Took the long enough, but it's a great (and obvious) idea. This would allow a fence to be built and the other socioeconomic issues to be sorted-out at a later date.http://www.usnews.com/usnews/politics/bulletin/bulletin_070619.htm wrote:House Dems May Break Up Immigration Bill
The immigration bill is back, with the Senate expected to debate it over the next two weeks. Senate passage is by no means assured, but the measure appears to have a fighting chance of surviving the legislative maneuvers and counter-maneuvers expected of the next couple of weeks. Keen observers of the current debate, however, have long expressed reservations about the chance of anything close to the Senate "grand bargain" (the bipartisan legislation including both border security measures and a "path to citizenship") making it through the House. In the House, Republicans seem firmly opposed to the legislation -- while Democrats are wary of passing any immigration bill without GOP support.
But now Democratic leaders may have found a partial way out of this impasse. The Washington Times reports this morning House Democrats "say they may break the immigration issue up into a series of smaller bills that would put off the tougher parts and allow others to pass, such as border security, and high-tech and agriculture worker programs that have clear support." That "could buy Democrats more time to work out the tougher aspects of immigration, such as what to do about the estimated 12 million to 20 million illegal aliens now here, but it would go against the Senate's massive catchall approach and contradicts President Bush's call for a broad bill to pass."
Most of the press coverage this morning focuses on the Senate debate. The Chicago Tribune reports Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid introduced the revived measure yesterday, and notes the bill "still will have to clear several procedural votes and weather consideration of a bevy of additional amendments before a final vote is taken." The Hill, meanwhile, notes Reid warned his fellow senators that "the Fourth of July recess might be canceled if the Senate can't complete meaningful work on energy and immigration legislation." The Los Angeles Times quotes a Reid aide saying, "Republican obstructionists are going to have a very simple decision to make later on this week. ... Are they going to stand for efforts to provide increased funding for border security along with comprehensive immigration reform? Or are they going to continue to block one of the top priorities of the president?'" The AP runs a similar story, focusing on Reid's expected reliance on a "quirky gambit known as a 'clay pigeon'" to push the measure through a development first reported by Roll Call yesterday.
Meanwhile, the Washington Times reports Republicans hope the upcoming debate will highlight "clear divisions" on the issue within Democratic ranks, while the Financial Times says the issue illustrates President Bush's status as a lame duck. Nothing, says the Times, "demonstrates his waning power more clearly than the strife surrounding his high-stakes push for an overhaul of US immigration laws." In that debate, "despite the huge investment of political capital, the president has failed to win the backing of his own party."
Will be interesting see who is against sealing the border.