It seems that the most recent reports from Capitol Hill are pointing towards immigration reform that will be passed in pieces. Missouri Senator Roy Blunt met with local business leaders last Friday and discussed ways to improve the relationship between society and the immigrant communities.
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Over breakfast held at the St. Louis Regional Chamber of Commerce, Blunt spoke about his point of view on immigration and what he believes is the best approach for the nation. Blunt says the only way he sees immigration moving through Congress is in a series of bills. “It’s a big issue and it needs to be dealt with. But it needs to be dealt with in pieces, rather than all at once.”
He compared immigration reform to the Compromise of 1850 which initially started out as one large bill, but eventually was broken up into small pieces and ended up being more successful. Blunt also pointed to the fact that because there are so many different things that need to be included in the immigration bill such as borer security, a path to citizenship and what to do about the workforce and 12 million undocumented immigrants, it may be better to approach each of these as an individual bill.
Blunt also spoke about what it would take to get Congress members to vote for the bill. “It’s about ‘How do we get to 218 votes.’” Other lawmakers who either held conferences or met with constituents voiced similar concerns confirming that immigration will most likely not come as one large legislation. Lawmakers plan to follow a set of “principles” that Speaker of the House John Boehner plans to release sometime soon. Even if he ends up making those public next week, analysts believe that immigration will still take up the remainder of the year to get approval and receive votes.
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