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Washington Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, objected repeatedly Wednesday to an attempt by Democrats to bring comprehensive immigration reform to the House floor.

A line of Democrats waited in the House to ask for the consent of the chamber to put immigration reform up for a vote, a calculated effort to show support for passing the legislation, which has lingered without action for months.

Bishop, who held control of the Republican majoritys time on the House floor, was there to talk about his legislation to ensure a presidential declaration under the Antiquities Act goes through environmental reviews. He appeared annoyed at the Democrats attempt to change the subject.

"I would be happy to talk about the bill that is before us because its a wonderful bill," Bishop said after objecting several times to requests to yield the time to talk about immigration.

Democrats have argued the immigration bill which would create a pathway to citizenship for an estimated 12 million people who are in the country without legal paperwork would pass if it were up for a vote in the House.

The GOP majority, however, has declined to bring it up.

In another tactic, Democrats are proposing a "discharge petition," which would force the House to take up immigration reform. That effort would require the signatures of 218 House members to force House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to hold a vote.

Immigration supporters tried procedural moves, too.

Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., asked Bishop how many more members needed to come forward before the Utah Republican would allow the House to talk about immigration reform.

Bishop said he was happy to talk about the "issue that is at hand," his Antiquities Act measure, and began heralding his legislation before Polis interrupted, saying his Utah counterpart was wading into an "arcane issue" while avoiding the pressing concern about immigration.

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Bishop objects as Dems push immigration reform

President Barack Obama formally endorsed a long-shot legislative gambit from House Democrats aimed at forcing a vote on comprehensive immigration reform as he blamed House Republicans for stalling an overhaul.

In a three-paragraph statement, Obama said he applauds the strategy from Democrats to use a discharge petition to get a vote on immigration reform legislation. A successful petition needs 218 signatures a threshold all but certain to not be reached.

Immigration reform is the right thing to do for our economy, our security and our future, Obama said. A vast majority of the American people agree. The only thing standing in the way is the unwillingness of Republicans in Congress to catch up with the rest of the country.

(Also on POLITICO:Ryan: Immigration a 'when,' not 'if')

Obamas statement released the same day that the discharge petition was filed is unusual. The White House did not release similar statements when House Democrats deployed the tactic on two occasions this year to raise the federal minimum wage and extend unemployment insurance.

A discharge petition forces House leaders to put legislation on the floor for a vote. It needs a majority of House members, or 218 signatures, to succeed. Such efforts are rarely successful because signing the petition is considered a sign of disloyalty for a member of the majority party.

Even if all 199 sitting Democrats endorse the immigration discharge petition, it would still need 19 GOP signatures.

Though they have hinted at the effort for weeks, House Democrats on Wednesday formally launched the discharge petition effort to force a vote on a sweeping bill much like the version that passed the Senate, except that it scales back its so-called border surge provisions. During an outdoor rally in unusually frigid and snowy March weather, a slew of House Democrats and immigration activists urged support for the legislative strategy and pressed for a floor vote on reform.

Every day that you refuse to act is another day that 1,100 families are torn apart by senseless deportations, said actress and activist America Ferrera in a message directed at House Republicans. So we are here, demanding a vote for the families dreading that knock on the door, hoping and praying that they will not be one of the 1,100 today.

On Wednesday, aides to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) noted comments made by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) earlier this month, acknowledging that Democrats will not secure the necessary signatures. Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said simply: We agree with Rep. Pelosi.

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Obama backs Dem immigration push

Eliseo Medinaof Fast for Families greets the crowd of Young American Dreamers and other supporters as he steps off the bus during a stop at the Farmworker Center in Auburndale on Tuesday.

AUBURNDALE | Many in the Auburndale neighborhood might not have understood the cries of "Si, se puede" coming from a crowd of several dozen people about 1 p.m. Tuesday.

They probably would have understood the English version: Yes, we can.

