Rep. Joaquin Castro has revealed the immigration overhaul bill needs a strong majority of 70 votes in the Senate for the legislation to move forward in the House of Representatives, The Hill reported Sunday.
Meghashyam Mali writes Castro also predicted that lawmakers will pass the immigration reform this year during an interview with ABC’s “This Week.”
Castro added that enforcing the Hastert Rule could kill the measure in the Republican-dominated House.
“That means that 25 percent of the body can control 100 percent of the agenda and the legislation,†the Texas lawmaker said.
According to the report, Senators Bob Corker and John Hoeven filed an amendment to the legislation this week that seeks tighter border security provisions.
The bill could sway the votes of 15 Republican Senators.
Rep. Mike Kelly called on other lawmakers to be cautious when proposing an overhaul U.S. immigration laws.
“We talk about a sovereign nation and its ability to protect its borders. Â That’s number one. Â If we didn’t learn anything from 1986 up until now, it’s that we’ve got to look at this carefully and go through it,” he told ABC.
