Posted on 02/26/2015 9:08:22 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Thursday vowed to block any effort by House Republicans to amend a clean Department of Homeland Security funding bill.
Standing next to House Democratic Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) in a rare joint press conference, Reid blasted any plan by House Republicans to force negotiations over homeland security funding as a “waste of time” and said Senate Democrats would block a conference committee from forming on a DHS funding bill.
We’ve heard all kinds of rumors that the House is going to take our fully funded bill and send it back with a number of riders on it. It is a waste of time. We will not allow a conference to take place, it won’t happen,” he said.
The Senate appears poised to approve a clean bill funding Homeland Security on Thursday, but it is unclear whether the House will pick it up.
Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), who spoke an hour after Reid, wouldn’t commit Thursday to bringing the Senate bill to the House floor.
Pelosi urged House Republicans to accept the clean bill and let the courts settle questions of constitutionality surrounding President Obama’s executive actions shielding millions of illegal immigrants from deportation.
“The gamesmanship should end. The Texas case, the court —I disagree with the court decision — gave them a face-saving way to just end this,” she said.
She read off a list of statistics outlining the scope of the fallout if DHS runs out of funding at 12:01 am Saturday.
She noted 170,000 DHS employees made up primarily of frontline security personnel will have to come to work without pay. That number includes 40,000 border patrol personnel, 50,000 Transportation Security Administration workers, 13,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, and 40,000 active-duty Coast Guard personnel.
House Republicans are mulling adding a rider to the Senate bill that would reverse the 2014 executive order protecting up to 5 million immigrants from deportation. They may also instead pass a short-term stopgap funding measure that would give them more time to formulate a response.
“If they send over a bill with all the riders in it, they’ve shut down the government. We’re not going to play games,” Reid said, adding that the Senate would debate legislation to halt Obama’s 2014 executive order after the homeland security department is funded.
“We’re not going to allow a conference to take place and if they want to debate immigration, when this is all over with, we’re happy to do it,” he said.
Pelosi said a homeland security shutdown will block $600 million for an urban security initiative and freeze Federal Emergency Management Agency grants.
That's because funding it would MAKE IT LEGAL.
Surely the Rs cannot be this effing stupid. I've emailed and called. Hell this is just unbelievable.
The Rats are still in charge of the Senate.
Whoever beat Reid up should have finished the job.
In reality it is:
Senate MAJORITY Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)
Why is Mitch the turtle still letting Harry run things?
Use the same nuclear option Dirty Harry used. Stop playing by rules that the Democrats don’t care about. The nation is at stake.
Who the **** is the majority party in the Senate?? For bleep’s sake.
The GOPe is playing with fire.
Pelosi states “She noted 170,000 DHS employees made up primarily of frontline security personnel will have to come to work without pay. That number includes 40,000 border patrol personnel, 50,000 Transportation Security Administration workers, 13,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, and 40,000 active-duty Coast Guard personnel.”
But she omits the fact that all eventually would get paid.
Hey Dingy, there's a big difference between "shutting down the government" and shutting just one agency (DHS) of that government.
Stop Lying!!
As angry and fired up as we all have been for the 2010 and 2014 elections - that much energy is STILL pent up waiting for some elected politician to do the job.
Repubs will pay a very heavy price for this intransigence at the next ballot box.
Reid prctices Momron taqiyya
I wouldn't bet on it!
Why Republicans haven’t put this decrepit old SOB in the bathroom stalls as an office befuddles me.
Turtle has the power to completely nuke these bastards but refuses to do so.
Infuriating.
Close it down and blame Harry Reid. Basically Harry Reid is saying unless we fund illegal immigration, we will shut down the border.
There is a reason why the GOP is called the stupid party. What have they done that would make you think otherwise?
Boehner should stick to his guns.........and the that whimp, McConnell should, at the last second invoke the Nuclear Option and pass the house bill, which at that point would only require a simple majority of senate votes to pass!!! Ya gotta stick to the Obamabot, Democrat vermin....right now!!! Believe me....they will cave. Yeh....we Pubbies really suffered when Ted Cruz (He did not shut the government down...Obama, did)....so bad we gained ten senate seats and control of both house of congress!!!
I counted 25 Republican Senators up for re-election in 2016.
“We’re not going to allow a conference to take place and if they want to debate immigration, when this is all over with, we’re happy to do it,” he said.
Hey Jerkoff, McConnell, you hear this? you whiney little wuss, this is your calling to actually become a Leader and ABOLISH THE FILIBUSTER. Harry Reid should have NO VOICE in ANYTHING the Senate does. they lost, you WON remember.
Pelosi urged House Republicans to accept the clean bill and **let** the courts settle questions.
DemocRATS still passing the buck.
Yes they can be. And don’t call me Shirley.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.