Another Big GOP Fight Looms: Immigration

Lobbying blitz next week could raise new tensions
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 26, 2013 9:13 AM CDT
Another Big GOP Fight Looms: Immigration
House Speaker John Boehner.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Republicans in Congress might still be smarting over the fallout from the shutdown, but the New York Times reports that another potential "schism" for the party is right around the corner—immigration reform. Conservatives vow to block any legislation from passing the House, while John Boehner and others support the idea of getting at least piecemeal measures through. Things might come to a head next week when a wide range of groups—from the US Chamber of Commerce to FWD.us, the group set up by Mark Zuckerberg and tech leaders—descends on Capitol Hill to pressure GOP lawmakers to get something done.

That doesn't look likely anytime soon, however. Fewer than 20 legislative days are left this year, Politico notes, and next year is dicey because it's an election year. Further complicating things is that some Democrats are not agitating for a vote because they see political benefit in the issue, reports Bloomberg. As the leader of ImmigrationWorks USA puts it, “There are some Democrats who would rather get it done, and others who would rather have the issue” linger. "Either way they win." (The Senate passed its reform bill in June, with a 13-year pathway to citizenship for current immigrants a central part of it.)

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