![]() “But in this place, leverage always pops right back up at some point, you just never know when.” Vela, whose district borders Mexico, led more than a dozen House Democrats on a visit to migrant detention facilities this past weekend. Filemon Vela (D-Texas) said of the humanitarian aid fight. ![]() “Now I think a lot of that leverage is gone,” Rep. The previous funding fight led to the government partially shutting down for 35 days in a standoff over Trump’s border wall. 30 - or pass a short-term budget bill and revisit the negotiations later in the fall.Įither way, immigration is sure to be a part of the debate. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and other congressional leaders of both parties are in talks with the White House to pass a massive budget deal this month that would raise the debt ceiling and set overall spending levels for the next two years.īut even if Congress approves the deal, lawmakers in both parties will have to agree on a dozen funding bills to keep the government open beyond Sept. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., speaks during a news conference opposed to immigration raids targeting Central American families with children, on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Tuesday, Jan. “Where do we put all of our energy?”īut even if House Democrats shy away from the immigration battle now, the thorny issue will surely crop back up in September as congressional leaders negotiate a funding package to keep the government open. “Is it worth moving forward when we know what the Senate and the president have already said?” she said, adding that the House has a long to-do list in the coming weeks. She said, for example, ICE is criticized for deportations but also plays a role in combating human trafficking. “It’s really tricky,” said Roybal-Allard, the lead negotiator on the DHS funding bill who also worked closely with progressives and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus last month. But even some Democrats acknowledge the bills are largely symbolic, slated to go nowhere in the Senate. The House will vote this month on a batch of bills to create standards of medical care for migrants and to ramp up Congress’ oversight over border patrol officials. Many would rather sidestep another major fight over immigration that could roil both liberals and moderates and endanger another blowup like the brawl over humanitarian aid in June that has shaken the caucus.ĭemocrats say they aren’t turning their backs on the humanitarian crisis. “I don’t think it will accomplish anything right now,” House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) said in an interview. Plus, they say there’s little point in voting on a DHS funding bill that looks more like a progressive wish list than a serious opening bid to this fall’s funding talks. It’s a headache that Democrats say is not worth fighting when the same issues are likely to resurface in this fall’s larger battle over spending with Republicans. “But she’s a smart strategist so she knows what she’s doing.”Įscobar and others argue that a must-pass bill to fund DHS would hold more leverage with the Senate than other legislation on the floor.īut that funding debate - which would be far more sprawling than last month’s humanitarian bill - could dredge up even uglier intraparty fights on immigration, such as whether to defund ICE or put strict caps on detention beds. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the subcommittee that oversees federal immigration funding. And I’ve shared my views with Lucille,” Escobar said of Rep. Still, even Escobar said she wanted to see Democrats vote on DHS funding legislation before the August recess.īorder detainees tell Pence they haven't showered for 45 days Additionally, Democrats have held a series of hearings and news conferences to protest Trump’s policies in recent days. Veronica Escobar’s bill that will be considered on the House floor later this month. While many Democrats are eager to use an upcoming DHS funding bill to force concessions from the Senate and the White House that Republicans rejected just weeks ago, they are also introducing legislation to limit family separation and increase training for immigration officials, such as Texas Rep. Pressure on lawmakers to address immigration and the humanitarian border crisis has only increased with Trump threatening to deploy his ICE officials to conduct deportation raids in nearly a dozen cities this weekend. ![]() “To give more money - it’s just impossible for some people to vote for that.” Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said in an interview. “It’s deeply difficult, with the cruelty and the abuses that are happening,” Rep. ![]()
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