national legislation

Post updated at 9:38 p.m. ET.

A massive federal spending bill finally won the House's approval Thursday night, less than 3 hours before a midnight deadline that threatened a federal shutdown. The measure's fate had been in doubt after it narrowly survived a rules vote earlier in the day. The final tally was 219-206.

Faced with uncertainty over Congress meeting its deadline to approve a bill, the House's leadership scheduled a vote on both the long-term spending bill and a stop-gap continuing resolution. It passed a two-day resolution in order to give the Senate time to consider the spending bill.

The $1.014 trillion spending measure has been criticized for easing rules on campaign finance and the banking industry. But its supporters say it's also a bipartisan deal that would fund most of the U.S. government until next October.

Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., called it a "hold your nose vote."

The final tally for the spending bill was starkly different from that in an earlier procedural vote.

Around mid-day, no Democrat voted in favor. But after the final vote was called shortly after 9 p.m. ET, more than 30 Democrats voted for the spending bill. In contrast, more than twice as many Republicans voted against it in the final tally than had earlier in the day.

We've updated this text; from our earlier post:

Disagreement over the bill forced the final vote to be delayed for hours Thursday. It also created unlikely alliances: The White House joined with House Speaker John Boehner to rally support for the measure, most House Democrats agreed with a small group of Republicans – including Rep. Michele Bachmann – that the bill should be rejected.

You can read the bill, broken down by government agency, on the House Appropriations Committee site.

The legislation was nicknamed "cromnibus" because it combines the traditional sweeping scope of an omnibus spending bill with a continuing resolution (CR). While it would fund most of the government until the next financial year, the Department of Homeland Security would only be funded through February, in a move that seeks to limit President Obama's recent executive actions on immigration.

Another part of the measure would vastly increase the maximum amount of money a contributor can give to a political party.

"Right now a person can give just under $100,000 a year to a party through its various committees," NPR's Ailsa Chang reports on All Things Considered. "And under this bill, that cap goes up to almost $800,000."

After no Democrats voted in favor and more than a dozen Republicans defected to vote against, the House was adjourned so Boehner could organize his support.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi spoke out against the bill in the House earlier Thursday, sharply criticizing it for altering rules in the Dodd-Frank financial reform law to let banks place both standard accounts and accounts that handle riskier derivative trades under the protection of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

"I was so really heartbroken ... to see the taint that was placed on this valuable appropriations bill from on high," Pelosi said. She told her colleagues that anyone voting for the legislation would be putting their name next to what she called "a ransom" and "blackmail" that would profit Wall Street.

Discussing the opposition, Boehner said the provisions were "agreed to in this bill on a bipartisan, bicameral agreement. So while some members may have objected to this issue or that issue, nobody did this unilaterally. We've done this in a bipartisan fashion, and frankly it's a good bill."

Others have criticized the bill for containing provisions such as one that seeks to block Washington, D.C.'s bid to legalize the recreational use of marijuana — as more than 65 percent of the federal district's voters decided to do last month.

The Hill tells us who voted with the Democrats against the spending measure earlier Thursday:

"The 16 Republican defectors were Reps. Justin Amash (Mich.), Michele Bachmann (Minn.), Dave Brat (Va.), Mo Brooks (Ala.), Paul Broun (Ga.), Louie Gohmert (Texas), Paul Gosar (Ariz.), Tim Huelskamp (Kan.), Walter Jones (N.C.), Jim Jordan (Ohio), Steve King (Iowa), Raúl Labrador (Idaho), Thomas Massie (Ky.), Bill Posey (Fla.), Matt Salmon (Ariz.) and Steve Stockman (Texas)." Read more about 'Cromnibus' Spending Bill Passes, Just Hours Before Deadline

On Election Day Americans across the United States voted to turn control of the United States Senate over to Republicans and increase the number of Republicans in the House of Representatives. Additionally, many supposed “Blue” (Democratic) states elected Republican governors.

About one week before the elections, President Obama admitted that the elections would be, in essence, a referendum on the policies of his administration. One of the most contentious and controversial policy decisions of his administration was to exercise “prosecutorial discretion” to grant lawful status to hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens (DREAMERs) who may be as old as 31 years of age who claim to have entered the United States prior to their 15^th birthday.

