White House denies immigration, health care link

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

The White House is denying a suggestion in the Wall Street Journal today that recent steps toward immigration reform were taken to win the vote of Rep. Luis Gutierrez on health care legislation.

"The President has been consistent throughout the past year that he supports fixing the broken immigration system, and he's said so numerous times," said spokesman Nick Shapiro. "Congressman Gutierrez is a long-time leader of the reform effort on the Hill, so of course they've had many conversations about it, and they'll continue to."

The Journal linked forward motion on immigration to Gutierrez's choice, something that Gutierrez has suggested to others as well, writing that the White House "revived the measure vote by vote, using ever lever of government at its disposal."

Gutierrez, a week and a half ago, asked Obama to "look more closely" at Hispanic caucus immigration demands. Gutierrez, it reports, explicitly linked health care and immigration, saying he wanted "a commitment on a separate immigration overhaul bill."

At the White House last Thursday, Chuck Schumer gave the congressman word that his op-ed laying out an immigration framework would run that day, and Gutierrez decided to vote "yes." An hour after his announcement, the White House put out a statement in support of the Senate plan, prompting me to speculate on a link, though the White House says the statement was simply an automatic response to the Senate framework.

The timing, and the revived prominence of immigration, suggested to me the things were connected. The White House, however, insists that the timing was coincidental, and notes a long series of meetings and statements beginning last year on immigration reform.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0310/White_House_denies_immigration_health_care_link.html

[Sofiyya 1,687]

I've seen Gutierrez on several shows claiming that his vote was in return for promises from Obama re amnesty efforts for illegals. If he's not lying, then Barry is. It's a toss up.

Edited March 23, 2010 by Sofiyya