In his plan, Democratic Representative Josh Gotheimer of New Jersey and Republican Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania called on their leadership to move forward in seven areas, including an energy plan to reduce gas prices, law enforcement investment legislation, a mental health bill to veterans, lower costs for prescription drugs and investment in cancer research, and more controversial pressure to block administration in a key immigration decision. This is the latest example of members running for re-election in some of the most difficult areas in the country, which is trying to push basic legislation across the finish line before midterm election policy overshadows what is possible on the floor. This also comes as efforts to resurrect a package only for Democrats on energy, taxes and prescription drugs seem weak at best in the US Senate.
“We need to focus on common sense, bipartisan action that can really end and unite people,” Gotheimer said. “I hear this from people at home. These are all areas where both sides can come together and actually get things done. “
Areas include several bipartisan pieces of legislation that members have already worked on together, bills that Gottheimer said would have a good chance of being passed, but they had to come to the fore.
Members also called on the leadership to take swift action to block the administration’s decision to end Title 42 on May 23, a hotspot between some Capitol Hill Democrats and the administration. The Trump-era immigration order, used by former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden, has allowed border guards to quickly send migrants back to their home countries, citing a public health crisis. The order is expected to be reversed in late May, but the decision to suspend it has disappointed some members of the front-line Democrats, who say the administration still does not have a sufficient plan to deal with the expected increase in migration once the order ends. Many moderate Democrats running for re-election have been pressured at home by Republican attacks on immigration.
The issue of Title 42 has become a major hotspot in the Senate, where immigration policy has delayed the adoption of a $ 10 billion Covid-19 aid package before the break. Republicans have called for a vote on an amendment that would block the administration from ending the policy. But Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, had declined to allow the word to be changed, arguing that immigration policy and Covid-19 funding were separate issues.
The move to block the administration under Title 42 is sure to meet strong opposition from some progressives who have been pushing the administration for months on the issue.
CNN’s Dana Bash contributed to this report.
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