[ICYMI] White House, Senate Leadership: Senate will Propose Alternate Immigration-Related Proposals to the Parliamentarian

We wanted to make you aware that Senate Leadership will present alternate immigration-related proposals for the Senate Parliamentarian’s consideration in the coming days, after the Parliamentarian stated her opposition to an initial iteration late Sunday.

As we have been saying for weeks, we anticipate this would be a multi-step, iterative process with multiple bites at the apple. Read FWD.us’ statement here on the Parliamentarian ruling.

Also last night, the White House and Senate Leadership reiterated their support for a pathway to citizenship to be included in the reconciliation package and made clear that the fight for immigration reform will continue. A new report released Friday from the Biden-Harris Administration’s Council of Economic Advisors highlighted the robust economic benefits of providing a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants as outlined in the Build Back Better Agenda. The analysis found that these reforms would result in higher wages, greater productivity and innovation, raise tax revenue, and more.

Congress has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pass a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants currently living, working, and contributing to our families and communities across this country. This can and must be the year that Congress finally recognizes Dreamers, TPS holders, farmworkers, and immigrant essential workers as the Americans they already are.

Statements from the White House and Senate Leadership are below.

The White House:
“The President has made very clear that he supports efforts by Congress to include a pathway to citizenship in the reconciliation package and is grateful to Congressional leadership for all of the work they are doing to make this a reality. The Parliamentarian’s ruling is deeply disappointing but we fully expect our partners in the Senate to come back with alternative immigration-related proposals for the Parliamentarian to consider.”

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

“The American people understand that fixing our broken immigration system is a moral and economic imperative. America has always been that shining city on the hill that welcomes those pursuing the American Dream and our economy depends more than ever on immigrants. Despite putting their lives on the line during the pandemic and paying their fair share of taxes, they remain locked out of the federal assistance that served as a lifeline for so many families. We will continue fighting to pursue the best path forward to grant them the ability to obtain lawful status.”

Joint Statement from Sen. Durbin and Sen. Padilla:
“We are deeply disappointed in the Parliamentarian’s decision, but the fight for immigration reform will continue. Senate Democrats have prepared an alternative proposal for the Parliamentarian’s consideration in the coming days.”

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