The U.S. House GOP leadership confirmed over the weekend that they will not move to allow a vote on an immigration reform bill before 2013 ends.
By H. Nelson Goodson
November 9, 2013
Washington, D.C. - In the last three days around the country, multiple sit-ins held in cities by immigrant rights organizations to push for the U.S. House majority GOP leadership to allow a vote on an immigration bill has made no strives to getting a bill closer to getting introduced and approved before the 113th first House session ends in seven days. The GOP leadership including House majority leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) once again confirmed late Friday, that an immigration reform bill will not come to the House floor for a vote, claiming that not enough time to debate and approve one. With McCarthy's confirmation on Friday, any hope of passing a bill before 2013 ends is definitely a dead issue.
Many Republicans have indicated that they support a just comprehensive immigration reform bill including Congressman McCarthy, but not this year.
The foreseeable failure to pass an immigration bill this year will have long term consequences that includes more daily detentions of undocumented immigrants and mass deportations could reach up to another four to five million for the next 6 years. The U.S House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate and the White House control in the upcoming elections will determine how long before an immigration reform bill will be finally approved. Most likely, it will take at least 6 years to actually get a bill pass, if a majority or bipartisan support does accomplish to ever pass one.
The GOP's priority for immigration reform is focused on border security, enforcement of work vertification and harsher penalties for employers who knowingly hire undocumented immigrants.
Despite knowing that no immigration reform bill will pass this year, millions of undocumented workers will continue to work under the shadows and some who never did cared, if a bill would ever be approved simply because they currently have a job and are still working. Once the federal government begind to enforce work verification, many of the undocumented immigrants who stayed on the sidelines and allowed others to fight for reform will then have to join the ranks of a never ending struggle to get a bill approved, which also reforms America's immigration system.
