Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) needled Speaker John Boehner on Wednesday after the Ohio Republican slammed the door shut on a bicameral conference committee on the Senate-passed immigration reform bill.
“I believe the House will come to its senses and realize that we have to fix our immigration system in a bipartisan way. You cannot pass any bill with just Democratic or Republican votes,” the New York senator said in a statement. “They cannot possibly end this Congress only having passed legislation to deport all of the Dream Act kids.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Boehner said House GOP leaders “have no intention ever of going to conference on the Senate bill.” He added, “I want us to deal with this issue but I want to deal with it in a common sense step by step way.”
Just days after the 2012 election, Boehner told ABC News of immigration: “This issue has been around far too long, and while I believe it’s important for us to secure our borders and to enforce our laws, I think a comprehensive approach is long overdue, and I’m confident that the president, myself, others, can find the common ground to take care of this issue once and for all.”
