of childhood arrivals or daca. provided protection for young people who were undocumented. young people who came to the united states as children, often brought by their parents or loved ones. they grew up in this country, attending schools and places of worship, many without knowledge of their legal status until years down-the-line. often finding out when they applied for a driver's license or a job or college. for all intense and purposes they are american, woven into the fabric of this country which is why 12 years ago president barack obama took action. >> imagine you have done everything right your entire life. studied hard, worked hard, maybe even graduated at the top of your class only to suddenly face the threat of deportation to a country that you know nothing about. a language you may not speak. i will not give up on this issue. not only because it is the right thing to do for our economy and ceo's agree with me, not just because it is the right to do for our security. but because it is the right thing to do, period. i believe that eventually enough republicans in congress will come around to that view as well >> they did not, in the end. president barack obama was unable to pass comprehensive immigration reform despite a deal reached with 60 votes in the senate to provide path to citizenship. republicans blocked it. 2016 they voted for donald trump. part of the effort trump pledged to roll back all of president barack obama's achievements including daca. >> we have to, we have to make a whole new set of standards when people come in. >> you are going to split families >> chuck, chuck, no, no, keep the families together. keep the families together >> keep them together out? >> they have to go. >> what if they have no place to go >> we will work with them. they have to go >> trump was elected he made good on one of those promises, 2017 they tried to rescind daca declaring it unlawful and unconstitutional but the backlash was swift. lawsuits were filed and it was tied up in the courts. in the meantime, trump administration moved forward with other plans, immigration and border strategy that was inhumane. 5,000 families forcibly separated. children, torn away from their parents as a result of 0 tolerance policy. the impact of his border policy so vast that nearly 1,000 children remain to this day separated from their families. june 2020 a few months before the presidential election united supreme court ruled that trump could not proceed with his plan to end daca. it was a huge victory. daca was temporarily saved as president biden came into office determined to turn the page on his policies and find a legislative solution. earlier this year, you will remember this, a group of senators released an agreement to impose tougher immigration and asylum laws, another attempt at immigration reform in congress looked like it might pass. until donald trump torpedoed it to deprive biden of a key policy victory. two weeks ago president biden signed an executive action that would enact immediate restrictions on asylum seekers. today he announced the most significant immigration policy change since barack obama unveiled daca12 years ago. president biden using his executive powers to keep american families together. biden's executive action today grants far reaching protections to the undocumented spouses of american citizens, a move that would shield an estimated 500,000 people from deportation. in order to qualify, noncitizens must have been living in the u.s. for at least 10 years and married to a u.s. citizen. he can not have a criminal record. biden's actions today would provide opportunities for work permits and eventually residency and citizenship down the road. it is an example, a shining example of the government taking direct action to stay true to the core values of this country. to fix problems effecting american families. >> these couples have been raising families, sending their kids to church and school, paying taxes, contributing to our country for 10 years or more. matter of fact the average time they spent here was 23. people we are effecting today. living in the united states all of this time. with fear and uncertainty. we can fix that. that is what i am going to do today. fix that. [ applause ] >> now, one of the people that you see there over the president's shoulder, homeland security secretary mr. secretary, thank you very much for being with us on this historic day. obviously welcomed news for a lot of american families. walk us through how this policy is going to work. >> thanks for having me, good evening. this is all about family unity. a spouse, wife or husband who is undocumented and has been in this country for 10 years or more that undocumented spouse may now have a path to a green card to lawful permanent resident without having to do what they once did which is leave the country and apply for that benefit without any assurance of when precisely they will be able to return. now they can apply by staying together with their spouse, their u.s. citizen spouse and also so very often their children, including u.s. citizen children t. is about family unity. primary goal of our immigration system, a fundamental value of our country and today, president biden in the face of congressional inaction took the action a leader takes. >> secretary mayorkas how soon can people apply for this program? >> reporter: we intend to open up the process for applications towards the end of summer. we are moving very, very rapidly because of the humanitarian objective of this program. and the humanitarian need for it. >> so while you are focused on humanitarian need, trump advisory called it unconstitutional executive amnesty for illegal aliens, your response, secretary? >> reporter: i will drive right