The House will vote as early as Tuesday on a measure to fund the Department of Homeland Security until Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year, ending weeks of wrangling over a measure conservatives hoped to use to curb President Obama’s executive actions on immigration.
Republican aides told the Washington Examinerthat House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, would take up the bill, which passed in the Senate last month, as soon as the paperwork crossed the Capitol.
Most House Republicans will vote against the measure because it leaves out language blocking President Obama’s executive actions on immigration. The bill is expected to pass only because Democrats plan to vote for it.
Boehner told lawmakers that even though Congress will not block Obama’s actions through its spending authority, a court-ordered injunction against President Obama’s directive will delay their implementation.
“I believe this decision, considering where we are, is the right one for this team, and the right one for this country,” Boehner told Republicans in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, according to a witness. “The good news is that the president’s executive action has been stopped, for now. This matter will continue to be litigated in the courts, where we have our best chance of winning this fight.”
Homeland Security funding runs out at the end of the week.
