Dream Act headed for Senate vote

12-17-2010

By Julia Preston/New York Times

Latino leaders have turned up the pressure on senators facing a vote on Saturday on a bill that would grant legal status to hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant students, saying support of the measure will be used as a litmus test by Latino voters in the 2012 elections. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, scheduled the vote on the student measure, which is known as the Dream Act late on Thursday. The Senate will vote on a version of the bill that passed the House of Representatives on Dec. 8. The bill gained some momentum after passing the House by 20 votes, including eight Republicans, a wider margin than its supporters had expected. But on Friday the Senate count appeared to be short of the 60 votes Democrats need to bring the bill to the floor for debate. Its sponsors, including Senator Reid and Senator Richard Durbin of Illinois, the second highest Democratic leader, acknowledged they faced an uphill climb. Latino advocates have been in high gear all week. (more…)

Personal tools

Sections

Dream Act headed for Senate vote

Document Actions