The National Journal Magazine recently released the results of a poll taken of many Washington insiders about immigration. This “Political Insiders Poll,” as this recurring poll is called, focused was on the possibility of immigration reform occurring at a congressional level sometime this year and the results are indicative of the current climate in the capital.
Ken Mehlman is among the key Republican insiders that are regularly tapped for this survey. In addition to Mehlman many other Democrat and Republican Party insiders were questioned, including Paul Bennecke, Wayne Berman, Gale Kaufman, and Doug Hattaway.
According to the poll, among those who responded the overwhelming consensus was that immigration reform within the year was “somewhat unlikely” to “very unlikely.” That said, the poll suggested that “if Republicans want to be credible [contenders] in the presidential race in ’16, this is an opening bid.”
According to The Washington Post, this delaying of the White House’s review is believed to provide an opportunity for congressional action over the summer though it is widely considered an inevitability that, if the White House were to act independently from Congress, that House conservatives could be expected to kill any immigration legislation that reaches the House floor.
The National Journal’s report, however, appears to confirm the fact that politicians on both side of the aisle are expected to allow the August recess to pass in an effort to move President Obama’s hand.
The White House does have a certain measure of authority when it comes to immigration and deportation policy but it is overshadowed by the changes Congress can enact. In the interim, many state legislatures are attempting to pass their own policies though they too have limited reach when compared to the impact a congressional bill would have on the lives of those seeking to find a path to permanent legal citizenship.
The full poll, including a list of all of those polled by the National Journal, can be found at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2014/05/27/obama-orders-delay-of-immigration-deportation-review/