Pelosi Attacks Republican Efforts to Defund Exec. Amnesty as Anti-Immigrant

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is taking Republicans to task for using the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill to block Obama’s executive amnesty, arguing that the effort puts the nation’s security at risk.

“You would think Paris would have given them some additional motivation to pass a clean Homeland Security bill. But not so,” Pelosi told reporters Tuesday, recalling the January terrorist attack in Paris.

“So driven are they by their anti-immigrant attitudes that they would even stand in the way of helping us honor our oath to support and protect the American people that we take when we get sworn into office,” she added. “So this is really malfeasance.”

House Republicans recently passed a DHS spending bill that would defund President Obama’s executive amnesty. Tuesday, Democrats blocked the bill in the Senate. The DHS funding deadline is February 27.

“They kicked the can down the road in December and said, ‘Oh we’ll do it in January.’ And the whole world rallied after what happened in Paris, except the Republicans in the House of Representatives,” the Democratic leader argued.

Pelosi further charged that the effort is not just about taking on President Obama’s executive actions, but rather attacking immigrants.

“The sad part of it is, is that it’s not about the president, its about some of their attitudes toward immigrants coming to our country. I just saw one where they said they brought measles, they brought measles. I mean what is this? Let us grow up and get our job done for the American people,” she said, in reference to recent allegations that the measles outbreak might be linked to immigrants who have not been vaccinated.

At the same press conference Tuesday, House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, like Pelosi, called on Republicans to pass a clean Department of Homeland Security bill and move forward with a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

He added that the clean bill — without the defunding provisions — has been agreed upon by appropriators in both chambers of Congress and both parties.

“We ought to let the Department of Homeland Security do its job,” he said.