House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., announced Wednesday she will not support a budget agreement that includes spending caps because the agreement does not include a legislative fix for Dreamers.
“The budget caps agreement includes many Democratic priorities,” Pelosi said in a statement, citing the inclusion of a disaster relief package, funding increases for both non-defense and defense spending, and funding to combat the opioid epidemic.
However, she said there is a lack of support within her caucus for the deal given the lack of a resolution for Dreamers or commitment from House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., to take up immigration legislation in the coming weeks.
“This morning, we took a measure of our Caucus because the package does nothing to advance bipartisan legislation to protect Dreamers in the House. Without a commitment from Speaker Ryan comparable to the commitment from Leader McConnell, this package does not have my support.”
While Ryan has not committed the House to bring up legislation, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is set to bring legislation to the floor next week as negotiations carry on.
The potential spending deal would include a two-year budget agreement, raising the debt ceiling until after the midterm elections, boosting of spending levels by $100 billion, along with the disaster relief package Pelosi cited.
A majority of the Republican conference is expected to support the deal, but many will not vote in favor, including the entire Freedom Caucus.
