presidential address later this month.