Harry Reid Tries To Get Around Graham Roadblock
Senate Democrats on Wednesday began circulating a legislative framework for immigration reform that advocates hope will attract a Republican sponsor to replace Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and ease the way for action on both immigration and energy reform this year.
The effort is an attempt by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to get around the roadblock caused when Graham, the lone Republican sponsor on both bills, threatened to withdraw his support from both measures unless Reid agreed to table immigration this year.
“Senate Democrats were not prepared to give him that promise and they are still not,” said one senior Democratic aide.
At the same time, they have not given up hope on persuading Graham to rejoin Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) as a sponsor of the energy bill, and are urging President Barack Obama to do more to reunite the co-sponsors and move the bill to the floor. Graham’s office declined to comment.
Reid, who has been under tremendous pressure to settle the dispute, tried to calm the waters Wednesday.
“This is not going to be like the soap opera, ‘As the World Turns,’ that my mother watched,” he said. “I am going to move energy first and the bill’s ready. I don’t see why we can’t do that.”
The legislation is now undergoing review at the Environmental Protection Agency, a process that is likely to take about a month. That is expected to allow time for adjustments to the measure’s final language, including the inclusion of energy efficiencies passed in another bill by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Reid said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) would spearhead the distribution and crafting of the framework for the immigration legislation. “It’s an outline, but they can put it in legislative language,” said Reid. “For anyone saying that we shouldn’t do immigration this year, especially Republicans, that takes a lot of gall and a lot of being very unreasonable and illogical,” he added.
Immigration reform supporters want the White House to “turbo charge” that legislative effort by using the bully pulpit and White House meetings to bring lawmakers together, said Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice.
Traveling in the Midwest Wednesday, Obama urged passage of both bills. “The administration has been in close touch with senators and staff to offer any needed assistance as the negotiations continue to find a path forward for the legislation,” said Ben LaBolt, a White House spokesman on energy.
Still, neither Obama nor Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, who sees Graham as a key component of the administration’s legislative strategy, has contacted the South Carolina Republican since he issued the weekend threats that could derail both bills.
“There comes a time in any major legislative initiative when the president can help bridge institutional differences in the Congress, and it’s time now for everyone to come to the table and have a level-headed conversation about next steps,” said Tony Kreindler of the Environmental Defense Fund.
A dispute over the timing of the immigration reform legislation began brewing weeks ago as advocates and some Democrats became convinced Graham was trying to delay a debate and vote this year that could damage Sen. John McCain (R-Az.), his long-time friend and ally. McCain is facing a tough primary fight in a state where immigration has become a hot-button issue since the legislature passed a law that gives police extraordinary leeway to detain people suspected of being illegal immigrants.
Graham denied that this week, saying he knows plenty of Democrats who also don’t want to address the issue in the run up to the midterms. His concern, he said, was that moving the legislation too quickly would doom its outcome.
Reid, however, vowed to Hispanic supporters at a Nevada campaign rally that he’d move legislation to the Senate floor this year. And when rumors began spreading that he may schedule immigration before energy, despite months of efforts by Graham, Kerry and Lieberman to draft legislation a bill acceptable to both industry and environmentalists, Graham issued his ultimatum.
The framework released to immigration advocates by Schumer on Wednesday and obtained by POLITICO contains many of the elements already negotiated with Graham.
It includes provisions aimed at tightening the borders, a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the country that requires registration but not that they return home, and the issuance of Social Security cards with biometric identifiers, an idea attacked by some as a national ID card.
But immigrant advocates are hoping the more detailed document will give them a better platform to engage other Republicans and convince them to support a bill. Their targets include Sen. Judd Gregg, (R-N.H.), Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio), and Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), all of whom voted for immigration reform in the past.
“Now, we need to see if Republicans are going to be serious about solving the problem,” said Clarissa Martinez, the director of immigration and national campaigns for the National Council of La Raza.
Sharry said advocates may not press for a full Senate vote if no Republicans are willing to co-sponsor the immigration measure. But Martinez and others noted that the pressure for Congress to act will only grow now that other states, including Texas, are considering passing legislation similar to one passed by Arizona last week.
“We aren’t interested in a partisan game. We aren’t in this to mobilize voters. We don’t want a kamikaze mission to the floor. We are in it to win it,” said Sharrey.
“What’s driving this debate is 11 million people in mixed status families, living increasingly in fear of being separates, of being fired, and with kids who have committed suicide because their father lost his job,” he added.
Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), who has been pressing the White House for action on immigration, called on his Senate colleagues to move forward. “We cannot allow people like Sen. Lindsey Graham to unilaterally and singly veto a whole movement for justice and for fairness for immigrants in this country.”
Sources: MSNBC, Politico
.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment