Just as the predominantly Republican Senate has filibustered such legislation as the Dream Act while President Obama has been in office, Governor Mitt Romney has made it clear that he will do the same to make it difficult for undocumented students to make something of themselves in a country they have lived in a majority of their lives.

The Dream Act (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors), according to dreamact.info, is a bill that would give those under the age of 35 permanent residencies if they lived up to specified qualifications.

These qualifications include having graduated from a High School in the U.S., being of “good moral character”, having arrived in the country as a minor and has lived in the country for at least 5 years before the law had been passed.

Governor Romney has made it clear that he is against the Dream Act, stating on multiple occasions that if he were in office, the legislation would be vetoed automatically.

This strong unchanging mentality towards undocumented students who are both hard working inside and outside of the classroom is something that will hurt both Romney in the election and this country as a whole moving forward.

While vying for the votes of minorities in order to secure the Oval Office in November, Governor Romney is practically shooting himself in the foot being completely non receptive towards the vast amounts of young minority students that populate the United States.

Although these students who are not citizens and are not eligible for voting, a direct relationship to registered voters with either family or friendship ties could dramatically swing votes away from the Republican nominee.

Undocumented students already have a plethora of issues to deal with outside of striving for success in the classroom, including finding work without a valid permit or doing anything legally with no social security number to claim as their own.

A majority of these students fit the qualifications of the Dream Act, including the main key factor of being brought into the country as a minor with no control over it.

These students have made this country their home, have worked hard in school and in some cases found jobs to help keep their family out of poverty.

How can they be denied citizenship and acceptance despite proving their worth time and time again?

They can’t be denied anymore, as including them in the working economy can not only make a majority of employment statistics improve, but also bring many families out of the low income lifestyles they’re forced to live in without documentation.

Will a 20-year-old full time college student who graduated high school with honors and works over 40 hours a week to help put food on the table really be a disaster to the country?

No, if anything these hard working people are who we need to include as citizens of this great country, and such legislation as the Dream Act will help these great characters help this country grow even greater than before.

In regards to the mentality that accepting these illegal immigrants will condone illegal immigration and cause a greater problem for our borders, this is untrue.

The Dream Act needs to include stronger punishments for multiple illegal offenders and make for an easier passage for those who come to the country legally to obtain permanent residency and improve this country even more.

Governor Romney’s lack of acceptance towards both the minority and undocumented population is proof of how out of touch he is to a large portion of the lower tier of the country, and proof that he is in no position to lead a populace that he is so quick to deny.