Senate braces for showdown over Dreamers
The Senate is barreling toward a battle on immigration with no clear end game in sight.
The chamber is expected to turn to the issue Monday evening, but where the debate goes after it begins is anyone’s guess.
Senators are predicting a free-for-all, and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is using a House bill not related to immigration as the base legislation in order to create a fair playing ground.
“It sounds like Senator McConnell’s just going to pull up a shell bill and let people have at it. ... It ought to be pretty fascinating,” said Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas), McConnell’s top deputy.
Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), Cornyn’s Democratic counterpart, predicted: “You’re going to hear as many variations as the fertile minds of my colleagues can produce.”
That would be in stark contrast to McConnell’s usual tight grip on proceedings.
“Face it, for years we haven’t started a process where we don’t know where it’s going. ... So it is significant that he’s willing to actually put a shell, a neutral shell, on the floor and have the process work itself out,” Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) told reporters this week.
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/373276-senate-braces-for-showdown-over-dreamers?userid=229233