By Jay Sekulow
The left's outrage over the IRS turns to a plea to 'move on'
Villains abound in the great immigration scam, now playing out in Congress, and not all of them are Democrats. Some are fat cats of the Republican persuasion, and the satisfied smiles on their faces suggest Cheshire blood lines.
Speaker John A. Boehner said Tuesday that he won't bring an immigration bill to the chamber floor unless it can win the support of a majority of House Republicans, creating hurdles for those hoping to see Congress legalize illegal immigrants.
It doesn't matter whether the Republican-led House passes good, workable immigration legislation.
The Democrats pushing immigration reform want the issue, not the reform, and they think a defeat they could hang on the Republicans could give them a shot at keeping the Senate and taking the House next November. Then they could enact a law to give everybody who wants one an American passport. This would guarantee unanimous election results, like those in the squalid places the illegals are fleeing.
Right now, Trenton, N.J., lawmakers have served up the main dish of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and I'm very afraid gun owners could end up playing the role of the governor's napkin. Mr. Christie appointed Jeffrey Chiesa, a Republican, to the U.S. Senate. This is bad news for gun owners because he will serve for about four months — an extraordinarily crucial time for your Second Amendment rights in the Senate. With Mr. Christie's buddy, President Obama, bent on resurrecting his anti-gun crusade in the coming weeks or months, Mr. Chiesa may be the key to victory or defeat for your right to keep and bear arms.
On the eve of the six-month anniversary of the Connecticut school shooting, the White House and congressional leaders vowed to continue pushing for new gun controls — but the aftermath of recent mass shootings suggests such an effort is easier said than done.
The immigration debate is getting off to a bad start with Republicans and Democrats already sparring over how to even vote on amendments — with Democrats insisting every vote achieve a 60-vote filibuster-style threshold in order to pass.
The era of good feelings surrounding the immigration bill collapsed Wednesday, less than 24 hours into the Senate's debate on the issue, after Republicans and Democrats couldn't even agree on how vote on amendments.
Supporters of comprehensive immigration reform tell us, over and over, that the immigration system is "broken," and they're in a hurry to fix it.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that the immigration bill making its way to the chamber floor later in the day has "serious flaws" that must be fixed before the legislation can pass.
As Congress takes up immigration reform, the last major amnesty in 1986 hangs heavily over the debate — a lesson for both sides in the perils of failing on border and employment security, even as they move for another round of legalization.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid ruled out any major changes to the immigration bill he will bring to the chamber floor this week, saying in an interview that aired Sunday that he will battle to prevent anyone from altering the core of the bipartisan deal reached by the so-called Gang of Eight.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Thursday officially began the process of bringing the immigration bill to the Senate floor, setting up the first major test vote for next Monday.
The immigration fight wasn't supposed to begin until next week but it got a head start Thursday when House Republicans voted to overturn President Obama's policies and start deporting rank-and-file illegal immigrants again — an early signal that a broad legalization bill will have trouble passing Congress this year.
Sen. Marco Rubio said Tuesday that there aren't 60 votes to pass the immigration bill he wrote and that the Senate will have to embrace even stiffer enforcement in order to win voters' confidence and sway lawmakers reluctant to repeat the mistakes of the 1986 amnesty.
"I am disappointed that despite high unemployment numbers in Nevada and across the nation, not one Republican voted to provide out-of-work Americans the support they need to make ends meet," he said.
Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, issued a statement blasting Republicans for their opposition, but he was silent on the 12 members of his caucus who also blocked the bill.
