Thread: Another Republican signs the petition to force an immigration vote in the House

By Tal Kopan and Lauren Fox, CNN

Updated 2:33 PM ET, Wed May 23, 2018

(CNN)Minnesota Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen on Wednesday signed a petition to force series of votes on immigration proposals, marking 21 House Republican members and the first GOP congressman to sign in a week.

The signature means just five more Republicans are needed to force the issue -- assuming 192 of the 193 Democratic House members sign on.

So far, only one Democrat -- Rep. Filemon Vela Jr. of Texas -- has said he will not sign the bill.

As of Wednesday afternoon, 183 Democrats had signed the petition.

Vela had voiced for weeks that he had concerns about the petition being used a vehicle to get border wall funding but confirmed he would vote no to reporters Wednesday afternoon, saying "I'm not signing it," even if his signature became the deciding factor.

Paulsen's comes even as GOP leadership is working hard to convince Republicans to hold off. In a statement, Paulsen said leadership had run out of time.

"President Trump and leaders in Congress promised to fix DACA. They haven't," Paulsen said, referring to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protected young undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children and which President Donald Trump opted to end last year. "I took action to solve this problem and there's bipartisan support to do so."

The physical petition must be signed in person in Washington, and lawmakers are scheduled to leave by the end of this week for a weeklong Memorial Day recess.

More Republican signatures are likely Wednesday and Thursday, a source close to the operation to gather signatures says. One aide to a moderate lawmaker told CNN that it is not a sign that all the rest will come Wednesday, but it is a sign that "we aren't stopping."

Before Paulsen's signature, there had been little movement from Republicans this week. Members and aides have said that that is partially because moderates tend to believe leaders when they say that they are working on a solution. Some members still want to give leadership the benefit of the doubt, waiting to see if House Speaker Paul Ryan and others can pull a solution together.

Several of the on-the-fence members have grown frustrated with the lack of specifics. While votes have been promised in June, leadership has only committed to calling conservatives' preferred bill and working with moderates on something else that can get a vote.

Lawmakers leave for recess at the end of the week and many want to have a decision on the petition or an alternative before they go home to their districts, but the last signatures could still come the first week lawmakers are back in June and the petition would still be able to bring votes on June 25, based on House rules.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/23/polit...ion/index.html

TERMINATE DACA

SEND THEM HOME!!!!

DO NOT REWARD...DEPORT!

The signature means just five more Republicans are needed to force the issue -- assuming 192 of the 193 Democratic House members sign on.

So far, only one Democrat -- Rep. Filemon Vela Jr. of Texas -- has said he will not sign the bill.

As of Wednesday afternoon, 183 Democrats had signed the petition.