A change of season does not bring a change of issues for Congress. As lawmakers head into the summer, it’s the same old docket. From student loans to immigration, Democrats and Republicans remains at odds on how to handle the issues.
Americans are not too optimistic that anything can be accomplished within the gridlock of Washington this year. According to a poll by Quinnipiac University, 69% of voters say they do not believe immigration reform will pass this year, with only 27% thinking that both sides of the aisle can work together to pass a bill.
But some in our nation’s capital don’t share the sentiment. “I’m not as down on this process right now as other people are,” TheGrio.com’s Perry Bacon Jr. told The Cycle hosts. “The Senate bill [on immigration] passed 18 days ago, so things in Congress move pretty slowly.” Bacon remarked that House Speaker John Boehner “knows most House members hate this bill and it’s going to have to pass with Democratic votes. So he couldn’t put a bill on the floor next week. He has to let this process come out, he has to let Republican activists complain.”
Speculation still swirls as to whether or not Boehner would violate the Hastert Rule and bring the immigration bill to the floor for a vote. But if Bacon is right that letting naysayers complain will eventually bring the bill forward, Boehner may be waiting a while. After all, this is the same House that translated their complaints about Obamacare into 37 separate votes against the law–with promises of more to come.
Abby Borovitz