Hidden in the budget: Democrats are cunning to accept a plan to issue green cards to illegal immigrants

Democrats' long-standing hopes of securing legal status for millions of immigrants are now in the hands of an obscure figure: the Senate Parliamentarian (adviser to the Senate on the interpretation of its rules and procedures). Writes about it The Hill.

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Democrats told non-partisan arbiter Elizabeth McDonough of their plan to grant permanent legal status that paves the way for citizenship for 8 million immigrants, including “dreamers”, temporary protected status, agricultural workers and other important workers.

After years of fighting to conclude an immigration reform deal and with President Joe Biden's overarching plan stalled, Democrats are willing to go it alone. They have decided to incorporate their smaller plan into a massive $ 3,5 trillion social spending bill that they hope to pass soon.

But first, they need to convince McDonough, a retired immigration lawyer who has ditched key priorities for both sides in budget-alignment measures in recent years.

Democratic officials from the Senate Judicial and Budgetary Committees, as well as Senate leaders, met with McDonough to prove that the immigration plan complies with the rules that govern what can be included in the spending package.

Democrats are using the budget approval process to prevent the GOP from delaying Senate decisions. The problem is that there are severe restrictions on what can be included in such measures.

On the subject: Mayors of dozens of cities across the country ask Biden to protect millions of illegal immigrants

Democrats will have to convince McDonough that the immigration plan affects federal spending and revenues, and that its impact is not "just random" for off-budget purposes.

“We believe that passage of this legislation by reconciliation is appropriate because the budgetary implications of the bill are significant and the off-budget effects do not disproportionately outweigh the budgetary implications,” the Democratic aide said.

According to initial estimates from the Congressional Budget Office, the plan will increase the budget deficit by $ 139,6 billion over a 10-year period.

The Democrats stressed that the bill does not directly speak of citizenship. They see it as a law that paves the way for obtaining permanent legal status or a green card. Obtaining permanent legal status allows a person, if they can meet a number of requirements, to eventually apply for citizenship.

GOP officials told McDonough why the Democratic plan did not meet the requirements set out for what could be included in the budget bill. They made it clear for weeks that they would fight the Democratic plan.

Senator John Cornin (Texas), a member of the judiciary committee, argued that the Democratic plan "almost certainly will not work under Senate rules."

Cornyn also cited one of McDonough's predecessors, Alan Frumin, who warned that while changes to immigration would likely impact the budget, those impacts could be seen as "merely secondary" to the plan's larger goal of immigration reform.

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There is no guarantee that a non-partisan arbiter will give the green light to the Democratic plan. Recent decisions have caused disappointment on both sides. In 2017, McDonough backed out of a Senate plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare, and earlier this year she warned Democrats that raising the minimum wage to $ 15 an hour, a key priority for progressives, was not in line with budget negotiation rules.

If McDonough opposes immigration reform, the provision could be dropped from the bill if Democrats fail to get 60 votes. And that means the backing of at least 10 GOP senators to keep him in the bill.

McDonough is part judge, in charge of deciding what's within the Senate's budget rules, and like the Senate's oracle, unknown to reporters.

Democrats hope they can incorporate immigration reform into their $ 3,5 trillion spending plan. As an example, they point to 2005, when the draft law included a plan to solve the problem of non-compliance with the issuance of visas.

Democrats and related outside groups are stepping up pressure to include immigration reform in a massive spending package.

The Senate previously pursued "comprehensive" immigration reform back in 2013, but it ran into obstacles in the House of Representatives, then controlled by the Republican Party.

Since then, the discussion about immigration on Capitol Hill has become more polarized: then President Donald Trump demanded billions to build a border wall between the United States and Mexico, supported a reduction in legal immigration, and took a tough stance on asylum. Bipartisan discussions under US President Joe Biden have been unsuccessful.

Biden, who chaired the Judicial Committee during his time in the Senate, approved the inclusion of immigration in the budget bill, but hinted that "remains to be seen" if he will be allowed to remain on it.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pledged that Democrats will "fight" for their immigration plan, but acknowledged that there are questions about whether whether this is the plan of the Parliamentarian ”.

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