Chicago 10.32AM - Senatul a votat impotriva "avansarii" legii la vot. Atat sustinatorii cat si oponentii legii sunt de acord ca legea, in forma actuala, nu va fi votata in actualul legislativ (amanare pana in 2009?). Legea, avand ca scop legalizarea a 12 milioane de imigranti, A FOST piesa centrala a celui de-al doilea termen al presedintelui Bush.
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Chicago 10.30AM - Legea Imigrarii ar putea cadea in Senat
* Numar de voturi necesare: 60
* Daca legea nu este votata, ar putea fi impinsa inapoi pana in 2009
* Motivul aparent: prea revolutionara, prea multe grupuri de interese se opun
* Cea mai mare problema: vizele Z (cele care presupun o cale legala de integrare a celor 12 milioane de imigranti in SUA la ora actuala)
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Chicago 10AM: Ieri (miercuri, 27 iunie), sustinatorii reformei au obtinut o victorie insemnata: prin respingerea unui amendament, legea a ramas in forma initiala (forma initiala prevede o cale de legalizare pentru imigrantii care sunt deja in Statele Unite, dar intareste securitatea la granite).
Rezultate recente:
• Senatul a respins toate amendamentele propuse
• O propunere care prevedea ca imigrantii sa fie trimisi acasa inainte de a primi un statut legal in SUA a fost respins
• Votul final este prevazut inainte de sfarsitul saptamanii
• Sanse ca legea sa fie votata: mici/foarte mici
Reveniti pe aceasta pagina pentru stiri la minut despre situatia din Senat.
WASHINGTON
(CNN) -- The Senate is expected to vote this morning on a delicately
crafted immigration reform bill that survived a day of legislative
wrangling on Wednesday that one lawmaker likened to "trench warfare."
One senator predicted the vote would be "a cliffhanger."
The bill provides a path to citizenship for some of the 12 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. and toughens border security.
The
Senate will first vote to cut off debate and refer the bill for a final
vote. The cloture vote requires a three-fifths majority, or 60 votes.
The final vote needs only a simple majority -- or 51 votes -- to pass.
"I
think it's razor-thin," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Alabama, an opponent
to the bill. "There were 64 votes to proceed to this bill. A number of
people I'm confident voted to proceed to it to allow the debate to go
forward. But I don't know that they will be voting for cloture."
Supporters
beat back a number of potentially fatal amendments on Wednesday and
will face more of the 27 amendments senators agreed to before starting
debate.
Proponents won a major victory with defeat of an
amendment removing the bill's most controversial feature -- a path to
legalization and eventual citizenship for illegal immigrants already in
the country, which critics charge amounts to amnesty. (Watch challenges rise and fall 
)
"I
think most people will recognize that citizenship is the most precious
gift America can provide," said Sen. Kit Bond, R-Missouri, the sponsor
of the amendment. "There are many of us who believe it should not serve
as a reward to those who broke the law."
Senators voted 56-41 to
table his amendment, effectively killing it. However, in a sharp
illustration of the political heartburn the "amnesty" debate is causing
Republicans, Bond's proposal was supported by 33 of the Senate's 49 GOP
members, along with eight Democrats.
Also defeated Wednesday was
an amendment by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, that would have
required adult illegal immigrants to return to their home country
within two years in order to apply for a new type of visa that will
allow them to stay in the United States indefinitely.
Hutchison
said the change would "send the major message ... that you cannot come
to our country and stay illegally and eventually get regularized
without ever having to apply -- according to the law -- from your home
country."
But opponents of the amendment said the so-called "touchback" requirement would render the program largely useless.
"What
immigrant is going to show up and register for a program if he has to
take his chances on leaving the country and coming back in before he
gets some kind of immigration status?" said Sen. Dianne Feinstein,
D-California. "What immigrant is going to report to deport?"
In the end, the Hutchison amendment was tabled on a 53-45 vote.
Senators
also turned back two Democratic amendments, from Sens. Chris Dodd of
Connecticut and Robert Menendez of New Jersey, that would have made it
easier for immigrants to bring family members from their home countries
to the United States.
Liberal critics of the immigration bill
have complained about a new points-based system that would sharply
reduce the role family ties now play in decisions about who can come
into the country.
By a 79-18 vote, senators shot down an
amendment by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, that would have limited the
legalization process to illegal immigrants who have been in the country
at least four years, rather than covering all of them in the country at
the end of 2006.
Wednesday's wrangling on the Senate floor was
conducted under seldom-used rules designed to keep opponents of the
immigration reform bill from using the legislative process to block it.
All
of the changes were being handled as one overall amendment, with
separate votes on each proposal, allowing leaders to keep critics of
the bill from offering their own amendments from the floor.
Republican
opponents have strongly objected to the procedure, even though it was
agreed to by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky.
"[We're] frustrated about our ability to exercise our rights as duly elected officials," said Sen. David Vitter, R-Louisiana.
The
Senate could vote as soon as Thursday on a procedural motion to cut off
debate and move to a final vote, which requires 60 votes to pass.
Buna tuturor romanilor 
crezi ca 10$ este prea mult sa donezi pentru o cauza nobila? sunt
