House Republicans have announced that they intend to try and change the US immigration system a little bit at a time rather than with the comprehensive approach that is being attempted by the Senate. On April 25th the House made the announcement that it would be introducing a series of bills in an attempt to overhaul the country’s immigration laws while simultaneously keeping the committee debating the issue and trying to press the Gang of Eight’s own legislation.
“The process can be long, but it allows every representative and senator to have their constituents’ voices heard,” claims Bob Goodlatte, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. “And by taking a fine-toothed comb through each of the individual issues within the larger immigration debate, it will help us get a better bill that will benefit Americans and provide a workable immigration system.”
The announcement is likely to cause considerable unrest in the House, especially among Democratic members who have been urging them to come up with broader legislation. There are a lot of House Republicans who would prefer a more piecemeal process, though Democrats are worried that such an approach will make it difficult to win support for offering a path to US citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
Many senators are unimpressed with the move, with Charles Schumer noting that: “The idea of doing separate bills is just not going to work. It’s not worked in the past, it’s not going to work in the future.”