Posted on 05/11/2006 11:27:54 AM PDT by Sharks
Senate leaders say they have reached a deal to revive a broad immigration bill that could provide millions of illegal immigrants a chance to become American citizens. The agreement doesn't involve provisions of the law, but it does end, for now, a lingering political standoff.
The agreement brokered by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., breaks a political stalemate that has lingered for weeks.
Key to the agreement is who will be negotiating a compromise with the House and its tough enforcement-only bill.
The House passed much more strict immigration legislation in December. It would subject the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States to felony charges as well as deportation.
Republican leader Bill Frist says the Senate will send 14 Republicans and 12 Democrats to the other side of the Capitol to negotiate a compromise. Seven of the Democrats will be hand-picked by Democratic leader Harry Reid.
Frist said a "considerable" number of amendments would be debated when the Senate begins debating the bill early next week.
Reid acknowledged on the Senate floor Thursday morning that he "didn't get everything that I wanted" in the agreement, but said Frist didn't either. Reaching the agreement is "not easy with the political atmosphere," Reid said.
Reid had been taking some criticism for refusing to move forward on the bill after complaining that Republicans were trying to undermine it with amendments and insisting that Democrats be allowed to have a say in who serves on the conference committee.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbs4denver.com ...
BOHICA
"Key to the agreement is who will be negotiating a compromise with the House and its tough enforcement-only bill."
I hope the House doesn't back down.
I yearn for the days of 'Gridlock'.
Agreed. Opening the bill to amendments provides a glimmer of hope.
ping
Hey Frist, what the HELL is wrong with the REPUBLICAN House Bill. Why do you feel the need to inject Kennedy's crap into a good bill? Which side are you on!!!?
Me too, the toughness of the original version is encouraging.
Because our current immigration system is working so well.
Here it comes!
I hope these @ssholes plan on having a lot of Mexicans vote for them, because I doubt if many Americans plan to............
They must be letting the webmaster write the stories these days....
So, does this mean we are just "really, really screwed" instead of "really, really, really screwed"?
Bipartisanship is when the Stupid Party and the Evil Party get together to do something that is both Evil and Stupid. The Senate "not an amnesty plan, we promise" comes to mind.
The House passed much more strict immigration legislation in December. It would subject the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States to felony charges as well as deportation.
Here's the only compromise I want to hear:
Deport the aliens WITHOUT charging them with a felony.
Hard to imagine the system now is worse than another 1986-type amnesty.
Keep your powder dry, folks, this is probably good news.
What it MEANS is that the Republican Senators have looked at the polls, listened to their constituents, and realize that they are going to LOSE CONGRESS if they don't get a Border Fence.
They have a delicate dance to do here, because the President's been talking about amnesty and guest worker. There will probably be SOME of that in the reconciled bill.
But the big thing will be a lot of extended fence, a lot of high tech sensors on the border, vastly expanded border enforcement.
What will probably come out is a bill that essentially CLOSES the border and steps up enforcement, and oh-by-the-way has a generic sort of slow amnesty and discussion of some sort of guest worker program.
Remember: the KEY to the whole thing is getting the border closed. And that's almost certainly to come out of this bill.
If that's there, Border Conservatives will have something important to defend, and will need to vote GOP this fall.
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