- The shutdown is over, and American politics is back to its usual state of stasis. Will Congress turn its head back toward passing comprehensive immigration reform, or did our two-week vacation kill it?
- It looks like everyone's favorite House Republicans haven't decided to stop using the only strategy in their toolbox. "I know the president has said, well, gee, now this is the time to talk about immigration reform. He ain't gonna get a willing partner in the House until he actually gets serious about ... his plan to deal with the debt."
- And those who aren't harping on the debt, harp on the fact that if this fails, it's obviously the president's fault. To wit, Marco Rubio: "The president has undermined this effort, absolutely, because of the way he has behaved over the last three weeks. This notion that they're going to get in a room and negotiate a deal with the president on immigration is much more difficult to do…because of the way the president has behaved towards his opponents over the last three weeks."
- President Obama would rather we just get this over with. "Let's not leave this problem to keep festering for another year or two years or three years ... This can and should get done by the end of this year."
- Regardless of where the top brass politicians stand on the bill, immigration-reform supporters are planning a "week of escalation" to get the country's eyes back on their issue.
- Republicans looking to make nice with the nation after their unwieldy fringe wrecked havoc on the economy see immigration reform as an opportunity not to be missed. House Speaker John Boehner's spokesperson Michael Steel says, "We're still committed to moving forward on step-by-step, common-sense reforms. The Judiciary Committee has already passed several bills that could see floor action."
- Another House GOP aide says, "There is still a window. The leadership has said keep working on it and see what you can do."
- And, of course, the Democrats in the House and Senate who have made immigration reform their big issue should not be discounted.
- But, a caveat to keep in mind. Whatever gets passed, it won't be anywhere near as ambitious as advocates want. Citizenship for DREAMers is a possibility worth betting on. Anything else ... well, it'd be a longshot.
- Meanwhile, some states-like California-are enacting their own flavors of immigration reform while the feds decide whether they want to catch-up.
Daily Meme: Immigration Reform, Take Two. Or Five.
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