House of Representatives members believe that they might be able to push the immigration bill by October – or, at the very least, finally actually be able to vote on it. Earlier last week Luis Gutierrez announced that he had signed off on the bill, which has the support of every Democrat in the bipartisan voting group, though has yet to win approval from Republicans in the House.
“I’m ready to go,” Gutierrez told the International Business Times. “I’m ready to make an announcement. I’m ready to have a bipartisan deal. If we don’t work with this group of seven, then we will find another group of eight, but we’re going to find another group of something that’s going to bring us to a solution in the House of Representatives. We refuse to let the people down. We refuse to lose. We’re going to continue to fight.”
Leaders in the House are confident that they already have the great majority of voters on their side, which they need to actually be able to pass the immigration reform bill – despite the fact that the vote has not yet taken place. A source claims that the legislation is supported by as many as 185 to 190 of Democrats in the House, as well as around 40 to 50 House Republicans.
The International Business Times claims that piecemeal bills are currently being debated by the House Judiciary Committee, but they are unlikely to pass due to their conservative view on the immigration issue.