the DREAM Act — which failed to overcome Republican opposition in a Democratic-controlled Congress in 2010 — would provide a direct pathway to citizenship by providing green cards to children seeking higher education or military service of at least two years. They also must have come to the U.S. before age 16, be under the age of 30, have lived in the country for five years, pass a criminal background test and have earned a high school diploma or GED. Beneficiaries could apply for citizenship after six years.