ScreamingEagle
Gold Member
- Jul 5, 2004
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The House on Thursday voted to strip a provision from the annual defense bill that edged toward allowing young illegal immigrants to enlist in the military.
Divisions between ardent GOP opponents of illegal immigration and vulnerable Republicans who represent districts with large Hispanic constituencies flared in the 221-202 vote.
Twenty Republicans voted with all Democrats in opposition of the amendment from Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) that killed the immigration language.
The debate demonstrated the GOP's challenge in handling President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which allows qualified illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to obtain temporary work permits. Democrats and supporters of the program refer to recipients as “Dreamers.”
Brooks's amendment scraps a provision in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would have established a sense of the House that the Pentagon should review allowing DACA recipients to enlist.
The House Armed Services Committee approved that language, authored by Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), during its marathon markup of the NDAA last month. Six Republican members of the panel, including Coffman and McSally, joined with Democrats to approve it.
In a letter to fellow lawmakers earlier Thursday, Brooks argued the provision was adopted during the "early morning, sleep-deprived portion" of the markup and didn't belong in the bill.
"There is no military recruitment and retention deficit that justifies supplanting Americans and lawful immigrants with illegal aliens," Brooks said during floor debate.
Divided GOP rejects allowing illegal immigrants in the military TheHill
Divisions between ardent GOP opponents of illegal immigration and vulnerable Republicans who represent districts with large Hispanic constituencies flared in the 221-202 vote.
Twenty Republicans voted with all Democrats in opposition of the amendment from Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) that killed the immigration language.
The debate demonstrated the GOP's challenge in handling President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which allows qualified illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to obtain temporary work permits. Democrats and supporters of the program refer to recipients as “Dreamers.”
Brooks's amendment scraps a provision in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would have established a sense of the House that the Pentagon should review allowing DACA recipients to enlist.
The House Armed Services Committee approved that language, authored by Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), during its marathon markup of the NDAA last month. Six Republican members of the panel, including Coffman and McSally, joined with Democrats to approve it.
In a letter to fellow lawmakers earlier Thursday, Brooks argued the provision was adopted during the "early morning, sleep-deprived portion" of the markup and didn't belong in the bill.
"There is no military recruitment and retention deficit that justifies supplanting Americans and lawful immigrants with illegal aliens," Brooks said during floor debate.
Divided GOP rejects allowing illegal immigrants in the military TheHill
