Talking Points Memo confirms what we predicted in The Skinny last week: There’s not enough time left in the year for immigration reform to go anywhere in the House of Representatives. The report:

Late Friday afternoon, Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) leaked word to The Associated Press that there weren’t enough days on the legislative calendar to vote on immigration in 2013 — just 16 days remain. McCarthy’s office confirmed the report to TPM moments later.

“It’s an outrage that House leadership is signaling no floor action on immigration reform this year,” said Frank Sharry, the executive director of the pro-reform group America’s Voice. “They have all of November and most of December to take action.”

Mark Krikorian, who leads the Center For Immigration Studies, which supports more restrictive immigration policies, said the announcement reveals that House GOP leaders recognize their voters oppose reform, even though they “want to be responsive to the corporate interests” pushing for an overhaul.

“The immigration fight is never really over but the odds of success of the amnesty and open immigration project are dropping rapidly, at least for the next couple of years,” Krikorian said in an email. “Amnesty boosters will try to put a happy spin on it, but the repeated delays from their confidently announced deadlines is making them sound like the contractor who spends months saying your kitchen will be done in two more weeks.”

TPM reporter Sahil Kapur suggests that 2014 won’t be any kinder to supporters of immigration reform:

What GOP leadership is obscuring is that the calendar is even less kind to taking on a complex issue like immigration reform in 2014. The deadline to keep the government funded or face another shutdown is Jan. 15. Then in February or March, Congress will have to raise the debt limit again or risk default. These budget battles could be bruising for the GOP. Then comes primary season in May, when Republicans will be polishing their conservative credentials for GOP voters, who resent any form of “amnesty” for people in the U.S. illegally. On Jan. 4, 2015, the new Congress begins and the bipartisan Senate bill becomes defunct.

“I’m hopeful that we can get to it early next year,” Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) told the Washington Post. “But I am keenly aware that next year, you start running into the election cycle. If we cannot get it done by early next year, then it’s clearly dead. It flatlines.”

This article appears in Nov 7-13, 2013.

Getting hassled by The Man Mild-mannered reporter

4 replies on “Immigration Reform Isn’t Happening This Year”

  1. DO ILLEGAL ALIENS POSSESSING AN ITIN NUMBER ELIGIBLE FOR OBAMACARE?

    The problem with Obamacare is the illegal alien invasion, as in the fact of using Social Security numbers to determine who’s eligible? So the question is can an illegal alien applying with a ITIN number gain eligibility to what should only be available for citizens and legal residence. But what I want to understand that when you sign up your Social Security number is collected and then added to some massive data base. But then what about the ITIN numbers given freely by this incompetent government to millions of illegal aliens? Has this government found an excusable way, to add unknown numbers of foreign nationals, who shouldn’t be here in the first place? The Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) is a tax processing number issued by the Internal Revenue Service. IRS issues ITINs to individuals who are required to have a U.S. taxpayer identification number but who do not have, and are not entitled to obtain a Social Security Number (SSN) from the Social Security Administration (SSA).

    The ITINs are issued regardless of immigration status because both resident and nonresident aliens may have a U.S. filing or reporting requirement. As I see it the only winner in Obama health care are Deadbeats and spongers. These are the individuals who call work “A dirty word” who have lived of the taxpayers, most of their lives and drawn public assistance and are a stain the benefit system. Only the truly disabled, sick, veteran warriors and single mothers with children, impoverished should have access. This President devastating repercussions are beginning to hit home. Individuals are losing the plans they like and hundreds of thousands are being cancelled. Our elderly are losing their doctors. Doctors are refusing to participate. Medications are being denied. Referrals are being denied. People are at risk of severe penalties because can’t sign up on the website—as it does not work. Obama and his administration blatantly lied to and deceived Americans purely in an effort to gain power and control. We’ve had enough of their tyranny! Get your message to Congress now. Find out more details of the corruption in the highest political power brokers in Washington and every one of the 50 states at judicial watch.

    There is a basic, easy way to cut the job market from the thousands of illegal aliens arriving here daily: We demand for—ALL THE PEOPLE—ALL THIS NATION—(Lawful Residence have a green card) a bio-metric Social Security ID card, that will slash the illegal foreign workers arriving here to a dribble; stopping voting fraud by non-citizens and halt criminals stealing credit, welfare and other citizen benefits. This programmed card that you would slide through a machine, just the same way you slide a charge card through would deny illegal alien parents from appropriating billions of dollars annually in child credits.

    Your picture, your thumb-print and even an iris eye scan would differentiate you from anybody else. The manic fools in Congress of both political parties (not the TEA PARTY) are willing to keep spending trillions of dollars, but shy away from this federal issued ID card for a meager $2 Billion that the legislators say would cover every U.S. citizen. A card more powerful than E-Verify or means of enforcement internally or at the borders; a national ID card that Americans need urgently. I only hope some Patriotic American begins a petition, to Command the legislators in Washington to get a biometric ID law in the Federal law books. DO AMERICANS HAVE TO BE SLYLY AND UNSUSPECTINGLY FORCED INTO FINANCIALLY CARRYING ILLEGAL ALIENS OR THE 30 MILLION WAITING TO MIGRATE UNDER A SENATE AMNESTY?

  2. It’s not “reform” it’s a doubling of already very high immigration rates (from 1 million to 2 million per year). To put that in perspective, 1 million is already 4 times the historic average of 250,000 per year.
    Additionally the CBO predicts illegal immigration would only be lowered by 25%. It also predicts the result of this “reform” passing would be continued unemployment over 7.5%. Not surprising when you add at least 30 million, mostly unskilled, new workers this decade with 20-30 million per decade more thereafter.

    Yet the Democratic party, who supposedly supports “working families,” is pushing this. Even though the people it will hurt worst are low-income Americans and, disproportionately, minorities.

    Why? Well, it’s a combination of racial politics and corporate money. I wouldn’t mind an eventual amnesty for illegal aliens already here in conjunction with good enforcement and an overall *lowering* of our historically high immigration rates.

    But this bill. No. No way.

  3. blap posts “To put that in perspective, 1 million is already 4 times the historic average of 250,000 per year.”

    Do you have a link to verify your claim of an “historic average” of 250,000?

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