Immigration reform wont passmultiple warrants.

Leubsdorf 2/12
[Carl P. Leubsdorf, Political journalist for the Dallas Morning News. 12 Feb 2 1!. "Carl Leubsdorf# $h% &'P re(ersed course ) again ) on i**igration refor*.+ Dallas Morning News. htt,#--www.dallasnews.co*-o,inion-colu*nists-carl.,.leubsdorf-2 1! 212. carl.leubsdorf.wh%.go,.re(ersed.course..again..on.i**igration.refor*.ece/ Well, that didnt take long. Less than a week after House way to a compromise on immigration legislation, they

Republicans sought to shed their negative image by opening the reversed course, declaring there was no way any bill could pass this year. Theres widespread doubt about whether this administration can be trusted to enforce our laws, House Speaker John Boehner said. And its going to be difficult to move any immigration legislation until that changes. Their decision means the GOP will have difficulty improving its negative standing with Hispanics before the 2016
election. GOP lawmakers cited proposed border control provisions, President Barack Obamas changes with executive orders during the glitch-filed rollout of the Affordable Care Act and a variety of other measures. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who drew sharp conservative criticism for backing the bipartisan immigration bill that passed the Senate, said

the IRS scandal, the Benghazi controversy and the health care law were evidence the government, this administration, unilaterally decides which part of the law to enforce and not enforce. A relative newcomer, Rubio seems not to know past presidents have done similar things. George W. Bush often issued signing statements noting which part of a law he would enforce, and others issued more executive orders than Obama. But the real reason is the continuing GOP split on the extent to which an immigration bill would provide legal status for the 11 million immigrants here illegally. Party leaders refuse to work with the Democratic minority to craft a compromise bill that could pass the House, insisting on a measure backed by the majority of the majority. According to several analysts, opinion in most Republican-held House districts opposes legal status for unauthorized immigrants, making any GOP backer vulnerable to a primary challenge. That would likely mean that the House would stay Republican but with a
stronger tea party influence threatening Boehners speakership. Boehner talked of acting in 2015, but by then candidates in the GOP presidential race will be vying to take the strongest anti-immigrant positions. And Republicans

rejected a proposal by a top Senate Democrat, Sen. Charles Schumer, for a law that would take effect after Obama leaves office. Republicans dont want to give Obama a legislative victory. And Obama made passage of comprehensive immigration reform with some form of legal status, if not citizenship, one of his top second-term goals. The GOP stance is
especially ironic, since Hispanic groups have sharply criticized the Obama administration for its zeal in deporting more than 2 million unauthorized immigrants. But by refusing to consider immigration legislation, the House GOP could spur Obama to use his executive authority unilaterally to reduce deportations of unauthorized immigrants or expand the number who could stay permanently in the United States. Thats what he did in 2012 when he gave permanent status to the so-called DREAMers, young Hispanics brought here illegally by their parents who became either military veterans, high school graduates or the equivalent. Behind this jockeying is the realization by both parties that the nations growing Hispanic population could determine their political future. After all, the number of U.S. Hispanics is likely to triple by 2040, spurring a big increase in their clout from their 10 percent of voters in 2012. In a sense, California and Texas are the cutting edge of that change. In California, the GOP is still suffering from Gov. Pete Wilsons support for a 1994 referendum denying health and education benefits to unauthorized immigrants. In Texas, Republicans risk similar damage from a voter identification law that will keep thousands of Hispanics from voting, redistricting plans that reduce Hispanic legislative clout and repeal of in-state college tuition for unauthorized immigrants. So it was hardly surprising that the hint of a more positive national GOP attitude toward Hispanics was just too good to be true.