TerrorismReactions to Boston bombing threaten passage of immigration reform
Reactions to the Boston Marathon bombings could become threaten the passage of immigration reform in Congress. Conservative Republicans who oppose an immigration reform along the lines offered by the bipartisan Gang of Eight have spoken out on the Hill, talk radio, and social networks saying that the bill should be reconsidered in light of the fact that the suspects were born outside the United States.
Reactions to the Boston Marathon bombings could become threaten the passage of immigration reform in Congress. Conservative Republicans who oppose an immigration reform along the lines offered by the bipartisan Gang of Eight have spoken out on the Hill, talk radio, and social networks saying that the bill should be reconsidered in light of the fact that the suspects were born outside the United States.
The Boston Globe reportsthat a Senate hearing on Monday became tense when Senator Chuck Schumer (D-New York) claimed that some people are exploiting the situation in Boston as an “excuse” to postpone immigration legislation. Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) was offended by Schumer’s remarks, replying angrily, “I never said that, I never said that!”
Late last week Grassley recommended that the Senate should not rush to pass immigration legislation in order to identify those “who wish to do us harm.”
Schumer’s claim came after several conservative commentators began using the bombing to exert pressure on Senator Marco Rubio(R-Florida) to step away from the Gang of Eight proposal. Rubio has been leading the call for immigration legislation, upsetting critics of immigration reform in the Republican Party.
The Globe notes that Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) is pushing Congress to focus on strengthening national security and put immigration reform on the back burner.
“The facts emerging in the Boston Marathon bombing have exposed a weakness in our current system. If we don’t use this debate as an opportunity to fix flaws in our current system, flaws made even more evident last week, then we will not be doing our jobs,” Paul wrote in a letter to Senate majority leader Harry Reid.
Supporters of immigration reform played down the conflicts between Rubio and other Republicans, and Rubio himself created a Web site dedicated, he says, to separating facts from myths on the immigration legislation.
The Boston bombing “certainly is a distraction and offers a foothold for people who don’t want this to pass,” Ross Baker, a congressional scholar at Rutgers Universitytold the Globe. “It would be very hard to argue to pass this thing immediately. The bombings give opponents a much more plausible reason to say, ‘Hold on, let’s wait until all the facts are known,’ which of course takes momentum out of the bill.”
The latest version on the bill would let most of the eleven million undocumented immigration currently living in the United States apply for a green card after ten years, getting on a path to citizenship by paying a fine, back taxes, learning English, and passing a criminal background check.
The bill will also increase the number of high-skill visas and create a new program for low-skilled jobs. DHS will also have to create a tracking system to monitor and apprehend those who overstay their visas.
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) came out in support of Rubio and other Republicans who are in favor of immigration legislation, telling Fox News that “if we fix our immigration system it may actually help us understand who all is here, why they’re here, and what legal status they have.”
