July 9, 2013, 2:20 p.m. ET
By
STEPHEN MOORE
The Wall Street Journal

Republican House leaders say that the most daunting obstacle to an immigration compromise is Nancy Pelosi. They worry that the minority leader may sabotage anything short of a full Senate-like comprehensive bill.

Mrs. Pelosi still hasn't telegraphed her final strategy, but senior members of her caucus continue to insist that "no Democrat will vote for anything without a path to citizenship" for the 11 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. If Mrs. Pelosi urges her fellow Democrats to oppose all GOP measures that don't contain legalization and other substantial portions of the Senate bill, it could stymie any progress on smaller piecemeal measures, including those with bipartisan support.

Republicans are likely to need some Democratic votes. House leadership aides acknowledge that at least two dozen GOP hard-liners, led by Steve King of Iowa, appear intent on voting against any immigration-related bills—even those they favor—to prevent a House-Senate immigration conference. The anti-reformers fear that a conference would produce a final bill that includes "amnesty," which they oppose.

Mrs. Pelosi is thought to be pursuing a discharge-petition strategy, which could force House Speaker John Boehner to bring the Senate bill to the House floor for an immediate up-or-down vote. This tactic has been used in the past to move bills through the House over the objections of powerful speakers. But a senior Republican aide tells me that he is convinced Republicans will never sign off on it. "I would put the odds of a discharge petition at close to zero," the source said.

"Nancy Pelosi could be the one who kills immigration reform this year," says former Congressional Budget Office director Doug Holtz-Eakin, a fan of reform. "Pelosi has said she will deliver zero votes for anything other than comprehensive legislation, meaning she is effectively barring a route to a conference agreement."

But Mrs. Pelosi's strategy could backfire. If she is seen as playing politics, Hispanic and Asian voters may be turned off by her stonewalling. Another House aide asks: "Will House Democrats really vote against a bipartisan border security measure? The Dream Act to legalize kids? The STEM bill for college graduates with engineering and math degrees?"

The conventional wisdom is that Republicans are hurt politically if nothing gets done. But if Mrs. Pelosi—who sees Republican blockage of comprehensive reform as the issue that will catapult her back to speaker after the 2014 midterm elections—is seen as sandbagging popular intermediate steps to reform, her caucus could splinter and her political allies may turn on her.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...310963970.html