Clearly the majority of American voters oppose the president’s agenda – his policies and his actions.

Yet, incredibly, during his first news conference held just after Election Day, President Obama said that he would not attempt to read the “political tea leaves” but would leave it to the journalists and pundits to do that. He might as well have stuffed his fingers in his ears and made it clear that he will not listen to the voices of the citizens of the United States, who had just spoken loud and clearly on this issue. It is beyond belief that any politician would not be concerned about interpreting the results of elections or political polls.

Where immigration and other issues are concerned, the President has, in effect, stated, “Damn the will of the American people, full steam ahead!”

The Washington Post published the transcript of the presidential news conference. Here is one of many key sentences from his prepared statement:

All of us have to give more Americans a reason to feel like the ground is stable beneath their feet, that the future is secure, that there is a path for young people to succeed, and that folks here in Washington are concerned about them.

Our immigration laws were enacted to protect American lives and the jobs of American workers. How would providing millions of illegal aliens with lawful status provide Americans with that which the President claimed should be provided to Americans? Virtually every political candidate promises to “create jobs.” However, each month the number of foreign workers entering the United States is greater than the number of new jobs that are being created. Legalizing unknown millions of heretofore illegal aliens would put these aliens into direct competition with unemployed and underemployed American workers. Even Americans who don’t lose their jobs to foreign competitors will likely suffer wage suppression. It is time for the government to liberate jobs by effectively enforcing the immigration laws. This would, overnight, free up millions of jobs for Americans.

The contradictions in his prepared statement and his responses to questions posed by reporters at that news conference were obvious and disturbing. On the one hand he talked about the need to enable American workers to find good jobs and for American students to be able to afford college educations so that they can get attain their goals and not have to worry about paying off massive student loans. On the other hand, however, he talked about the need to go forward with what he deemed would be “lawful” actions to provide millions of illegal aliens with pathways to lawful status provided that they paid their taxes, learned English and would be put on the infamous “end of the line.” “Beauty,” as the saying goes, “is in the eye of the beholder.” These previous issued executive orders are of questionable legality and raise many questions that have, thus far gone unanswered. This time he may well over-reach and could face many legal challenges.

Of course no one ever asks, where is the end of the line or where the line leads. The point is, that while waiting on the “end of the line,” these aliens would be granted lawful status, giving them an equal standing in the labor pool as lawful immigrants and even, United States citizens. Although the presence of these aliens in the United States represents a violation of law, yet they would be provided with official identity documents and because of the huge number of aliens who would be eligible to participate, there would be no capacity to conduct in-person interviews or field investigations to verify that the information contained in their applications is accurate and truthful. There would be no way to verify when or how they entered the United States, or what is in their backgrounds or their possible affiliations with criminal or terrorist organizations.

The administration appears hell-bent on wielding the President’s infamous phone and pen to undermine America and American workers by undermining the integrity of the immigration system.

However, what remains to be seen is what, if anything, the Congress will do. We need to be concerned about what the “Lame Duck” congress may do and we also need to be just as concerned about what both the Senate and House of Representatives may do when they re-convene in January.

In noting the “Lame Duck” Congress, it is remarkable that when employees are terminated they are almost invariably divested of their access to the computer databases at work before they are handed their “pink slips” to make certain that they not take any retaliatory action against their employer.

Where Congress is concerned, members who have lost their positions have several weeks during that dreaded “Lame Duck” period when they continue to have full authority to act, even though they know that they are no longer going to be held accountable by the electorate. This is an open invitation to a disaster! The time has come to end this lunacy. At the very least, the day after Election Day, members of Congress who were either defeated or decided to not run for re-election should not be able to take official action. Votes on critical issues should not be cast by those who are on their way out the door.

