{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://cooper.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/cooper-to-join-effort-to-force-house-vote-on-dream-act", "Cooper to Join Effort to Force House Vote on DREAM Act", "2017-09-12", "2017", "2017-09", "Democrat", "House", "TN", "Jim Cooper", "C000754", "cooper.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper (TN-5) announced today that he will join a legislative effort to force a vote on the DREAM Act, a bill that would provide a path to citizenship and permanent protection for young people who arrived in America as children.\n\u201cDREAMers are our friends and neighbors. They are hard workers and many are going to school or serving in our military,\u201d Rep. Cooper said. \u201cThey have bright futures and embody the best of America. The DREAM Act has bipartisan support, so Congress should be allowed to vote on it.\u201d\nLast week in Nashville, Rep. Cooper criticized President Trump\u2019s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program unless Congress acts in six months. Former President Barack Obama started DACA after Congress failed to agree on comprehensive immigration reform, and the program has granted permits to an estimated 750,000 \u201cDREAMers,\u201d including 8,000 Tennesseans.\nTo achieve their goal of a House vote on the DREAM Act, Democrats plan to file a discharge petition later this month. A discharge petition is a legislative procedure that at least half of House members must support in order to bring a given bill to the floor for a vote. The DREAM Act discharge petition effort is being led by House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (MD-5) and Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Michelle Lujan Grisham (NM-1). Rep. Cooper plans to sign the discharge petition.\nRep. Cooper was the only member of Tennessee\u2019s congressional delegation to vote for the DREAM Act in 2010. A cosponsor of the DREAM Act, Rep. Cooper continues to seek a long-term legislative solution and a path to citizenship for DREAMers.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://cooper.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/cooper-to-join-effort-to-force-house-vote-on-dream-act"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7030367851257324, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}