Senate Republicans embrace Trump immigration plan

US Senate Republicans yesterday turned up the heat on Democrats seekingprotections for young “Dreamer” immigrants as Senate Majority LeaderMitch McConnell embraced President Donald Trump’s demands for broadchanges to the country’s immigration policies.In announcing his support for legislation that would help immigrants whowere brought illegally to the United States as children, McConnell alsothrew his weight behind building a US-Mexico border wall and sharplycurtailing visas for the parents and siblings of immigrants living inthe United States legally.“This proposal has my support and during this week of fair debate Ibelieve it deserves support of every senator who’s ready to move beyondmaking points and actually making a law,” McConnell, a Republican, saidin a speech on the Senate floor.Even some Republicans, however, have expressed scepticism that suchbroad, fundamental changes in US immigration law can pass the Senate bythe tomorrow’s deadline that No 2 Republican Senator John Cornyn urgedlate on Monday.Also on Monday, Democratic Senator Dick Durbin, who is leading thecharge for Dreamers, told reporters that he thought early Senate voteson immigration legislation would begin with “expansive” measures thatwill fail to win the 60 votes needed to clear procedural hurdles.Then, Durbin said, senators will be forced to move “toward the centre with a moderate approach.”But at least for now, Republicans were holding a tough line.Republican Senator Tom Cotton, interviewed on Fox News, said Trump’simmigration plan “is not an opening bid for negotiations. It’s a bestand final offer.”That ran counter to statements Trump has made in recent days, includingyesterday morning when he tweeted that “Negotiations on DACA havebegun.”DACA is the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals programme, whichDemocratic former president Barack Obama initiated in 2012 and which hasallowed around 700,000 Dreamers to legally study and work in the UnitedStates temporarily. Last September, Trump announced he would terminatethe programme on March 5.During testimony before the Senate Budget Committee on Monday, WhiteHouse Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said he thought that a deal onimmigration legislation will be reached “and that we have full fundingon the (border) wall” of $18bn over two years.Durbin and other Democrats have talked of the possibility of a bill thatprovides for a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and additionalborder security, which could include the construction of more borderfencing and other high-tech tools to deter illegal immigrants.