Not letting up pressure.
House Republicans have been doing everything in their power to stymie any progress on immigration reform. They've ignored the Senate's comprehensive bipartisan bill, and have bottled on piecemeal enforcement-only "reforms" in committee—afraid that a Senate-style bill would easily pass an open vote in the House, and that even an enforcement only bill could morph into a Senate-style bill in a House-Senate conference committee.
In other words, they want nothing to pass. Nothing.
Conservatives hoped that summer recess-season town halls would deliver stern warnings against congresscritters on immigration, but the xenophobes never showed. (Remember this?) In fact, it was the opposite—it was pro-reform audiences who dominated the scene. Then there's the latest conservative "unskewing," which has them convinced that they can win future elections on the strength of the white vote alone. It may be a ridiculous notion, but it has given succor to the obstructionists desperate to forget the lessons of their 2012 debacle.
Syria has given them a new excuse to delay things, as did the looming budget battle. But immigration reform groups are gearing up for an October push to try and force action in the House.
The organizations plan a mobilization in early October, with rallies in at least 40 cities on Oct. 5 followed by a march and rally in Washington on Oct. 8. Convinced that a majority exists in the House for the legislation, they will press for Mr. Boehner to allow a vote before the end of the year. Leaders said the Syria debate and the fiscal fight should not become “excuses” to set aside immigration.
“We’re gearing up for late October — we’re going to push really hard for votes this fall and negotiations with the Senate,” said Frank Sharry, the executive director of America’s Voice, an advocacy group. “We never figured we’d have an opportunity in September because of the budget stuff and with the debt ceiling.”
Given the refusal of Republicans to get the bill out of committee, a discharge petition is likely the best path to success—if a majority of House members sign the petition, the bill must be brought to a full vote. As of now, at least 24 House Republicans are supportive of reform (25 with Speaker John Boehner, who also has indicated personal support). With 201 Democrats, that would get us over the hump even assuming some Democratic defections.
Still, members are generally loathe to sign discharge petitions that fly in the face of their own party's leadership. It's a tall task and one that could only be made possible with serious pressure.
October will be the big month, but you can lend your voice to that effort by asking your congressperson to sign a discharge petition forcing a vote on the issue. Conservatives are desperate to stop this, so let's make their job that much harder.