Ryan: Majority in Congress want to protect young immigrants

September 15, 2017 at 4:25 p.m. | Updated September 15, 2017 at 4:35 p.m.

by Associated Press

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., speaks at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017, where he said President Donald Trump is still seeking a legislative solution to replace to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., speaks at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017, where he said President Donald Trump is still seeking a legislative solution to replace to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON (AP) - House Speaker Paul Ryan says there's a bipartisan majority in Congress to protect an estimated 800,000 immigrants brought to United States as children and now here illegally.

Ryan said in a radio interview Friday that "there's a sweet spot for this ... a majority in Congress" to protect young immigrants while also bolstering border security.

President Donald Trump said this week he was "fairly close" to an agreement with congressional Democrats that would enshrine protections for young immigrants established by former President Barack Obama.

Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican, says any legislation to protect so-called "Dreamers" would be paired with measures to strengthen border security.

Ryan tells Milwaukee's WISN-AM that "we will not in good conscience fix a symptom of the problem without dealing with the root cause of the problem."

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