by that. [ laughter ] >> so many have contributed so significantly to the well being of our country. in terms of local communities. our national economy, we need people who are willing to work hard to serve on the frontlines like so many of the dreamers have done for so many years. they are a shining example of what is accomplished and what can be accomplished when we open our arms to those who have been here for so long and who really know no country other than ours as their home. >> also said the group america first legal would challenge today's action in court. can you talk me through how in the crafting of this specific policy the administration has anticipated such legal challenges? >> reporter: what we do before we take action is we study the law and ensure that the actions that we take are indeed lawful. that we have done with respect to this action like we have done with all of our prior actions. it is no surprise that steven miller intends to attack this in the courts. we stand by it. not only in terms of its legality but in terms of the public benefit for america. >> the "new york times" wrote that quote today's new policy allows biden to balance his recent crack down on asylum with a sweeping pro immigrant measure. should these two executive actions be seen at separate or complementary? >> reporter: i think they reflect the president's overarching approach. the fact that we can secure our border as it is our responsibility to do, and, we can take action to make the immigration system more fair and just. both can be done, both are not exclusive of one another and that is precisely the approach that president biden has taken from day one. and it is on day one of his administration that he first presented congress with a comprehensive legislative proposal to fix what everyone agrees is a broken immigration system but congress does not act >> it is notable to me that this parole in place for spousal, it is not new, right? you had a policy like this since 2017 for u.s. members of the american military. you know what this looks like. you know how this works. similarly it is interesting that their efforts to build on daca, one of the parts of the announcement the president making it easier for daca recipients to receive work visas, talk to me about how that is going to work. >> reporter: these are individuals daca recipients, dreamers more broodily, who have received a degree, higher education degree who qualify for skilled labor in the united states. something which we need desperately and every chief executive officer around the country will say so. and rather than have to have that blocked we now have opened access to it a benefit for which they qualify and made it available to them. here again we are matching an american need to an american opportunity. that opportunity rests in the hands and qualities and talent of people who already have contributed so much. >> we are going to talk to one of the recipients, someone who will benefit from this plan. before we go, president biden campaigned on making a safe and orderly and humane immigration system do you believe that has been accomplished? >> reporter: we work at that every single day. across the department of homeland security. across our administration, with our partners to the south and around the world. we have established more lawful, safe and orderly pathways than any other administration. we are working every day to strengthen the security of our border. fundamentally, we are underfunded and we are dealing with a broken immigration system which is why bipartisan group of senators came together, made compromises and presented one of the most ground-breaking and important legislative proposals that we have seen in 30 years. it was as you noted, blocked. so the president has taken and will continue to take action to do what congress has proven unable to do. that is leadership. >> thank you very much, secretary, for your time. >> reporter: thank you. now, i want to bring into this conversation, a daca recipient that came to the u.s. at the age of 10. he since married an american citizen and serves as an assistant da in the philadelphia district attorney's office. thank you for being here. you know, i have had trouble today expressing to people who are not immediately impacted by this, who are not part of the immigrants right movement what a bfd this really is. perhaps hearing from you about how you are feeling today about what it felt like to be at the white house and hear the president announce this major action will drive it home for folks, how are you feeling? >> reporter: it was a life changing thing for me. i have been living in this country, contributing to this country. all my life i wanted to live the part of the american dream, i purchased a home, my wife and i are raising our 10-month-old son. i no longer have to leave the country and face 10 years of a permanent bar just because of outdated immigration system. it was just wonderful news and being there and seeing history made where families can be united and families do not have to risk the separation just to be able to obtain legal status. >> today, i think a lot of people have this sense that if you are, regardless of the class of immigrant if you are married to a u.s. citizen you can easy piecey apply for american citizenship, that of course is not so. what is this going to mean for you, for your wife, for your baby? >> reporter: absolutely. there is going to allow me to allow me to adjust my status right away. a lot of my friends and family members say hey, you are married and you and your wife are together for a year you must be a u.s. citizen, right? no. you have to be patrolled or inspected into the united states which has been a tremendous barrier for a lot of families to