Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
Sen. Chuck Schumer
called a Republican bluff on immigration reform on Sunday, and was predictably met by Republican bluster. Republicans have claimed they didn't want to pass immigration reform because President Barack Obama wouldn't enforce it strongly enough for their tastes.
"There's a simple solution: Let's enact the law this year but simply not let it actually start until 2017, after President Obama's term is over," Schumer, the third-ranking Senate Democrat said on NBC's "Meet The Press."
A spokesman for House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) rejected Schumer's idea saying it would remove the impetus for Obama to enforce immigration laws during his remaining time in office.
"The suggestion is entirely impractical, since it would totally eliminate the President's incentive to enforce immigration law for the remainder of his term," said Boehner spokesman Michael Steel.
That simply makes no sense. Lots of laws are passed to take effect in the future, and no one worries that existing laws won't be enforced in the interim. This is pure excuse making and dodging. Guys, you just don't want to pass immigration reform. Admit it. "We don't want to fix a broken system because we don't like brown people." You can even leave off the "we don't like brown people" part; it's not like we can't fill it in mentally.