Maddox: Immigration reform's path to 218 House votes (discharge petition?)
But as is painfully obvious, The House of Representatives, led by a radicalized Republican majority that's openly hostile towards immigration, will be a far more difficult hurdle. That said, all hope is not lost, at least not yet. There are three scenarios, some of which are more realistic than others, which suggest reform still has a pulse, despite right-wing objections.
First, Boehner may be bluffing. The Speaker has vowed to stick to the so-called "Hastert Rule," which is a made-up procedural standard, but he's changed his mind about this before. Indeed, Boehner has a habit of saying lots of things, only to change course later. It's true that on immigration, he hasn't left himself a lot of wiggle room, but he's also publicly endorsed a comprehensive solution to the nation's broken immigration system, suggesting he doesn't want to see the entire effort die, especially at his hands.
Second, the House might pass an alternative. The House GOP strongly objects to the Senate bill, for reasons that aren't entirely clear, but the lower chamber could, in theory, pass a related bill and send the whole thing to a conference committee. There's a bipartisan "gang" in the House that swears it's nearly done with a bill, and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) has a plan of his own in mind. If the House can get its act together and pass something, a worthwhile package may yet emerge from bicameral talks.
Which leads us to my preferred option...
... there's always a discharge petition. As a rule, the only bills that reach the House floor for a vote are the ones House leaders allow to reach the floor. But there's an exception: if 218 members sign a discharge petition, their preferred legislation is brought up for a vote whether the majority party's leadership likes it or not.ves, led by a radicalized Republican majority that's openly hostile towards immigration, will be a far more difficult hurdle.
Just last week, we were told they were as many as 40 House Republicans who consider themselves moderates, unhappy with their party's far-right direction. Is there a chance half of these alleged centrists might sign a discharge petition and get immigration reform done? Sure there is.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/06/28/19187732-immigration-reforms-path-to-218-house-votes
Interesting possibility. Could the Orange Man see this as a way to surreptitiously allow a Senate-like bill be voted on while telling the radical right wing of his caucus "I tried to stick to the Hastert Rule but those sneaky Democrats found a loophole to get around me." He knows that if the republican house kills immigration reform, the electoral impact on his party nationally will be dire.
