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Senate Immigration Ploy Would Make Progress Harder

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Senate Immigration Ploy Would Make Progress Harder 

(Washington, D.C.) – Leaders in the House of Representatives have released proposed legislation to address the problem of children arriving by the thousands at the U.S. border. The measure is narrowly-tailored, and would spend $659 million, with spending cuts to ensure the proposal does not add to the deficit. Senate leaders have suggested that instead of voting on this legislation after it passes the House, they would instead attempt to use the measure to force the House to address comprehensive immigration reform. House Speaker Boehner has made clear that the House will reject this effort.

Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:  

"The situation on the southern border is a crisis. Nearly 60,000 children have arrived in recent months, and more are on the way. Everyone agrees that it's important to act quickly.

It's true Congress must debate broad reform of our immigration laws – sooner rather than later. But the president and the House of Representatives have both put forward narrow border proposals to deal with the current crisis at hand, which needs an immediate response. Rather than working to find a compromise, the Senate intends to block this effort in order to force a broader debate – ultimately making a bipartisan agreement impossible. This is the same sort of cynical, political gamesmanship that has stymied immigration reform efforts in the past. With only a few days to act before Congress takes its August break, Senators should act in the interests of the children who continue to put their lives at risk, while at the same time acting to secure the integrity of our border by promptly and effectively honoring our laws. It's time to debate the current problem – and to use this as an opportunity to build trust in a way that may make future cooperation on broader reform legislation possible."

For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan, 571-257-3309 or Steven Cruz, 202-578-6173

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