The GOP's worst nightmare.
So here's how screwed-up the House is—there are enough votes to pass the Senate's comprehensive immigration reform bill, yet Republican House Speaker John Boehner refuses to allow a vote because it might pass and make the xenophobic fringe in his party sad.
So after releasing a "statement of principles" that included such titillating principles as “Implement Entry-Exit Visa Tracking System” and “Employment Verification and Workplace Enforcement” (not to mention telling the Asian and Latino communities that Republicans would NEVER consider them American), Boehner surveyed the hysterical reaction from the Right, pulled a Palin and quit, then blamed Obama just because.
So there's this thing called a "discharge petition" that allows a majority of the House to force a vote. The catch is that it while there's majority for the Senate reform bill, Republican supporters are afraid to sign the petition lest they incur the wrath of ... Ted Cruz? Glenn Beck? Rush Limbaugh? You know, crazy people.
Democrats and reform advocates had backed off on the idea of the discharge petition, hoping that common sense would prevail with the Republican caucus. Pushing the petition was seen as inflammatory, so shhh. But with Boehner declaring reform dead for the year, the time for "shhh" is over. EJ Dionne and Sen. Chuck Schumer have already begun pushing it. The clamor should only grow.
Can we find 17 Republicans (plus a handful more to make up for the inevitable Blue Dog nays) willing to sign that discharge petition? Maybe, maybe not. But it's time to find out. And if they won't sign, we can make it clear who stands in the way of reform.
Ask your congressperson to sign a discharge petition, right now. Seriously, do it.