Washington Examiner
By Conn Carroll
JUNE 24, 2013

Morning Examiner: Conservatives revolt against Marco Rubio's Obamacare tactics


“I don’t want to be part of a process that comes up with some bill in secret and brings it to the floor and gives people a take it or leave it,” Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., told Rush Limbaugh this January about his then-yet-to-be-released immigration bill. “I want this place to work the way it’s supposed to work, with every senator having input and the public having input. … I think information empowers people to make the judgments on the best direction for our country.”

Fast forward to last Friday and everything that every conservative had predicted about Rubio’s immigration bill has come true.

A group of moderate Republicans has negotiated in secret behind closed doors with Big Business, Big Labor, and the Democrats to craft a one thousand-plus page immigration bill amendment introduced late on a Friday night with a cloture vote expected Monday night.


A Christmas tree for crony capitalists

The Schumer-Rubio immigration bill that emerged Friday is chock-full of the exact same special interest payouts that Rubio used to say he was against. There is cash for casinos in Las Vegas. Extra visas for seafood processers in Alaska. A jobs program for Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

Conservatives revolt

“If there is anything Republicans have stood for over the past three or four years, it is that we will not pass 1,200-page pieces of legislation that are introuduced Friday night and we will not vote to invoke cloture Monday,” The Weekly Standard‘s Bill Kristol told Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace. “It is not the right way to run Congress. I think Republican Senators should not vote for cloture tomorrow night.”

Fox News’ Brit Hume was even more blunt. “It is impossible to believe that this 1,200-page amendment is good legislation. It is basically throwing money at the problem,” he said.

Pro-amnesty Republicans undeterred

But for pro-amnesty Republicans, no price is too high to pander to Hispanics. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News Sunday, “If it fails and we are blamed for its failure, our party is in trouble with Hispanics, not because we are conservative but because of the rhetoric and the way we handled this issue. I want to get reattached to the Hispanic community, to sell conservativism, pass comprehensive immigration reform and grow this party.”
Tonight’s cloture vote on Friday’s amendment will set up a second cloture vote on the broader bill Thursday with final passage coming before the Senate leaves for the July 4th recess.

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