Exclusive–Issa Confirms: Drafting Bill to Grant Legal Status to Some Illegal Aliens

Exclusive–Issa Confirms: Drafting Bill to Grant Legal Status to Some Illegal Aliens

A spokesman for House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) confirmed to Breitbart News on Wednesday that the chairman is currently drafting legislation that would grant legal status to at least some of America’s 11 million illegal immigrants.

“Congressman Issa is currently working on a proposal that would offer temporary status for some qualifying aliens already present,” Frederick Hill, Issa’s spokesman, wrote in an email.

On Tuesday morning, The Hill reported that Issa was working on such a bill. “Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) has also started work on a bill that would deal with the immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, and has been briefing stakeholders on it for feedback, according to three people familiar with the matter,” The Hill’s Jennifer Martinez wrote. “It’s unclear when Issa will put the bill forward, sources say, but his aim is to jump-start a discussion in the House about the divisive issue.”

Issa is a lightning rod for conservatives and has led investigations into issues like Operation Fast and Furious, the terrorist attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, and the IRS’s targeting of Tea Party organizations. Such moves have won him favor with the GOP base, but immigration could be a deal-breaker for Issa depending on the specifics of the proposal. 

Even those like Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) were unsuccessful in selling a policy that grants legal status to any illegal immigrants before the border is secured and the nation’s interior immigration laws are enforced. Rubio, once wildly popular among the Republican base, has plummeted in opinion polls after he pushed for immigration reform.

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