Democrats Can’t Include Immigration Reform In Budget Bill, Senate Parliamentarian Rules

On Sunday night, the Senate parliamentarian issued a ruling that blocks Democrats’ attempt to give undocumented immigrants legal status in their massive social spending bill.

“The policy changes of this proposal far outweigh the budgetary impact scored to it, and it is not appropriate for inclusion in reconciliation,” Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough said Sunday in her ruling.

The decision left Democrats disappointed, including the Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York), who vowed to make another attempt to include the immigration reform section by “holding additional meetings with the Senate parliamentarian.”

“We are deeply disappointed in this decision, but the fight to provide lawful status for immigrants in budget reconciliation continues,” Schumer said in a statement. “Senate Democrats have prepared alternate proposals and will be holding additional meetings with the Senate parliamentarian in the coming days.”

Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) also hinted that the Senate Democrats will have more to say on the subject.

“Deeply disappointed in the Senate Parliamentarian’s decision today, but the fight for immigration reform will continue,” Padilla tweeted. “Senate Democrats have prepared an alternative proposal for the Parliamentarian’s consideration in the coming days.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, on the other hand, touted the decision from the Senate parliamentarian, claiming that the Democrats’ attempt to include the immigration reform was their “most radical amnesty proposal.”

“Senate rules never contemplated a majority circumventing the filibuster by pretending that sweeping and transformational new policies were mere budgetary changes,” McConnell said in a statement. “Democrats will not be able to stuff their most radical amnesty proposals into the reckless taxing and spending spree they are assembling behind closed doors.” 

“This just illustrates how radical Democrats’ aspirations are and how unmoored their far-left wish list has become from the procedures they want to use to ram it through,” McConnell added.

Democrats are currently using the budget reconciliation process to pass a proposed $3.5 trillion worth of comprehensive environmental and social programs into law.

Last week, President Joe Biden had a meeting with two centrist Democrats, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona), who have been opposing the party’s bill.

Article by Dongyoon Shin