Jordan to oppose farm bill until immigration tackled

WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim Jordan says he has no intention of voting for a farm bill until House Republicans have fulfilled campaign pledges to tackle immigration reform.

“I ain’t going to vote for a farm bill until we figure out what we are going to do on immigration, plain and simple,” Jordan said during a press availability with fellow House conservatives Tuesday. He said House Republicans have “plenty of time” to pass the farm bill, which expires in September.

Jordan, R-Urbana, and Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Troy, voted against the farm bill last week because of frustration that the GOP caucus has not yet offered an immigration bill fulfilling the promises President Donald Trump made during the 2016 election campaign. Without their votes and the votes of other members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, the farm bill failed to pass.

Jordan said Tuesday that he actually liked parts of the farm bill — including new work requirements for those receiving food stamps — but was spurred to act in response to a petition signed by most House Democrats and at least 20 House GOP moderates to force votes on more-moderate immigration measures.

Among the proposals Democrats would like to see are provisions preserving a federal program protecting from deportation young undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. All four of Ohio’s Democratic representatives have signed the petition, but none of the state’s 11 Republicans has.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the petition was just 17 signatures short of forcing a vote. If the petition gets the necessary 218 supporters, the House could begin voting on the more-moderate immigration measures on June 25.

Among those who have signed the petition is Rep. Joyce Beatty, a Jefferson Township Democrat who said she is trying to force a vote because “Americans are demanding action.”

“I believe in keeping families together, and think that the Trump administration’s ongoing effort to tear families apart is the wrong way to fix our broken immigration system,” she said.

Jordan said the fact that Democrats and centrist Republicans are so close to forcing a vote has motivated conservatives to pressure Ryan to push for a bill that would include a border wall.

“We have to get a resolution,” Jordan said, adding that he and other conservatives are pushing legislation that is “consistent with the mandate of the 2016 elections.”