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A subset of House conservatives is circulating a Dear Colleague letter urging Republican leaders not to include a proposal in the defense authorization bill that would grant legal status to young undocumented immigrants in the military.

The letter, obtained by POLITICO Thursday, says the National Defense Authorization Act should focus on national security policy and not be used as a vehicle to advance anyones controversial immigration views.

The effort is led by Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.), one of the most vocal critics of immigration reform that would include a pathway to legal status or citizenship for current undocumented immigrants. It comes after Breitbart News reported an effort from Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) to include a legalization proposal for so-called Dreamers who serve in the military in the annual defense authorization bill.

(Also on POLITICO: Full defense policy coverage)

I oppose using the NDAA to push any immigration agenda, Brooks wrote in the letter asking colleagues to join his effort. That is why I ask you to sign a letter to House leadership informing them that you oppose using the NDAA to push an immigration agenda of any kind.

If immigration legislation is addressed by the House, it should be done so via the proper process, not by attaching it to must pass legislation, the letter continues.

Denham has been a vocal backer of allowing young undocumented immigrants to eventually obtain legal status through military service. He drafted the so-called ENLIST Act which stands for Encourage New Legalized Immigrants to Start Training that allows immigrants who came here illegally before the age of 15 and who are able to enlist in the military to qualify for permanent residency in the United States.

Despite the fierce pushback from the hard-right lawmakers in the House Republican Conference over Denhams push, the policy itself is generally non-controversial. Denhams legislation currently has 42 co-sponsors, including pro-reform Republicans such as Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida and Devin Nunes of California, as well as conservatives in the conference like South Carolina Reps. Trey Gowdy and Mick Mulvaney.

Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), the House Armed Services Committee chairman who would oversee the NDAA process, also is a co-sponsor, as are 18 House Democrats. When asked Thursday if he had decided to include Denhams language in the NDAA, McKeon responded: Thats not how you do it. We have a process. We have subcommittee hearings. We write bills through the subcommittees. I dont put something in a bill.

Furthermore, the House Republican leaderships list of standards for immigration reform, released in January, endorses a chance for legal status and citizenship for children who were brought illegally into the United States by their parents if they meet certain qualifications, as well as serve in the military or get a college degree.

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Conservatives: No immigration in defense bill

In 2007, a coordinated campaign of outrage by conservative talk radio hosts over then-President George W. Bushs push to enact comprehensive immigration reform helped topple the bill. Influencers like Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity made immigration the biggest topic on their programs, and their efforts worked, as shown in astudy by the Pew Research Center. Now they're at it again, this time targeting some of their own.

Fifty conservative radio hostswill gather in Washington next week (April 9-10) to mount another over-the-air fight against the current immigration reform effort, but they aren't going to fight the Democrats who support it; their target is House Republicans.

The event organizer, the Federation for American Immigration Reform, or FAIR, is tight-lipped about the names of hosts who will broadcast their show live from the Phoenix Park Hotel in Washington, D.C.,mere steps from Capitol Hill.However, past participants in the annual Hold Their Feet to the Fire radio meeting included Joyce Kaufman and Lars Larson -- with a combined millions of listeners.

FAIR says the event will underscore the Republican divide on the issue. Of particular concern for the group is House Speaker John Boehners perceived malleability on immigration reform. The Ohio Republican has come out in support of immigration reform. However, earlier this year, under pressure from immigration reform advocates, Boehner released a set of principles for reform he thought could help negotiate with Democrats on a reform bill that passed the Senate but stalled in the House. But less than a week after the principles unveiling, Boehner took them off the table, saying Republicans could not trust President Obama to enforce current immigration laws.

Our goal, and the goal of the hosts participating in Hold Their Feet to the Fire 2014, is to make sure that the House leadership continues to hear the voices of the American people and is reminded that it is their interests that our immigration laws are supposed to serve,said FAIR President Dan Stein.

The focus of our talk [radio] hosts will be on stopping speaker Boehner from enacting legislation that hurts U.S. workers,said Kristen Williamson, spokeswoman for FAIR.

Conservative groups have been critical of Boehner ever since congressional Republicans cut what the groups deemed a bad budget deal with Democrats in December. Boehner has counter-criticized the groups, dismissing them as having lost all credibility for forcing Republican members of Congress to adopt positions they don't want to, and for misleading their followers.

While the conservative movement keeps trying to stall any effort in Congress for immigration reform, Democrats are keeping up the fight. One of the most prominent congressional voices for immigration reform is giving Republicans a deadline: Get serious on reform by the summer, or face the consequences of antagonizing Latino voters.

After almost a year with no serious movement forward on immigration reform in the House, I am beginning to wonder whether the Republicans will get serious about immigration before they run out of time, said Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., an advocate for reform, speaking on the floor earlier this week. If Republicans have not gotten an immigration reform bill seriously rolling down the tracks by the time we break for Independence Day Republicans might as well just fold up the big tent they always talk about. One thing is for sure: Republicans will not be pitching that tent at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue anytime soon.

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Conservative Radio Hosts Fight Immigration Reform - And John Boehner

By Larry O'Dell The Associated Press April 3, 2014

RICHMOND

Advocates for immigration reform have begun a four-day hunger strike in Richmond.

It's part of the national "Fast for Families Across America" campaign that has taken two busloads of advocates to 30 states over the last six weeks. The campaign set up a tent in a park near downtown Richmond on Wednesday to serve as headquarters for its four-day stay before heading to Washington, D.C., next week.

Campaign leader Eliseo Medina said at a news conference that he hopes the fast will touch the hearts of Republicans in Congress who have blocked a vote on comprehensive immigration reform. He said House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Judiciary Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia have a moral responsibility to make sure a vote is held.

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Immigration reform advocates begin fast in Richmond

BY JOE MARVILLI Staff Writer

Elected officials and civic leaders came together in Flushing to demand comprehensive immigration reform, not next year, not eventually, but right now.

U.S. Rep. Steve Israel (D-Melville) was joined by civic leaders and elected officials from northeast Queens to call for a vote in the House of Representatives on immigration reform. According to the Congressman, the bill is being blocked from coming to the floor by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). The group was calling for Boehner to let the bill get a vote.

H.R. 15, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act, has 199 co-sponsors, three of them Republicans. Israel said that another 30 Republicans have said they support immigration reform.

U.S. Rep. Steve Israel was joined by civic leaders S.J. Jung, Yen Chou and Steve Choi, as well as assembly members Ron Kim and Nily Rozic and State Sen. Toby Stavisky, in his call for immigration reform. Photo by Joe Marvilli

It would grow our economy. It would secure our borders. It would unite families. It would create pathways to citizenship. It would support small businesses in Flushing and throughout the country, he said. My constituents want there to be a vote. Theres no more excuses and no reason to delay it.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the bill would reduce that national deficit by $900 billion over 20 years. Besides the economic benefits, the reform would reduce the mass deportations throughout the country that has separated families.

House Republicans are turning deaf ears to Americans. They are also turning cold shoulders to the sufferings of immigrants, whose families are torn apart, whose dreams are shattered by our nations broken immigration system, S.J. Jung, president of the MinKwon Center for Community Action, said. We will not rest until we break through Republican opposition. Immigration reform is not just about immigrants. Its about our nations future.

Two of the assembly members on hand at the rally, Nily Rozic (D-Hillcrest) and Ron Kim (D-Flushing), are first-generation Americans. Both of them argued that everyone deserves the same opportunities they had when they came to this country.

At the State level, were doing whatever we can to make sure were a strong voice for immigrant rights and immigrant reform, Kim said.

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Elected Officials Call For Immigration Reform

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