San Diego , California ( CNN ) -- In Washington , a lot of the meetings that take place between lawmakers amount to nothing . But recently , there was a get-together that was really something . The participants : Reps. Luis Gutierrez , D-Illinois , and Charles Gonzales , D-Texas , along with Sens . Marco Rubio , R-Florida , and Robert Menendez , D-New Jersey . The problem : What this country should do with so-called DREAM'ers , undocumented young people who were brought here by their parents as children and who face the threat of deportation . One proposed solution that did n't go anywhere was the DREAM Act , a bill that politicians passed around like a hot potato for more than a decade . It would offer legal status and a pathway to citizenship to anyone who goes to college or joins the military . The good news is that there was bipartisan support ; the last time it was put to a vote , in December 2010 , a slew of Senate Democrats voted for it , but so did three Senate Republicans -- Lisa Murkowski of Alaska , Richard Lugar of Indiana and Bob Bennett of Utah . The bad news is that there is bipartisan opposition ; a slew of Republicans opposed the legislation , but so did five Senate Democrats -- Jon Tester and Max Baucus of Montana , Kay Hagan of North Carolina , Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Mark Pryor of Arkansas . Clearly we need a new approach . Enter Rubio . The Cuban-American GOP rock star and potential GOP vice presidential nominee is floating the idea of a modified DREAM Act that would keep undocumented immigrant students from being deported by giving them legal status in the form of a student visa followed by a work visa . The idea was originally shared with me about five months ago by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison , R-Texas , who , along with her colleague , Sen. Jon Kyl , R-Arizona , was eager to find a way to break the stalemate over the DREAM Act and help get these young people out of legal limbo and on with their lives . Now Hutchison and Kyl have faded to the background , and Rubio is shopping the idea . No formal proposal has been released , but that has n't stopped pundits and politicos from voicing their opinions about the concept . Under the proposal , there is no yellow brick road to citizenship , but nor is there a roadblock . The young people would just have to find their own way there , if they even wanted to be U.S. citizens . Not every immigrant does . You know who does want to give these students automatic citizenship ? Democrats , who are salivating over the prospect of perhaps hundreds of thousands of new voters with a grudge against Republicans . And you know who is dead-set against giving them citizenship ? Republicans , who want to avoid the ire of these newly minted voters . There 's a catch . Democrats may think these kids are adorable , but they do n't want to adopt them and become known as the `` illegal immigrant party . '' I suspect that 's the real reason five Democrats helped kill the DREAM Act . Follow @ CNN Opinion on Twitter and at Facebook/CNNOpinion . The fact that Rubio is now attached to the proposal is a mixed blessing . Rubio might have enough leverage within his party to persuade some Republicans who voted against the old DREAM Act to support DREAM Act 2.0 . The bad news is that Democrats are afraid of Rubio , and many of them have no interest in supporting any bill that makes the rising star look good . Given all that , I 'll bet the Latino `` hangout '' on the DREAM Act was not exactly an event that was officially sanctioned by either party . So what ? That 's a good thing . This is an encouraging new model . Let 's hope we see more of these efforts to informally reach across party lines and forge bipartisan solutions on a variety of public policy issues . Providing legal status to undocumented college students and members of the armed forces is one issue where the partisan lines are blurred and the politics are very complicated . There are no good guys and bad guys , just both parties pushing their own interests without caring about what happens to a bunch of undocumented students . Someone needs to care . It seems these four lawmakers do . What Rubio has in mind might not be perfect , but it 's the only entree on the menu . If the Latino Democrats think they can make it better , they should make suggestions . Then both sides should go back to their respective parties and pressure their colleagues to come onboard . It matters to the deliberations that these lawmakers are all Latino . Regardless of party , whether they realize it or not , they have a natural kinship . A Republican like Rubio has a cultural connection to Democrats like Gutierrez , Menendez and Gonzales . That is something to build on . These guys might argue when they talk politics , but at least they can argue in Spanish . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Ruben Navarrette Jr .
Latino legislators met recently to seek progress on status of `` DREAM'ers '' Ruben Navarrette says it 's encouraging that they 're talking about a compromise . He asks : Will political parties let that happen , or kill it to preserve a campaign issue ? Navarrette : Marco Rubio 's proposal is n't perfect but it does show progress .