A showdown is looming between the White House and the House of Representatives after the latter, which is controlled by the Republican Party, threw into doubt the future of Department of Homeland Security funding. The party passed five amendments to the budget for President Obama’s executive action on immigration – amendments the White House has already stated it will veto.
The department’s current funding runs out at the end of next month. Despite the rise in international tensions after the terrorist attack in Paris last week, the White House is refusing to back down in this latest confrontation with the Republican Party. “The administration strongly opposes the addition of any amendments to the legislation that would place restrictions on the department’s ability to see smart enforcement priorities focused on criminals, national security threats, and recent border crossers, hold undocumented immigrants accountable, and modernize the legal immigration system,” noted a policy statement from the White House issued earlier this week. “If presented to the president with objectionable restrictions, his senior advisers would recommend that he veto this bill.”
Speaker John Boehner claims that the Republicans had no choice but to take this action when dealing with a president who ignores the constitution and the will of the American people; however, Democrats are unimpressed by his rhetoric or by what they see as national security being held to ransom for political gain.
Democrat Linda Sanchez said that “juvenile” was the word to describe the Republican Party’s actions. “As they peddle their madness about immigrants to pander to their base, they put our national security at risk,” she pointed out.