Still no amnesty bill from the Senate Gang of Eight

The Senate returned from a two-week recess today, and most of us were bracing for the Gang of Eight’s introduction of a “comprehensive immigration reform” bill that would grant amnesty to at least 11 million illegal aliens. As the new Senate work session begins, the good news is that there’s still no bill. The bad news is that we know a bill is right around the corner.

When the Gang of Eight first introduced their “principles” back in January, they were hoping to introduce a bill in early-March. But as problems arose and resistance grew, the timeline was pushed to late-March – just before the recent spring recess.

Then, as the recess neared and it become more evident that a bill wouldn’t be ready, the Gang pushed the timeline to just after recess to early-April. With a pro-amnesty rally planned on the Capitol lawn in Washington on Wednesday, we thought we’d have a bill early this week.

During an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press”, however, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), said he’s hopeful “we can get [legislation] done by the end of the week.” But Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told the same talk show that a bill will be ready “in the next couple of weeks.” Graham blamed the delay on complications with the recent deal struck between union leaders and business lobbyists that would create a new low-skilled, guest-worker program adding an additional 200,000 temporary work visas to the pool. The Washington Post quoted someone from the business community who’s close to the negotiations saying, “[t]here are still substantial disagreements on almost all the major parts.”

The Post article included a few other interesting tidbits. First, it noted that the planned legislation would be about 1,500 pages long! Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Pat Leahy (D-Vt.) maintains that his Committee will mark up the bill with “all deliberate speed.” That’s some quick work for 1,500 pages of legislation!

The Post also reported that the Gang of Eight have agreed to oppose any amendments that would impact its core provisions. What happened to the “careful consideration of legislative language and an open process of amendments” that Gang Member Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) urged last week?

The White House and some Congressional Leaders, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, were hoping to have the bill completed before summer, but The Post reminded its readers that the President originally had hoped to sign legislation by the end of the year. An ABC News article said it could be closer to Thanksgiving.

Make no mistake, Congress will introduce legislation and attempt to pass an amnesty for 11 million illegal aliens, while adding hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of additional green cards to the 1.1 million handed out each year. But as each day passes, it’s another day we can tell Congress why a bill of this magnitude is a bad idea

CHRIS CHMIELENSKI is the Director of Content & Activism for NumbersUSA