Will Boehner and Pete Sessions Stand Strong or Capitulate in Cowardice to Steve King and His Cohorts Once Again?
Responding to House extremists and their latest stunt to keep hardworking immigrants from fully participating in all facets of American society, Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) fired off a letter to Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions (R-TX), calling on them to not strike out his “Enable DREAMers to Serve in Uniform” amendment from the FY 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Said Gallego about his letter:
“It would be contrary to the spirit of the rules of the House for the House Rules Committee to strike this amendment behind closed doors, denying an open debate and vote on an amendment that passed with a bipartisan majority in the House Armed Services Committee…
…The only reason why the House Rules Committee would strike the amendment in these back room dealings is a purely political one – to appease the fringe of the GOP and to try to control the deep divisions within their own party.”
Just a few weeks ago, Gallego’s amendment passed through the House Armed Services Committee on a bipartisan basis, but it was met with staunch opposition from notorious anti-immigrant Reps. Steve King (R-IA) and Mo Brooks (R-AL). Rep. Brooks—who once said he’d do “anything short of shooting” undocumented immigrants to stop them from stealing jobs from native-born Americans—just recently spearheaded a new effort to call on the House Rules committee to remove Gallego’s amendment from the NDAA bill. And King, not to be outdone, vowed to issue a new amendment that would eliminate Gallego’s measure entirely.
According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, “Wow. Allowing DREAMers who are willing to lay down their lives for the country they love to serve in the armed forces should be a no-brainer. The question before Speaker Boehner and Pete Sessions is clear: do they protect the integrity of the bill that passed through committee and allow aspiring Americans to serve the country they call home? Or do they, once again, capitulate in cowardice and let Steve King and Mo Brooks continue to serve as the face and voice of the GOP on immigration?”