Congressional Republicans tried to provoke a confrontation with President Obama by, not funding Homeland Security for a full year, but Mitch McConnell admitted that Senate Democrats have successfully killed the Republican effort to overturn Obama’s immigration executive actions.
McConnell announced that Senate Republicans can’t pass the House’s Homeland Security bill, “The next move obviously is up to the House,” McConnell said following a Senate GOP conference lunch. It’s clear we can’t get on the bill. We can’t offer amendments to the bill. And I think it would be pretty safe to say we’re stuck because of Democratic obstruction on the Senate side. I think it’s clear we can’t go forward in the Senate, unless you’ve all heard something I haven’t.”
In other words, McConnell was telling Boehner that the bill to overturn Obama’s immigration executive actions is dead as a doornail.
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If Republicans want to fund Homeland Security for the rest of the year, John Boehner is going to have to pass a clean Homeland Security funding bill. For months, Boehner has been promising that the House would take action against Obama’s immigration executive orders.
The nation has been down this road many times since Republicans took control of the House. Speaker Boehner promises action. The House passes a bill that will never pass the Senate. The deadline for the Republican manufactured crisis approaches, Boehner backs down and passes a clean bill thanks to the support of House Democrats.
The only difference is that Republicans thought when they won the midterm election that it would be different. They believed that McConnell could strong arm unpopular legislation through the Senate. Republicans thought that they could pass their agenda by dividing Democrats. They were wrong on all counts.
Mitch McConnell can whine about obstruction forever, and the irony of Mitch McConnell complaining about obstruction never gets old, but the reality is that Senate Republicans can’t to pass anything without Democratic support.
The dreamed of utopia that Mitch McConnell promised during his reelection campaign is in tatters as Republicans keep themselves caught in the traps that they set for President Obama.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
