U.S. Senate Blocks Sanctuary City Bill

The U.S. Senate failed to come up with the required 60 votes needed to move forward with the Sanctuary City Bill.

The bill, S.2146, failed a procedural vote. The measure would have stripped federal funding for cities and other communities that do not honor requests from immigration officials to hold criminal illegal aliens in their jails

With a vote of 54-45, the measure failed to obtain the 60 votes necessary to end debate. Louisiana Senator David Vitter introduced the bill. Before the vote, Senator Vitter wrote, “Sanctuary cities and the associated violent crimes by illegal immigrants are reaching a critical point, and we cannot wait any longer to take action to protect Americans here at home. There is simply no incentive for these localities to enforce current immigration laws, and my legislation will make sure sanctuary cities are no longer rewarded for their failures to uphold the law. As the Senate debates the Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act, I urge my colleagues to remember Kate Steinle’s vicious murder and the tens of thousands of crimes committed by illegal immigrants within our borders.”

In a speech on the Senate floor, Texas Senator Ted Cruz said, “This class of illegal aliens has a special disregard and disdain for our nation’s laws. And, too often, these offenders also have serious rap sheets…. We must send the message that defiance of our laws will no longer be tolerated—whether it’s by the sanctuary cities themselves or the illegal reentry offenders that they harbor. The problem of illegal immigration in this country will never be solved until we demonstrate to the American people that we are serious about securing the border and enforcing our immigration laws. This bill is just a small step, but at least it’s a small step in the right direction.”

“Although these jurisdictions are more than happy — eager, even—to take federal dollars,” Cruz continued, “they go out of their way to impede federal immigration enforcement by adopting policies that prohibit their law enforcement officers from cooperating with federal officers. Some of the jurisdictions even refuse to honor requests from the federal government to temporarily hold a criminal alien until federal officers can take custody of the individual.”

Sen. Cruz voted yes on the motion to move forward with the bill. Texas Senator John Cornyn also voted in favor of the motion to move the bill forward.

Several senators spoke for and against the bill. In the end, the votes needed to bring the measure to the floor for a vote could not be obtained.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas and is a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.