Rep. Steve King Threatens to Block Amnesty Bill in House
Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) said that he plans to force a GOP conference should House Leadership decide to move forward on an unpopular amnesty bill in the House of Representatives. Under caucus rules, any Member can can force a closed-door session if he can gather 50 signatures. The session would force a caucus vote on the bill in question, and Leadership is supposed to follow the will of the caucus.
Rep. King said he already has the 50 signatures to force the conference.
"It's not the card you want to play but it's an awfully good one to have in your hand," Rep. King told National Review. "A lot of us who will defend the rule of law and took an oath to uphold the Constitution are watching this agenda be maneuvered around us. It's time we had a family discussion."
The news of Rep. King's intent comes after GOP House Leadership indicated that it would like to speed up the immigration reform process in the House. Last week, the group of eight bipartisan Representatives broke off talks over an immigration deal when key Republican legislator Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Id.) walked away from the negotiations.
On Monday, House Speaker John Boehner and other House leaders announced that they would like to move immigration legislation before the August recess. Whether that means they follow a path laid out by House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte of moving smaller bills or if they will pursue a large compromise is uncertain. According to an article on Bloomberg.com, House Leaders are trying to avoid being pressured to act on the Senate Gang of Eight's legislation should it pass through that chamber.
For more information, see National Review and Bloomberg.