Earlier this week, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal came out against the Senate immigration bill in a National Review column that Dave Weigel slammed as “incoherent until you realize he wants to win the Iowa caucuses.” Jindal wrote a lot about how there was pork in the Senate bill, and then said...
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Yesterday, the Senate voted on the Corker/Hoeven “border surge” amendment. As our Executive Director Frank Sharry noted: The Corker-Hoeven border security amendment is terrible public policy and a bitter pill to swallow. It would waste billions of dollars on useless border fencing and an excessive number of border patrol agents,...
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One-by-one, the major arguments and excuses used by opponents of immigration reform to justify their opposition are being demolished. From the fiscal and economic arguments against immigration reform that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) scoring of the Senate’s immigration bill eviscerated, to the “not enough border security” excuse, answered...
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Update (12: 35 PM): The Cornyn amendment has been tabled by the Senate, by a 54-43 vote. John Cornyn’s border-trigger, citizenship-killing amendment is likely to come up on the Senate floor today — and it’s going down to defeat. Details are emerging about another deal on border security from Senators...
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National Journal reports that anti-immigrant House members are asking why Republicans should pass legislation that would give citizenship to “11 million undocumented Democrats.” This fear of citizenship – and future voting behavior – courses through much of the immigration debate and underscores many Republican amendments designed to make the...
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Earlier today, as we noted, Majority Leader Harry Reid said: I am concerned that some who oppose the very idea of reform see these triggers as a backdoor way to undermine the legislation. And I believe some Republicans with no intention of voting for the final bill – regardless...
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There’s been a lot of news about Senator John Cornyn’s plans to introduce a poison pill border security amendment when the Gang of 8 immigration bill hits the floor next week. This afternoon, Greg Sargent reports on a very important development: Senate Democrats aren’t going along with Cornyn. They...
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The Wall Street Journal today editorializes against the recycled “border security first” talking points emanating from some conservatives who are intent to attack the progress and momentum behind immigration reform legislation in the U.S. Senate. According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice Education Fund: This is a...
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Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is at it again—apparently making up Texas friends with property overrun by border crossers. During an appearance on a Texas radio show this morning, Cornyn claimed that people all over the world are now crossing the border through Texas and that any immigration reform that...
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Four Senators from the bi-partisan “Gang of Eight” that is drafting immigration legislation will tour the U.S./Mexico border at Nogales, AZ today. After their visit, Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), John McCain (R-AZ), and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) will hold a press conference. With all eyes on the Senators, they...
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