WASHINGTON — For just the second time in his presidency, President Bush will travel up to Capitol Hill today to meet with Republican senators at their weekly policy luncheon -- a visit designed to underscore his commitment to legislation that is increasingly important to his legacy, particularly immigration reform.
In the days since the immigration overhaul ran aground in the Senate, the bill's proponents, including the president, have insisted that the measure is not dead. At the end of an eight-day trip to Europe, Bush urged Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to take the bill up again as soon as possible.
"We made two steps forward on immigration; we took a step back," Bush said before leaving Sofia, Bulgaria, on Monday.
For his part, Reid sent a letter to Bush saying that he was glad to revive debate on the bill, but only if the president could deliver more Republican votes.
"We believe it will take stronger leadership by you to ensure that opponents of the bill do not block the path to final passage. Simply put, we need many more than seven Republicans to vote for cloture and final passage of this bill," Reid and other Democratic leaders said in the letter.
The stalled legislation was based on a fragile compromise between Republicans and Democrats: In return for offering a path to citizenship for many of the estimated 12 million people currently in the country illegally, future immigration visas would be targeted more at those with needed skills than at family members of those already here.
Reid yanked the immigration bill from the Senate floor Thursday in a dispute with Republicans over how many amendments senators would be permitted to debate. At the time of the break, the two sides were nearing agreement on allowing an additional eight to 12 Republican amendments. That has raised hopes among proponents that a deal is still possible.
"The bipartisan compromise, while it has its flaws, is better than the status quo, and I hope we can get back to it in the near future," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Monday.
There are splits within the Republican and Democratic parties over the issue, but both sides say they think they can muster 60 votes -- the number needed to overcome a filibuster -- if they can resolve their procedural issues.