Here is a cautionary note to all members of Congress. The American people have spoken loudly. In just two years every seat in the House of Representatives will be up for election again. One third of all Senate seats will be up for election and the White House will be up for grabs. Clearly the citizens of the United States have awakened from their slumber. Americans, irrespective of political orientation, are angry and are very much paying attention. Immigration is rarely portrayed as it should be. It is not a single issue but a singular issue that impacts virtually every challenge and threat America and Americans face. As I noted in my PFIR policy brief, “The Liberal Case for Effective Immigration Law Enforcement” this is not about “Left” or “Right” but about right or wrong.

When Obama was asked about the nuclear aspirations of Iran and negotiations with the United States, he said that it would be better to not make any deal than make a bad deal. This perspective must be applied to any immigration proposals as well. Read more about Obama Promises (Threatens?) to Take Executive Action on Immigration

Americans who voted in the midterms on Tuesday overwhelming are opposed to President Barack Obama's executive amnesty and do not want foreign workers to take jobs from Americans and legal immigrants who are already here.

Overall, strong "majorities of men (75%), women (74%), whites (79%), blacks (59%), and Hispanics (54%)," in addition to tri - partisan majorities of "self - identified Republicans (92%), Independents (80%), and Democrats (51%)" did not want Obama to enact an executive amnesty on his own. Only 20% of voters wanted Obama to move forward with his executive amnesty. Read more about Midterm Exit Poll: 75% reject executive amnesty, 80% don't want foreign workers taking jobs from Americans

GOP, President Obama deeply divided on immigration

President Obama repeated Sunday that he intends to change U.S. immigration law through executive action, over Republican leaders’ repeated requests to wait and dire warnings about the consequences of sidestepping Congress.

“I’m going to do what I need to do,” Obama told CBS’ “Face the Nation,” in an interview taped on Friday.

As he has said before, the president said he would prefer that reform legislation come through Congress, but that he has waited for more than a year for House Speaker John Boehner to pass a bill like the Democrat-controlled Senate has done.

“If a bill gets passed, nobody would be happier than me,” Obama said.

His remarks followed similar ones made Wednesday, which brought dire warnings from Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that were followed by more on Sunday.

“I believe [executive action] will hurt cooperation on every issue,” Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., told “Fox News Sunday.” “I think it would be like the president pulling the pin out of a hand grenade and throwing it in as we are trying to actually work together. I am hoping that cooler heads at the White House can prevail."

The comments by Barrasso, chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee, followed Boehner warning Obama that using executive action would “poison the well” and McConnell, who will likely be the Senate majority leader next year, comparing it to waving a flag in front of a bull.

“Their time hasn’t run out,” Obama told CBS, arguing that legislation passed by Congress would supersede his executive action.

To be sure, the president is under pressure to use executive action on immigration reform, after promising Americans that he would by the end of summer, then delaying any action until after the midterms, which upset Democrats’ strong Hispanic base.

Obama also said Sunday that inaction is a “mis-allocation of resources” and that the country cannot continue to deport people who should be allowed to stay and keep those who should leave Read more about Obama: 'I’m going to do what I need to do' on immigration

A Catholic social advocacy group based in Southeast Portland is advising undocumented youths to take steps to renew their Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status before it expires or face the threat of deportation.

Alexandra Blodget, an advocate for Catholic Charities, who is professionally trained in immigration law, said, “It’s important for anyone who knows their DACA is expiring in the coming months to understand that renewal is essential.”

“Without it, people will no longer have authorization to work in the U.S. and will not be lawfully present, which does carry the risk of detention and/or deportation,” she said.

DACA is a set of administrative procedures initiated by the Obama administration in 2012. It offers two years of protection against the threat of deportation to undocumented young people who met certain criteria.

A DACA Renewal Screening Night will take place from 5-8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 6, at Catholic Charities, 2740 S.E. Powell Blvd. in Portland.

There will be $20 consultations provided with immigration attorneys and BIA (Board of Immigration Appeals) accredited representatives.

No appointments are necessary, and consultations will be available in English and Spanish.

Alice Lundell, a spokeswoman for Catholic Charities, said those who have been granted DACA and a work permit will see them expire after two years if they are not renewed.

People who received DACA in late 2012 or even 2013 need to be thinking now about renewal, she said.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services is recommending that applicants should apply four to five months in advance of their status and work permit expiration, Lundell said.

