Why should we not pass the dream act....I will tell you why. The DREAM Act encourages bad behavior, provides little to no accountability, and provides formal benefits to those who have no formal connection to society. Americans should not get into the business of such practices.

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act is up for vote today in the United States Senate. This is not a good piece of legislation for several reasons. First, it encourages law breaking. The 2009 version of the bill allotted funding for higher education to people who arrived illegally in the United States before turning 18 years old. This encourages criminal behavior. It rewards people who have broken the law. Secondly, the bill does not provide any specific way of enforcing the requirements it sets out. The same version of the bill required that the person be ‘of good moral character’. It seems to me, that crossing the border of the United States illegally does not reflect ‘good moral character’. Not only this, there seems to be no way of showing that one has entered the country prior to turning 18 if the entrance was illegal, especially when age verification would be impossible. Finally, and most importantly, Federal taxpayer dollars would be used to fund higher education of people who pay no taxes. This is obviously backwards. I fully support Federal tax dollars funding higher education programs for young folks in America, for people who pay taxes. Even high school students who paid little taxes with part time and summer jobs who have parents that pay taxes, this can qualify them for Federal student aid. I am a beneficiary of Federal funding for higher education, but my parents and I have paid our taxes for years and it is perfectly appropriate that I, as a legal and contributing resident of society, benefit from such a program.