House votes to block Obama immigration policies

WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives, led by the Republican majority, passed a bill Wednesday that would fund the Department of Homeland Security for the rest of the fiscal year while also blocking President Obama’s immigration policies.

Only 10 Republicans voted against the measure, which passed 236 to 191.

This is just the first move in what is likely to be a battle between the House, Senate and White House over funding for the massive agency and the future of Obama’s immigration policy. Funding for the agency runs out Feb. 27, and if it’s not funded it will shut down.

While both sides say they want to fund the agency, there is sharp partisan disagreement over the immigration policies attached to the bill.

One Republican amendment, which passed narrowly, would effectively end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. That program allows children brought to the United States illegally to avoid deportation and gain work permits. Children eligible for this program are often referred to as “Dreamers.”

Another amendment would roll back President Obama’s executive action, expanding that program to include some five million undocumented immigrants.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, supported the measures just before the vote.

“Enough is enough,” Boehner said. “By their votes last November, the people made clear they want more accountability from this president. And by our votes here today, we will heed their will, and we will keep our oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America.”

Democrats railed against the bill, including Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., a leading liberal voice on immigration reform.

“For nearly two years, this country waited for congressional Republicans to join their Senate colleagues in addressing our broken immigration system,” Grijalva said in a statement. “As if their refusal to act wasn’t bad enough, their current tactics make clear that they’d rather enflame our immigration problems than ever see them solved. But undermining the public’s security is a length to which no politician should be willing to go for the sake of a political victory.”

Several Republicans in the House have been pushing their leadership to fight Obama on his immigration policies. The White House isn’t going along with House Republican demands, and has said the president will veto the Homeland Security spending bill if the immigration changes are attached. This sets up a potential impasse between Congress and the White House, with Homeland Security threatened with the possibility of going into a partial shutdown next month.

The funding bill now heads to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain future. Democrats could filibuster the measure, or insist the immigration amendments are removed.