WASHINGTON – After secretive talks, key senators expressed optimism Wednesday night that they were closing in on a bipartisan agreement to toughen the border security requirements in immigration legislation that also offers a path to citizenship to millions living in the country illegally.
Under the emerging compromise, the government would grant legal status to immigrants living in the United States unlawfully at the same time the additional security was being put into place. Green cards, which signify permanent residency status, would be withheld until the security steps were complete.
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The change has the potential to give a powerful boost to the immigration bill that is at the top of President Obama’s second-term domestic agenda.
The developments came as Democrats who met with House Speaker John Boehner during the day quoted him as saying he expects the House to pass its own version of an immigration bill this summer and for Congress to have a final compromise by year’s end. Boehner, R-Ohio, already has said the legislation that goes to the House in the next month or two will not include a pathway to citizenship for those in the U.S. illegally.
Precise details of the pending agreement in the Senate were unavailable, although the legislation already envisions more border agents; additional fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border; surveillance drones; a requirement for employers to verify the legal status of potential workers; as well as a biometric system to track foreigners who enter and leave the U.S. at airports and seaports and by land.
“Our whole effort has been to build a bipartisan group that will support the bill,” said Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., who has not stated a position. “That’s what this is all about, and it’s focused on border security.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., one of the bill’s most prominent supporters, said discussions with Republicans “have been really productive. We’ve made a lot of progress in the last 24 hours. Now we have some vetting to do with our respective allies.”
The potential compromise came into focus one day after the Congressional Budget Office jolted lawmakers with an estimate saying that as drafted, the legislation would fail to prevent a steady increase in the future in the number of residents living in the United States illegally.
The estimate appeared to give added credibility to Republicans who have been pressing Democrats to toughen the border security provisions already written into the bill. Schumer and Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., met at midday with Hoeven, and Republican Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. The Democrats and Graham are part of the so-called bipartisan Gang of Eight that drafted the bill.
Under the legislation as drafted, legalization could begin as soon as a security plan was drafted, but a 10-year wait is required for a green card.
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