In response to a demand for high-quality, low-cost legal advice about DACA renewal, a group of immigration law organizations has come together to offer help.

The screening night is a joint initiative of Immigrant Law Group, ICS, Catholic Charities, SOAR and Causa.

Renewal applicants should bring with them their work permits and copies of their original DACA applications if they have them.

Blodget said seeking advice from a qualified person is important.

“We would strongly encourage anyone planning for DACA renewal to get advice before they submit their application if they have any concerns, particularly if they’ve been arrested or convicted of an offense or had other involvement with law enforcement since first receiving DACA,” Blodget said.

“Anyone with questions can come to our event to get help,” she said.

For more information, contact Alice Lundell, Catholic Charities’ marketing and communications manager, at 503.688.2662 or alundell@catholiccharitiesoregon.org. Read more about Undocumented youths face deportation if DACA status expires

Congressman Greg Walden will be holding 3 public meetings in NE Oregon this Friday, August 8. The meetings are in Union, Wallowa, and Umatilla counties.

According to an internet announcement, Walden will give an update on his work in Oregon and Washington, D.C. and take questions from residents. “These town hall meetings are another way I keep in close touch with the concerns of Oregonians. I will answer questions from attendees and give an update on local issues that remain my priorities, including strengthening our rural communities, promoting access to public lands, protecting private water and property rights, and increasing access to quality, affordable health care,” Walden said.

Times and locations for the meetings are shown below.

Please attend if possible, and stress to Rep. Walden the importance of restraining Pres. Obama’s moves for amnesties to illegal aliens. Rep. Walden voted on August 1 for the House bill asserting power to de-fund such Presidential overreaches, which usurp the authority of Congress to make immigration law. We should thank Rep. Walden for voting Yes on this bill, and urge him to continue to stand firmly in support of immigration law enforcement.

For more information on the recent action in Congress, please read the interesting report on NumbersUSA’s website at: https://www.numbersusa.com/blog/grassroots-americans-us-workers-central-american-children-win-us-house-tonight

TIMES AND LOCATIONS OF MEETINGS

Friday, August 8, 2014

What: Roundtable meeting with Union County Chamber of Commerce
When: 8:00 am
Where: Blue Mountain Conference Center, 404 12th Street, La Grande

What: Wallowa County Town Hall Meeting
When: 11:00 am
Where: Lear’s Pub & Grill, 111 Main Street, Enterprise

What: Umatilla County Fair Visit and FFA tour
When: 5:45 pm
Where: Umatilla County Fairgrounds, 515 W. Orchard Avenue, Hermiston

  Read more about Rep. Walden to hold Town Halls in NE Oregon

The House late Friday revived and approved a Republican-authored border crisis bill after GOP leaders hurriedly resolved an internal battle that scuttled the vote a day earlier – but with the Senate on recess and the House soon to follow, there’s little chance of any bill reaching President Obama’s desk until the fall.

The president now is vowing to act unilaterally to address the illegal immigration issue....

The new measure's price tag is now roughly $700 million, up from $659 million -- but still one-fifth of the $3.7 billion Obama requested, and a far cry from what the Senate considered....

Senate Democrats, though, were not able to muster enough votes to pass their bill either. House Republicans insisted they were the only ones still trying to do something about the border crisis.

“When it comes to the humanitarian crisis on our southern border, President Obama has been completely AWOL,” a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner said....

Many Republicans blame the Obama administration policies for that perception, particularly a two-year-old program that has granted work permits and relief from deportation to more than 500,000 immigrants brought here illegally as kids....

Fox News' Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report

Read more about House revives, approves border crisis bill – as Obama vows to ‘act alone’

House Republican leaders are trying anew to round up an elusive majority for a bill addressing the border crisis, after a chaotic day where they initially abandoned the legislation and began sending lawmakers home for the summer recess -- only to reverse course moments later.

The dramatic scene unfolded at a rapid clip Thursday afternoon. Earlier, House leaders abruptly canceled a planned vote on a package meant to address the surge of illegal immigrant minors crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, with a combination of funding and policy changes, after failing to gather enough votes for it.

