Biden calls for big budget to include immigration

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By Nandita Bose

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden, who has called for a path to citizenship for so-called immigrant dreamers, said on Thursday that a major budget bill being written by Democrats in Congress should address immigration.

Biden, who made the comment to reporters at the White House, said Sunday he was unsure whether a path to citizenship for the Dreamers could be included in the bill, which Democrats plan to pass without Republican support.

Dreamers are immigrants brought to the United States as children who are protected from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

His latest comments come after he and Vice President Kamala Harris met at the White House with Democratic lawmakers to discuss the DACA program.

“It went well,” Biden said of the meeting, adding that he was willing to include the immigration proposal in the budget reconciliation bill.

Democratic Senator Dick Durbin, who attended the meeting, said Democrats have an opportunity to push for immigration reform through the bill and that the president supports the move.

“He (Biden) has made it very clear to us that he supports our efforts,” Durbin told reporters.

Senator Catherine Cortez Masto said there is an opportunity to pass the budget reconciliation bill and that lawmakers should use that to do something about a “broken” immigration system. “We have to seize this opportunity,” she said.

The meeting comes on the heels of a ruling by a federal judge in Texas earlier this month that said DACA is no longer accepting new applications.

Senate Democratic leaders this month told other members that the budget measure would open the door to legislation on climate measures, social spending and an extension of the children’s tax credit.

However, it is still not clear whether the parliamentarian in the Senate, who decides which items can be included in the budget package, will agree to the inclusion of an immigration measure.

The story continues

Most bills in the US Senate require the support of 60 out of 100 members to be voted on. With the US Senate divided equally between Democrats and Republicans, al-Qaeda threatened to disrupt Biden’s agenda.

However, budget reconciliation procedures could clear the room by a simple majority, in which case Vice President Kamala Harris could break the tie.

DACA protects recipients from deportation, gives them work permits and access to driver’s licenses, and in some cases better access to education financial assistance. It does not provide a path to citizenship.

People protected under DACA are primarily Hispanic youth born in Mexico and countries in Central and South America who were brought to the United States as children.

(Reporting by Nandita Bose; Writing by Tim Ahman; Editing by Chris Reese and Sandra Mahler)

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