Following up on President Obama’s new focus on immigration reform, Senate Democrats are renewing a drive to pass the DREAM Act, a bill that would grant a path to citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants who attend college or serve in the military.
The legislation, however, has little chance of passing on its own after failing to break a Republican filibuster during last year’s lame duck session in a vote that saw a handful of both Democrats and Republicans cross party lines. Since then the Senate has lost six Democrats and the House has turned Republican, reducing its already low odds of success to near zero.
At a press conference announcing the new campaign, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said that he hoped he would be able to bring Republicans to his side to help pass the bill.
“This is not a contest between people who are Democrats or Republicans, even if that’s how it has played out recently,” he said. “We ask Republicans of good will to step forward and work with us on this, something that is good for our country in so many different ways.”
Responding to a reporter’s question, Reid suggested that he was also open to negotiation on the bill’s details and that he may seek to attach it to legislation cracking down on employers who hire undocumented workers that has strong GOP support.
“We are not drawing any lines in the sand, that’s why today we’ve been very careful in indicating the Republicans should step forward and help us on this,” he said. “I’ll be happy to look at their bill and maybe we’ll get the help we need to get this done.”
