Republican seeks to force DACA bill vote
‘We are ready to make a deal,’ president tweets
WASHINGTON — A Republican congressman said Monday that he’s trying to force a vote on legislation offering a three-year extension on protections against deportation for hundreds of thousands of young immigrants.
The election-year effort by Rep. Mike Coffman, R-colo., could be an uphill climb.
Most Republicans don’t want to extend the program unless lawmakers also provide billions of dollars to start building President Donald Trump’s proposed wall with Mexico. And some Democrats may not back what they see as a temporary fix to a problem they want permanently resolved and that many say should also provide the immigrants with a pathway to citizenship.
Under House rules, Coffman will need 218 signatures on a “discharge petition” to force a vote on his bill. Coffman’s bill has 31 co-sponsors about evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats.
Coffman announced his plan on the date that Trump set as a deadline for Congress to approve legislation renewing those protections. Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, last year but gave Congress until March 5 to resurrect it.
A stalemated Senate has rejected several proposals. The Supreme Court has ordered the administration to continue renewing DACA permits while cases progress through the federal courts — a process likely to take months, draining Congress’ sense of urgency.
Earlier Monday, Trump continued blaming Democrats for the impasse.
“It’s March 5th and the Democrats are nowhere to be found on DACA. … We are ready to make a deal!” he tweeted.