News that Republican moderates in Congress have reached a tentative deal with the hard-right House Freedom Caucus on providing visas for so-called “Dreamers,” or illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. at a young age, has thrown ongoing discussions on a comprehensive immigration bill into chaos.
Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif., a leader of House GOP moderates on immigration, said Thursday that the Freedom Caucus had proposed allowing some 1.8 million Dreamers to obtain a new visa that would let them stay in the country for eight years.
“This was their offer to us and it’s something we can agree to, but not until we see it on paper,” Denham said. Later, the Freedom Caucus tweeted that the group “has not made an offer” but is engaged in talks focused on border security and the status of Dreamers.
The potential deal emerged the same day that House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., held a lengthy meeting in the Capitol basement with the House GOP conference and said leaders would craft an attempt at compromise on the issue.
Ryan has signaled he’s hoping an accord will derail threats by GOP moderates to force a series of narrower House votes on immigration soon, using a method called a “discharge petition,” that leaders say would lead to divisive debates on the House floor and damage the party’s electoral prospects in November.
But multiple sources suggested to Fox News that news of the tentative deal was an effort to short-circuit immigration discussions and allow moderates to forge ahead with using the discharge petition next week.
The White House and immigration hardliners in the House have insisted that any immigration bill also include full financing for a border wall with Mexico, end a lottery that distributes about 50,000 visas annually to countries…
