President Joe Biden told Hispanic members of Congress on Tuesday he supported the idea of moving legislation on immigration reform using budget reconciliation and a simple Democrat majority.
“He said he was committed to making those statements publicly,” Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) told Politico, detailing the meeting.
Biden met with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Tuesday at the White House.
Soto said Biden would include rhetoric supporting the idea in his address to Congress later this month.
U.S. President Joe Biden (4th L) speaks during a meeting with the leadership of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, (L-R) Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Vice President Kamala Harris, Chair Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), in the Oval Office of the White House April 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images)
Hispanic Caucus Chair Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA) also told Politico Biden would support “a pathway to citizenship through the budget reconciliation.”
The White House said in a readout of the meeting Biden discussed “immigration reform and a humanitarian response at the border.”
Any budget reconciliation bill would have to win approval from the Senate parliamentarian, which might be difficult.
The Senate parliamentarian ruled against the proposed $15 an hour minimum wage in the budget reconciliation process that helped Democrats pass the $1.9 trillion coronavirus rescue package without Republican support. That would likely narrow any amnesty options for any future budget reconciliation package.