Apparently, the specter of November was enough to cloud some Senate Democrats' eyes to the fact that they've been winning the messaging war on immigration and this Trump Shutdown, and they’ve reportedly struck a deal.
In exchange for their votes, they've reportedly been told that there will be an immigration vote on the floor starting on February 9, provided that the government is not shut down again on February 8. McConnell has apparently promised an open amendment process but with a 60 vote threshold on amendments. He has made it very clear that he will not be bringing the Dream Act to the floor, but rather a "Fair amendment process—not a vote on one specific bill."
In a floor speech, Democratic leader Chuck Schumer made clear that this was the Trump Shutdown, but that he and Mitch McConnell came to an agreement "with the commitment that if an agreement hasn't been reached by February 8 that the Senate will move directly to consideration of DACA," and that "a bipartisan bill on DACA will receive fair consideration and an up-or-down vote on the floor."
"I expect the majority leader to fulfill his commitment to the Senate, he said. If not, he adds, “he will have breached the trust” of his colleagues. Which clearly is not much of a threat. McConnell regularly breaches the trust of colleagues on both sides of the aisle.
Meanwhile, the CR has changed, which means it has to pass in the House. That's by no means guaranteed, because House Democrats have had plenty of experience dealing with this.
Monday, Jan 22, 2018 · 5:44:51 PM +00:00
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Joan McCarter
The vote isn’t finished, but it’s passed with currently 78 votes. Democrats voting no so far: Blumenthal, Booker, Cortez Masto, Feinstein, Gillibrand, Harris, Hirono, Leahy, Menendez, Merkley, Murphy, Tester, Warrne, Wyden, Sanders