House Vote On Immigration Bill Delayed Until Next Week
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A House vote on an immigration bill scheduled for later Friday has been postponed until next week due to lack of support.
The delayed vote was on a so-called compromise bill between GOP moderates and conservatives that would offer some Dreamers a pathway to citizenship and provide $25 billion for Trump's border wall, among other things.
On Thursday, the House killed a hard-right immigration bill Thursday. The rejected bill would have curbed legal immigration and bolstered border security but would not have granted a pathway to citizenship to Dreamers.
Democrats oppose both measures.
"Even if a bill does not pass, we're making advancements, 'cause we're putting ideas on the table," said House Speaker Paul Ryan.
President Donald Trump took to Twitter Friday morning, telling his fellow Republicans in Congress to "stop wasting their time" on immigration legislation until after November.
The president said Friday that even if a measure passes, it's doomed in the Senate.
As pressure mounts to continue to unify migrant children with their families, a senior Trump administration officials said about 500 of the more than 2,300 children separated from their families at the border have been reunited since May.
The Pentagon is also examining the possibility of housing up to 20,000 migrants on military bases.
"How will that even work? Is it even feasible," said Sen. Charles Schumer.
President Donald Trump blasted Democrats for the crisis at the border.
"They don't care about the children," he said. "They created and they let it happen -- a massive child smuggling industry. It's exactly what it's become."
"No, we do care about the border," said Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. "We're going to be smart and strong, not reckless, rash, and ruthless."
Meanwhile, First Lady Melania Trump made a surprise visit to a facility in Texas housing some of the children. She told the children to "be kind and nice to each other."
"I also like to ask you how I can help these children be reunited with their families as quickly as possible," she said.
But the first lady made waves when she wore a green, hooded military jacket from the fast-fashion brand Zara that read "I really don't care, do u?" both as she departed and returned to Washington. The words were printed in white, in graffiti-style, on the jacket's back.
Mrs. Trump changed into a pale yellow jacket before the plane landed in McAllen.
When asked what message the first lady intended to send, spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said: "It's a jacket. There was no hidden message. After today's important visit to Texas, I hope the media isn't going to choose to focus on her wardrobe. "
Grisham underscored that message in a tweet with the hashtags #SheCares and #ItsJustAJacket.
President Trump later tweeted that the jacket referred to the "Fake News Media."
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
