Senate passes immigration bill on Cinco de Mayo

By Dana Beyerle
Times Montgomery Bureau



Published: Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 9:06 p.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 9:45 p.m.




MONTGOMERY — Democratic state Sen. Bobby Singleton on Thursday was just two minutes into a planned hour-long filibuster on an immigration bill that his party opposes when Republicans used their superior numbers to cut off debate and force a vote.



For the past three days Republicans have been reluctant to present cloture petitions that rules allow use of to cut off debate if a sufficient number of senators agree.

Republicans didn't cloture Sen. Gerald Dial, R-Lineville, when earlier this week he filibustered extending the Forever Wild land purchase constitutional amendment.

After the Senate approved the illegal immigration bill it restarted the Forever Wild amendment and began debating it at nearly 9 p.m. The Senate passed substituted Forever Wild constitutional amendment 34-0.

On the immigration bill, Republicans clotured Singleton, one of dozens of petitions GOP legislators have pulled out to force their programs through the House and Senate.

The bill borrowed from Arizona is driven by a conservative belief in Alabama that President Barack Obama is not enforcing federal immigration laws.

Singleton, not one to waste the 30 minutes granted cloture petition opponents, borrowed an earlier quote from Sen. Phil Williams, R-Rainbow City, to describe the immigration bill - “if you put lipstick on a pig it's still a pig.â€