have to risk going to a 10 year bar out. some of our members have gotten stuck outside of the country. multiple families just like mine. it is a life-changing opportunity. spoken by someone who is in a mixed family and seasoned attorney i hate on this vair happy day tell you what trump has been out there saying but i want to get your response. he inside wisconsin tonight that today's action was a quote direct attack on american democracy and that if he is elected to a second term the plan will be, quote, ripped up and thrown out on his first day in office" as an attorney, as a noncitizen, your biggest concern about a second trump terms. >> one of my greatest fear for my community and for my family members. many families who are married like myself to u.s. citizens have strong ties. and it is absolutely scary of a second term trump term, the idea of being able to be ripped apart from my wife, ripped apart from my community in philly which i am seeking justice for every day american citizen. it is just not common sense approach to take. i would say to donald trump or anybody out there, there is already in place for us, being a spouse of a u.s. citizen, this current law states we can allow to adjust our status. however, it is just something that the president announced today that will be taken out of the way to allow millions of families just like myself to be able to look at our children and family members and stay here and contribute to the society and the economy without risking separation. it is about family unity, families stays together that is what it is and that is what the president did today. >> i have 30 seconds left but i remember 12 years ago when daca came down. i was with a friend who missed cut off by just a matter of months. there will be couples living in this country tonight who are excited for people like you but pained this was not more expansive. what do you say to them? >> this is just the start. this is a big victory for us, for our community today and the fight continues. i say to family members, friends of mine that did not qualify for this, the fight continues. we are going to take that fight as we move on and we will take the strides and the wins we have gotten today and celebrate it. however, the next day we wake up and continue the fight, condition this movement. >> an assistant da in the philadelphia district attorney's office, thank you for being here with us this evening. we have people trying to put donald trump's name on everything, airports to money to coastal waters surrounding the u.s., i kid you not. plus, senate democrats are on the record as they oppose common sense gun reform, just ahead common sense gun reform, just ahead at. thank you. shop our lowest prices of the season with free home delivery when you add an adjustable base. sleep number smart beds starting at $999. learn more at sleepnumber.com protect against rsv with arexvy. arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects are injection site pain, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and joint pain. arexvy is number one in rsv vaccine shots. rsv? 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>> i object. >> joining us now, the lead sponsor on this latest effort to ban bump stocks. senator, i wonder what explanation, if any, your republican colleagues have given you for why they changed their position so dramatically on bump stocks? >> reporter: if you don't mind if i could right at the top, i would just ask your viewers to keep my constituents in mind tonight. we had a fire start last night a wildfire ravaging in new mexico and i have thousands of constituents out of their homes right now. i would ask everyone to keep them in their thoughts. the rational does not make a lot of sense. it is that it is much more expansive than bump stocks but we have a number of these devices, block switches as well that just turn semiautomatic firearms into automatic weapon. that is not appropriate for the streets of this country. >> your colleague, tim scott, asked if he still supports this legislation. i want to play that for you and get your reaction on the other side. >> on bump stocks would you now favor a congress-acting to ban bump stocks. you said after the shooting in vegas that if the vote came up it would sail through congress. so, are you in favor of that ban right now? >> well, i am strongly in support of the second amendment. what we are going to do in the party. >> i asked about the ban on bump stock. >> we are going to focus, we are going to focus on the priorities of the american people, and the priorities of the american people today are focus on closing our southern border. >> and that sir is what we call a hard pivot. there is to me so much telling in that pivot what do you make of that response? >> reporter: well, i think a lot of my colleagues are not taking on the gun lobby at all. i am a gun owner. i have been a gun owner almost my entire life. these things just do not belong in the hands of civilians, they are effectively machine guns. we have lived in it country with a law against machine guns for almost 100 years. how this is in any way different it is beyond me. and, i think justice sotomayor said it, if something walks like a duck and swims like a duck and quacks like a duck i am going to say it is a duck. these are machine guns and have no place on the streets >> republicans are calling it a messaging bill. they are saying asking for consent proves it is a stunt. are democrats going to move forward with a full floor vote on it? put every senator on the record on this issue? >> i hope that the leader puts this on the floor. i think that we should make sure that the american people know where everyone of us stands on such a common-sense gun safety issue. >> speak