GOP immigration moderates say they’ll force House votes
WASHINGTON — Republicans with moderate views on immigration defied party leaders and took steps Wednesday toward forcing election-year House votes on the issue, and one top maverick said they had enough support to succeed.
The rebellious lawmakers are pushing the House to vote in June on four bills including a bipartisan compromise, a conservative proposal and a liberal plan. Many of the legislators demanding action face potentially competitive re-election races in November in congressional districts with large numbers of Hispanic, suburban or other voters with proimmigration views.
The move comes after a heated fight early this year over helping young immigrants in the country illegally. Competing bills, including one backed by President Donald Trump, collapsed in the Senate and never received votes in the House. Both parties had seemed ready to turn the battle into a campaign issue, with Democrats accusing GOP candidates of being anti-immigrant and Republicans accusing Democrats of being soft on illegal immigration.
But Republican immigration moderates wary of being politically exposed if the House abandons the issue have continued pushing leaders for votes and on Wednesday seemed to have momentum in their favor. A group of them filed a petition that would force votes on immigration if they gained the signatures of 218 House members, a majority of the chamber’s full membership.
“Congress hasn’t done its job. So I’m going to force the issue,” Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., a leader of the effort to force the votes, said in an interview. “The American people expect us to lead with courage — not to be paralyzed by cowardice. The time for action is now,” Curbelo tweeted.
Of the four bills that would be voted on, the bipartisan compromise is considered likeliest to prevail. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., has opposed permitting the votes, and party leaders are trying to persuade GOP lawmakers to not sign on. Ryan has tried unsuccessfully to round up enough support for the conservative alternative and has said he doesn’t want votes on immigration legislation that Trump won’t sign.
By early Wednesday afternoon, 15 Republicans had signed on. With virtually all 193 Democrats expected to add their names, the moderates’ push for votes would succeed if just 10 more GOP lawmakers joined them.