With time ticking away and the deadline fast approaching to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation in 2013, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi might just be the one who is able to reignite the faltering issue and make certain that the debate keeps going.
Inside sources claim that Pelosi is planning to introduce legislation for advanced immigration reform into the chamber, with a bill that mixes the comprehensive legislation that was passed by the Senate back in June with a bipartisan border security bill developed by the House Homeland Security Committee, according to reports.
In combining these two measures, Pelosi is hoping to be able to create a bill that will gain support from many lawmakers in the House of Representatives while putting pressure on Republican leadership in the House to agree to offering a path to US citizenship. The new bill, however, does not include the amendment to make use of millions of US dollars in order to beef up border security, a measure that was attached to the original Senate bill by Senators Bob Corker and John Hoever, which many Republicans and even Democrats saw as nothing more than “border candy.”
Pelosi, together with key immigration player Democratic Representative Xavier Becerra, could introduce the bill as early as within the next two weeks. Immigration reform seems to have stalled since the passing of the comprehensive bill by the Senate three months ago, with the House of Representatives, which is controlled by the Republican Party, having so far taken no action.