A crowd of mostly young people met a bus from Fast for Families: A Call for Immigration Reform and Citizenship, a nationwide advocacy group that stopped in Polk County to promote its cause. It included an earlier stop at the Lakeland office of U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Lakeland, to press for action in the U.S. House of Representatives on comprehensive immigration reform.

The welcome rally assembled outside 318 W. Bridgers Ave., the headquarters for Centro Campesino, a social services ministry for local farmworkers, where they ate a lunch of tacos, beans and rice. Most of the welcomers were from Young American Dreamers, an Auburndale-based organization advocating for young people denied education and other benefits because their parents brought them to the U.S. illegally as children.

The nationwide tour started on Feb. 24 with two buses, this one on a southern route and the other through northern states, according to its website, http://fast4families.org. The tour will end April 9 at a Washington, D.C., rally.

Eliseo Medina, a tour organizer and former secretary-treasurer of the Service Employees International Union, said they asked Ross to take one of three actions:

Call for a vote on the U.S. Senate immigration reform bill that passed last year but has stalled in the House.

Call for a vote on H.R. 15, a House measure similar to the Senate bill but with different language on border security issues.

Support a bill based on an agreement reached last year by the House "Gang of Eight," a bipartisan group of representatives.

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Advocacy Group, Pushing for Reform on Immigration, Stops in Polk During Bus Tour

House Democrats Hold a Press Conference to Push For Immigration Reform
Chairman Xavier Becerra (CA-34) and Vice Chair Joe Crowley (NY-14) will be joined by Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Judy Chu (CA-27...

By: HouseDems

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House Democrats Hold a Press Conference to Push For Immigration Reform - Video

by John Lantigua | March 25th, 2014

With immigration reform legislation blocked by the GOP leadership in the U.S. House, Democrats are trying a legislative maneuver to bring to the floor HR 15, a bill that resembles the comprehensive reform legislation passed by the Senate last June. The maneuver is called a discharge petition and it is a way to go around the committee process and bring a bill directly to the floor. The GOP controls the House Judiciary Committee and that is where immigration legislation is stuck. The problem for the minority Democrats is that they control 199 seats while Republicans hold 233 and it is doubtful they will attract enough GOP members to make it work. In fact, they may not attract any because even Republicans in favor of immigration reform wont anger their leadership by voting for the petition. Without much chance of success, what Democrats may be trying to accomplish is to demonstrate to their Latino supporters that it is, in fact, the Republicans who are blocking immigration reform. Republicans have said they are wary of passing immigration legislation because they dont trust President Barack Obama to enforce parts of any law he doesnt like. That position has angered some reform activists. Republicans can try to blame the president for the lack of progress on legislation, but their response to the discharge petition makes it clear that the obstacle to legislation is with them, said Frank Sharry, executive director of Americas voice, a pro-reform group. But not all reform activists are sympathetic to the Democrats maneuver. Cristina Jimenez of United We Dream launched an attack this week in The Huffington Post. Without dozens of Republicans on board, a discharge petition isnt a viable political strategy to break the logjam in Congress, Jimenez wrote. House Democrats should instead focus 100 percent of their energy on pressuring the White House to halt deportations They cannot simply seek political cover by gathering meaningless petition signatures.. Lately, many Latino political organizations have been voicing their discontent with the Democratic administration of President Barack Obama, because of the high number of undocumented people being deported almost 2 million since Obama took office in 2009. Obama won 71 percent of the Latino vote in 2012, but some leaders have warned Democrats they are risking Latino support if the deportations continue. We cannot continue to push legislative strategies with the slimmest of possibilities of success while our families are torn apart at a rate never before experienced, Jimenez wrote. The reckless enforcement machine presided over by President Obama exists not just because of Republican extremism and obstructionism, but also because of Democratic posturing and complicity.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 25th, 2014 at 3:04 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Tim Burke, Publisher, The Palm Beach Post.

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Immigration reform activists at odds on Democrat maneuver to bring bill to the House floor