Lawmakers began heading out for the five-week summer recess. But incoming House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., then took to the floor to say "additional votes are possible," indicating lawmakers should stay. Boos could be heard in the House chamber as he made the announcement.

But House Republicans later huddled on Capitol Hill before the House adjourned for the day. It was scheduled to meet again Friday morning.

The second thoughts reflected deep concerns in the GOP caucus about the prospect of leaving for the August recess without addressing the border bill, amid criticism from both sides of the aisle.

It remains unclear whether there's any chance enough votes can be rounded up to pass the measure. Senior Republican leaders were adamant, though, that something must be done, regardless of the looming recess.

"We'll stay until we vote," House oversight committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., said.

Asked if the House can find a solution, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., said: "We'd better."

If lawmakers do end up breaking for recess without a bill, House leaders left open the possibility of recalling members if need be when they feel they have a majority of 218 votes. Earlier, sources said GOP leaders were "way short" of the votes they needed, with conservative lawmakers joining Democrats in refusing to back the package.

Asked Thursday afternoon if the bill still has a chance, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., said: "We'll see." He told Fox News that he was at the airport when his secretary told him to return to Capitol Hill.

The Senate still has a border bill on its plate, but that legislation is different from what was being considered in the House.

A joint statement from House Republican leaders said the "situation shows the intense concern within our conference -- and among the American people -- about the need to ensure the security of our borders and the president's refusal to faithfully execute our laws."

In the absence of legislation, Republicans urged President Obama to act on his own to secure the borders and safely deport illegal immigrant children.

"We will continue to work on solutions to the border crisis and other challenges facing our country," they said.

But Senate Democrats blasted their House colleagues for dropping the legislation. "Shame on the House of Representatives," Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry also slammed his fellow Republicans, saying "it's beyond belief that Congress is abandoning its post while our border crisis continues to create humanitarian suffering."

The legislation's prospects changed quickly over the course of the day. Initially, House leaders thought they had a plan to win enough support, by scheduling a separate vote on legislation to prohibit Obama from expanding a policy that lets some illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children stay. Amid reports that the administration is considering such an expansion, the bill by Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., would specifically bar the president from broadening the 2012 policy.

Republicans say another illegal immigrant reprieve by the president would only exacerbate the surge of illegal immigrant children trekking to the U.S.-Mexico border from Central America.

"Such action would create an even greater incentive for more illegal crossings and make the crisis on our border even worse, and that would be a grave mistake," House Speaker John Boehner said Thursday.

The vote had been scheduled by Republican leaders as part of the effort to win conservative support for the separate, scaled-down package giving the Department of Homeland Security an immediate $659 million to address the border crisis and making other policy changes.

But Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, nevertheless raised concerns with House members about their version of the border legislation, and lawmakers and aides said Thursday that it had an impact. They also pointed to opposition from Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.

Sessions voiced concerns about both the House and Senate proposals, arguing that the Senate would never take up the executive action bill being considered in the House. Sessions wants any bill addressing the president's funding request to also address the executive action issue.

"We as policy makers must face the reality that the president is openly planning to use executive actions to provide amnesty and work permits to millions without any lawful authority," he said in a statement.

Democrats, meanwhile, accused Republicans of playing games.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said earlier in the day: "It is extraordinary that the House of Representatives, after failing for more than a year to reform our broken immigration reform system, would vote to restrict a law enforcement tool that the Department of Homeland Security uses to focus resources on key enforcement priorities like public safety and border security, and provide temporary relief from deportation for people who are low priorities for removal."

Unlike the House bill, the Senate package would authorize $2.7 billion with no policy riders.

While 11 Republican senators helped the Senate bill meet a key procedural hurdle, enough of them -- including at least one Democrat -- said they would filibuster final passage if the measure is not amended. Like their House colleagues, they want changes to a 2008 law that would require the government to treat illegal immigrants apprehended at the border the same, regardless of country of origin. Read more about House GOP leaders hold out hope for border crisis fix, after vote fizzles