Reid: GOP border bill could be vehicle for [amnesty] immigration reform

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Tuesday that if the House passes a $659 million border bill with policy changes, he could use it as a vehicle for comprehensive immigration reform.

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is trying to round up enough votes for a pared-down border bill that spends far below the president’s request for $3.7 billion and includes policy changes to speed the deportation of illegal minors from Central America ...

Reid’s statement delivers a blow to Boehner’s efforts to persuade conservatives in his conference to vote for the bill.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) met with more than 20 House conservatives last week to warn them that passing legislation addressing the Texas border crisis could come back to haunt them. He said Reid would likely either bury the bill in the Senate or overhaul it and potentially use it as a vehicle to pass elements of the Senate’s comprehensive reform.

The House has not taken any floor action on immigration reform legislation this year. Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), an outspoken opponent of granting legal status to illegal immigrants, has warned any bill could be used as a vehicle for creating a pathway to citizenship for millions of them ...