Immigration Reform: Republican Support Inches Up in the House, But Bill Remains Elusive

By Claudio Iván Remeseira Follow @HispanicNewYork| Posted on Thursday, October 31, 2013, at 5:40 p.m. ET.

 

Representative David Valadao, of California’s twenty-first congressional district, became the third Republican in the House to came out in favour of comprehensive immigration reform. He follows Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) in declaring public support for H.R.15, the Democratic-crafted bill based on the bipartisan bill passed by the senate in June.

At this point, H.R.15 counts with 190 cosponsors, 18 short of the 218 needed to get a majority vote in the House. In a sorrow repeat of the shutdown showdown, Speaker John Boehner has declined to allow a vote on the Senate bill or H.R. 15 unless a majority of his Republicans colleagues support it. And Sen. Marco Rubio's statements indulging in the so-called piecemeal approach that is favored by most of the House GOP (passing several laws addressing specific points instead of one single, comprehensive legislation) has fuelled the scepticism regarding a prompt resolution of this issue--or any definition at all.

Rep. Valadao was one of the House Republicans targeted by Tuesday's conservative "fly-in," when 600 leaders of the 3 B (Bibles, Badges, and Business) converged on Capitol Hill in a pro-immigration reform lobby effort. Despite these efforts, the chances of getting a bill passed before the end-of-the-year budget battles kick in are hardly predictable.