WASHINGTON -- Nearly two dozen House Republicans on Thursday pressed Speaker Paul Ryan to act quickly on legislation that would protect about 800,000 illegal aliens brought to the United States as children.
The lawmakers said efforts to grant such deportation protection would easily pass in the House, with dozens in the GOP set to join Democrats in backing such a bill.
None of the Arkansas congressional delegation members indicated Thursday that they're part of the group pressing for the protections.
The participants in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, have a temporary reprieve from deportation. But they face an uncertain future after President Donald Trump's decision to end the Obama-era program; Trump has given Congress until March to come up with a fix.
[U.S. immigration: Data visualization of selected immigration statistics, U.S. border map]
Separately Thursday, a federal judge in Brooklyn, N.Y., said courts can review the U.S. Justice Department's decision to rescind the DACA program.
U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, ruled that the lawsuits could proceed over the planned termination of the program, rejecting the Justice Department's request that they be dismissed. The judge narrowed some of the claims in the lawsuits.
Democrats, the minority party in the House, repeatedly have pressed for a legislative solution for the DACA program participants. Now, some Republicans, several from competitive House districts, have thrown their support behind the effort.
Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., said at a Capitol Hill news conference that their remarks were meant to encourage Ryan and "maybe put a little pressure on him as well to come forward with that solution that a majority of Republicans can support."
Ryan, responding minutes later, said "active discussions are underway with members" about the issue, but he saw no need to act before Trump's deadline. "I don't think we should put artificial deadlines inside the one we already have," Ryan said.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi reiterated Thursday that her intention is to have legislation this year. "We're not kicking the can down to March," she said.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, predicted widespread backing in the 435-member House.
"When the bill comes to the floor, whatever bill it is, I predict it will have a huge vote. Well over 300 votes to send this bill to the Senate," Barton said.
Newhouse said that including the deportation protection in a year-end spending bill to keep the government open is not their first option. But, he added, that "if in order to be successful in this issue that is an option that is open to us, I think a lot of people would probably be open to that."
House conservatives warned Ryan, R-Wis., last month against doing that. Ryan said Thursday that he favors considering the issue "separately, on its own merits."
Trump and Republican senators agreed last week not to deal with a needed fix for the deferred-action participants in the year-end spending legislation, according to some GOP lawmakers who visited the White House. Instead, they said, a solution probably would wait until next year.
Democrats have indicated that they want to use the spending bill to force action on behalf of the illegal aliens, commonly referred to as Dreamers because of an earlier proposal called the Dream Act that would have provided similar protections.
While Ryan held his weekly news conference, hundreds of foreigners walked out from nine schools in the Washington area and then rallied in front of Congress demanding quick legislation.
"It is a slap on the face that Ryan says there is no urgency," Bruna Bouhid said. "How are we supposed to celebrate the holidays being afraid of being deported?"
Immigrant advocates have been pushing for action. In September, Democratic leaders said they had a deal with Trump to enshrine protections for the aliens in exchange for border security measures short of a border wall. But the supposed deal immediately came into dispute and now appears to have unraveled if it existed at all.
Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., whose district covers northeastern Arkansas, said dealing with the deferred-action participants should not be Congress' top priority.
"Before we adjudicate anyone under the DACA umbrella, we need to address border security. If we fail to properly secure our border, any disposition of DACA individuals will incentivize further illegal immigration," the Republican from Jonesboro said.
Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., was traveling and unavailable for comment late Thursday, spokesman Ryan Saylor said.
Arkansas Republican Rep. Steve Womack's position on the issue hasn't changed, according to his spokesman, Heather Neilson. In September, Womack expressed sympathy for the deferred-action participants, who are often young, blaming a "broken immigration system" for their predicament.
"Congress has the responsibility to address this issue and now is the time to do so," he said at the time, calling for a legislative action instead of an executive fix.
In September, Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., called the existing immigration system "inflexible and outdated."
Hill's position hasn't changed, his spokesman, Caroline Thorman, said. Hill said at the time that he and his colleagues were "committed to improving our broken immigration system compassionately and thoughtfully to ensure that those coming to our country can easily comply with our laws in order to pursue a bright and promising future."
While the House faced the issue, lawmakers on the other side of Capitol Hill also called for new immigration legislation.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., wants a bill that is "limited to those who have DACA permits today, puts an end to chain migration, and includes enhanced enforcement measures," spokesman Caroline Tabler said.
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., was traveling and not available for comment, a spokesman said Thursday. In September, Boozman said Congress had been empowered to "restore the integrity of our nation's immigration system" and promised to "push for legislative solutions to fix our broken immigration system, including the lengthy and burdensome legal immigration process."
Information for this article was contributed by Luis Alonso Lugo of The Associated Press; by Patricia Hurtado of Bloomberg News; and by Frank E. Lockwood of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
A Section on 11/10/2017