Senate To Vote On GOP Bill To Crack Down On Sanctuary Cities Tuesday

President Obama & Health and Human Services Secretary
 Sylvia Burwell. (Photo: Pete Souza/White House)
H/T The Daily Signal for photo

Today in Washington, D.C. - Oct 19, 2015:
Today, the District Court Judge Rosemary Collyer denied the Obama Administration’s request for an interlocutory appeal of her previous decision on granting standing to the House of Representatives in the case House v. Burwell. After Judge Collyer’s ruling in September, the Obama administration moved to (1) appeal to the Circuit Court of Appeals; and (2) asked Judge Collyer to stay her proceedings. By this order, Judge Collyer is denying both motions and with it denying the Obama administration access to the Circuit Court until she has ruled on the underlying merits of the case – that the Administration has harmed the Legislative Branch by violating the constitution’s requirement that only the Legislative Branch, not the Executive, may appropriate money through the Congress’ “power of the purse.”

House Speaker John Boehner commented on the decision: "I’m pleased with today’s ruling. The court has previously ruled that the House does, in fact, have standing to challenge one of the president’s unilateral actions with regard to ObamaCare. Today’s ruling further underscores that point, and ensures that the District Court will hear the merits of the case this fall. It’s another important step toward holding the president accountable for his unconstitutional actions."

The House will reconvene tomorrow at 12:00 PM for Morning-Hour Debate. All recorded votes postponed until 6:30 PM.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) issued the following statement after the Obama administration announced the deficit in FY 2015 fell to $439 billion, the lowest since 2007:

“Today’s report is welcome news, and another sign of progress in Republican efforts to build a stronger economy and a smaller, less costly government.

“In our 2010 Pledge to America, we vowed that a Republican House majority would stop-out-of-control spending, and we’ve done just that. We cut Congress’s own budget. We banned earmarks. We forced a president who wanted zero spending cuts to accept $2.1 trillion in cuts – the most significant spending reductions in modern times. And we’ve passed blueprints for a balanced budget every year.

“Of course, there is much work still to be done. Our government still spends too much, and our debt is still far too big. Meanwhile, President Obama still isn’t serious about providing the leadership America needs. He wants credit for lower deficits while denouncing the policies that actually cut spending.

“The White House should be honest with the American people about its approach. President Obama has never offered a budget that balances – ever. Not in 10 years, not in 20 years, and not in 30 years. His top-down, tax- and-spend agenda would mean more debt, and fewer opportunities for our kids and grandkids. Only Republicans are offering the meaningful solutions needed to address the drivers of our debt, and pave the way for real, robust economic growth. And we will continue to fight for the results Americans deserve.”

The Senate will reconvene at 4 PM today and resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S. 2146, a bill that would penalize “sanctuary cities” which refuse to abide by immigration laws. A vote is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon on cloture on the motion to proceed to the bill.

So - Tomorrow, the Senate will be voting on a bill to crack down on sanctuary cities that defy federal immigration laws. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Pat Toomey (R-PA), David Vitter (R-LA) and others, would block federal grants from going to cities that defy federal immigration laws by refusing to deport illegal immigrants. In addition, the bill includes a provision known as “Kate’s Law” which creates a mandatory minimum sentence for an illegal immigrant convicted of an aggravated felony or convicted of illegally re-entering the country multiple times.

In this week' Weekly Republican Address, Sen. Toomey discussed the need for this legislation. “During an eight-month period last year, sanctuary cities across the country released thousands of illegal immigrants. Eighteen hundred of them were later arrested for criminal acts. These sanctuary policies are dangerous and they undermine enforcement of our immigration laws. Now, please understand – this issue isn’t really even about immigration – it’s about stopping criminals and keeping our communities safe. . . . I don’t for a minute suggest that most immigrants commit crimes. In fact, the opposite is true. . . . But when illegal immigrants do commit violent crimes in our country, they must be arrested and deported. That’s the law. And those, like the murderer of Kate Steinle, who’ve been deported previously because of their criminal acts, they should never be allowed back into our country. Sanctuary cities undermine all of that. They stop local police from enforcing our immigration laws. They make a mockery of even modest attempts to deal with our badly broken immigration system.”

Sen. Toomey explained, “Under this commonsense legislation, sanctuary cities would lose federal funds if they maintain these dangerous policies. We have to take this step in order to get these cities to do the right thing and stop undermining our immigration laws.

“Our legislation also includes ‘Kate’s Law,’ which provides a five-year mandatory minimum sentence for any illegal immigrant who re-enters the U.S after having been convicted of an aggravated felony, or having been twice convicted of illegally re-entering the U.S.

“This should be a bipartisan effort. President Obama’s own Secretary of Homeland Security has declared that sanctuary cities are, quote, ‘not acceptable’ and ‘counter-productive to public safety.’ After all, we’re talking about criminals who the Obama Administration already has deemed dangerous enough to deserve removal from our country.”

Families of victims of violence committed by felons who should not have been in the United States have expressed their support for this bill, as have a number of law enforcement organizations, including the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, the National Sherrifs’ Association, and the National Association of Police Organizations.

The editors of the Bowling Green Daily News made a strong case for the legislation: “There is no place in our society for sanctuary cities. These cities provide safe haven from prosecution to illegal immigrants who thumb their noses at our laws.

“In some of these cities, innocent lives have been taken by these illegal immigrants. The most notable of these cases was that of Kate Steinle, who was killed while walking with her family on a San Francisco pier in July, allegedly by an illegal immigrant who had previously been deported from the United States five times and had been convicted of seven felonies. . .

“This is the kind of common sense legislation that is needed to put these illegal sanctuary cities on notice. Cities who don’t follow federal law when it pertains to illegal immigrants should not receive federal funding as they are breaking the law and should not be rewarded with taxpayer money for doing so. Also, law enforcement in these sanctuary cities shouldn’t have their hands tied behind their backs, because the elected officials in their cities choose to defy federal laws and allow for these sanctuary cities to exist. They shouldn’t fear being sued for simply doing their jobs. Also, those who are repeatedly deported and who continue to defy our laws need to be locked up for as long as Vitter is proposing to send the message to other illegals that they will face prison time too.”

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Tags: IWashington D.C, U.S District Court, House v. Burwell, U.S Senate, GOP Bill, Sanctuary Cities, Kate's law To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!