Confusion, frustration over fate of immigration reform
WASHINGTON — President Trump ignited eleventh-hour disarray Friday over Republican efforts to push immigration legislation through the House, when he said he wouldn’t sign a “moderate” package. But the White House later walked back the comments, formally endorsing the measure and saying Trump had been confused.
The campaign-season tumult erupted as GOP leaders put finishing touches on a pair of Republican bills: a hard-right proposal and a middle-ground plan negotiated by the party’s conservative and moderate wings, with White House input.
Only the compromise bill would open a door to citizenship for young immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children, and reduce the separation of children from their parents when families are detained crossing the border — a practice that has drawn bipartisan condemnation in recent days.
Nearly 2,000 children have been separated from their families at the U.S. border over a six-week period during a crackdown on illegal entries, according to Department of Homeland Security figures
“I’m looking at both of them,” Trump said when asked about the proposals during an impromptu interview on Fox News, adding: “I certainly wouldn’t sign the more moderate one.”
The comment prompted widespread confusion on the Hill. Earlier this week, House Speaker Paul Ryan told colleagues that Trump supported the middle-ground package, and White House aide Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner who has been accused of trying to sabotage immigration deals in the past, told conservative lawmakers at a closed-door meeting that the president backed the plan.
But a senior White House official later said Trump had misspoken and believed his Fox interviewer was asking about an effort by GOP moderates — abandoned for now — that would have forced votes on a handful of bills and likely led to House passage of liberal-leaning versions party leaders oppose. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The White House later put out a statement formally endorsing the measure.
Trump also weighed in by tweet, writing that any bill “MUST HAVE” provisions financing his proposed wall with Mexico and curbing the existing legal immigration system. Those items are included in the middle-ground package.
Party leaders have nurtured hopes that the compromise version could pass, but Trump’s backing would be crucial.