Immigration bill to crack down on 'sanctuary cities' fails in Senate

Source: The Guardian

Senate Republicans failed to advance legislation on Tuesday aimed at cracking down on so-called “sanctuary cities” – a contentious issue that has been raised on the presidential campaign trail, with some candidates attacking local officials who have objected to enforcing federal immigration law.

The vote also put several presidential candidates on record on the controversial immigration issue, as Democrats seized in particular on Florida senator Marco Rubio’s support for the bill.

Sanctuary cities are those that have opted not to detain immigrants arrested locally for federal immigration violations. Policies vary, but many hinge on the rationale that detaining immigrants arrested for local violations could result in blanket criminalization of communities and erode trust between immigrants and law enforcement.

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But the measure, sponsored by David Vitter, a Republican senator from Louisiana, failed to garner the 60 votes required to overcome objections from Democrats. The final vote, 54-45, was almost entirely split along party lines with just two Democrats – both from conservative states – joining Republicans in favor of the bill.

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Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/20/immigration-sanctuary-cities-bill-fails-senate