Senate Vote on Border Gives Push to Immigration Overhaul

New York Times

By Ashley Parker

June 24, 2013

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/25/us/politics/senate-endorses-proposal-calling-for-extra-border-security-measures.html?_r=0

The bipartisan push to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws took a major step forward Monday evening when the Senate endorsed a proposal to substantially bolster security along the nation’s southern borders as part of a measure that would provide a path to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants already in the country.

 

The 67-to-27 vote prevented any filibuster of the plan to devote roughly $40 billion over the next decade to border enforcement measures, including nearly doubling the number of border agents to 40,000 and completing 700 miles of fencing. Opponents of the measure questioned whether the security steps would ever be taken and said that the legislation should require that the border be secure before undocumented immigrants could seek legal status.

 

But the solid bipartisan support for the border security proposal by two Republican senators, Bob Corker of Tennessee and John Hoeven of North Dakota, suggested that advocates of the overhaul had the votes needed to clear remaining hurdles and pass the legislation, which was drafted by a bipartisan “Gang of Eight” senators, perhaps before lawmakers leave town for the July Fourth recess.

 

Senators and aides said that Monday’s vote offered a preliminary glimpse of how many senators, roughly, would vote for the bill’s final passage. Several senators missed the vote because of flight delays, and Democrats said they could have landed at least 69 votes had all legislators been present.

 

“The bill has been improved dramatically tonight by this vote, there’s no question,” Mr. Corker said. “Hopefully there will be other improvements made with other amendments, and my sense is we’re going to pass an immigration bill out of the United States Senate, which will be no doubt historic.”

 

Earlier Monday, speaking at the White House to business leaders in favor of the legislation, President Obama called for speedy action: “Now is the time to do it,” he said.

 

The Corker-Hoeven plan helped bring on board more than a dozen Republicans, many of whom said they were reluctant to support any immigration overhaul that did not secure the southern border and guard against a future wave of illegal immigrants. Their amendment will also require a $3.2 billion high-tech border surveillance plan — including drone aircraft and long-range thermal imaging cameras — as well as an electronic employment verification system and a visa entry/exit system at all air and sea ports.

 

All those security measures must be in place before any undocumented immigrant can become a legal permanent resident and receive a green card.

 

Any final bill passed by the Senate will head to the Republican-controlled House, where it already faces vocal opposition. Speaker John A. Boehner has publicly said that he will not bring any immigration bill up for a vote that does not have the support of a majority of House Republicans. That decision pleased the conservative wing of his caucus but also raises hurdles for any broad immigration bill in the House, where many Republicans oppose any pathway to citizenship.

 

Mr. Hoeven sounded a note of cautious optimism.

 

“I think that we’re on track to move the bill forward and then remember, it’s got to go to the House,” Mr. Hoeven said. “There’s more work to be done, but we’re working on it, we’re making progress — more to do — but we want to continue to improve it in the Senate and likewise in the House.”

 

Speaking earlier on the Senate floor, Mr. Corker urged his colleagues to vote for the amendment, while also reminding them that a “yes” vote on the Corker-Hoeven proposal did not necessarily translate into support for the final legislation.

 

“I hope everyone will get behind this,” Mr. Corker said. “I think this puts in place a balance, and I think if this amendment is passed we will be doing something great for our nation.”

 

Despite a clamoring for stronger border security from many Republicans in the Senate and the House, some leading Republicans dug in against the plan, and a majority of Senate Republicans did not vote to take up the measure.

 

Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, said that he could not “support an amendment cobbled together at the 11th hour,” and warned, “The underlying bill puts symbolism over substance and they’re hoping the American people won’t notice.”

 

Other Republicans and advocacy groups opposed to the bill also offered loud complaints: that the legislation was drafted behind closed doors by a small group of senators; that the bill was too long and not given sufficient time for discussion; that the legislation needed to be even stronger when it came to border security; that the Corker-Hoeven amendment was simply a toothless provision intended to give Republicans cover to vote for a bill they still viewed as “amnesty.”

 

On Monday, a group of 14 Republican senators sent a letter to Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, calling for a “serious, extensive amendment process.”

 

“This is deeply, deeply disturbing,” read the letter, referring to the fact that only a fraction of the amendments filed to the bill had been voted on. “It is effectively shutting down the American people’s ability to be heard on this issue through their elected representatives.”

 

A spokesman for Mr. Reid, however, pointed out that many of the 14 Republicans were the same senators who had failed to work with Democrats to reach a compromise to bring up more amendments on the Senate floor.

 

As the procedural vote wound to a close Monday, the two sides were still working on a deal that would allow both Democrats and Republicans to bring up 10 more amendments each to the final bill — an agreement that would likely allow Senator Rob Portman, Republican of Ohio, to introduce a provision to further strengthen the electronic employment verification system in the bill.

 

Proponents of the immigration overhaul were also not entirely pleased with the Corker-Hoeven plan. A coalition of groups representing border communities urged senators to reject the amendment, which they called “an example of excessive and wasteful government spending” and a “poorly thought-out policy.”

 

“It is an assault on our system of checks and balances and seriously threatens the quality of life of border residents,” wrote the border groups, in a statement.

 

Other advocates worried that in an effort to garner bipartisan support for the bill, Democratic senators were making too many concessions without getting anything in return. The border plan, for instance, also includes a provision by Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah, that would prevent undocumented immigrants from qualifying for Social Security benefits, as well as from receiving federal welfare funds.

 

“It is a tough pill to swallow, and there is no guarantee it will not get worse later in the process,” said Kevin Appleby, the director of migration policy at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, referring to the amendment. “If the path to citizenship is further weakened, there could come a tipping point where the bill becomes unsupportable.”

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