Limited Immigration Bill Considered By Chastened House GOP After Election

A limited immigration bill may be the beginning of some concessions from a Republican party that many believe needs to do some serious soul-searching to stay vital and relevant after the watershed 2012 election.

The limited immigration bill follows the near-immediate softening of stances that have been criticized as xenophobic and not inclusive of Hispanic Americans and immigrants within the party in recent years. After GOP failed candidate Mitt Romney’s poor showing among Latino voters, Fox pundit Sean Hannity did an abrupt about-face from his previously harsh stance on the people he often calls “illegals.”

Following their Election Day trouncing, Republicans are now planning to vote in the House (a bright spot for the GOP in the 2012 races) to ease restrictions on some aspects of immigration policy.

Fox News explains the provisions that constitute the limited immigration bill, saying:

“Republicans are changing the formula this time by adding a provision long sought by some immigration advocates — expanding a program that allows the spouses and minor children of people with permanent residence, or green card, to wait in the United States for their own green cards to be granted.”

The concession for the limited immigration bill’s provisions has been seen by some on the left as the flicker of hope that an era of what Dems have described as strong Republican intransigence may be drawing to an end after the overall 2012 shellacking.

Bruce Morrison is a former Democratic congressman and once headed up the House immigration subcommittee. Morrison is now an immigration policy lobbyist and advocate for groups including American Families United. The former lawmaker expressed optimism, saying the bill “to me is a positive gesture that they want to do business on this subject.”

Whether the limited immigration bill will be amenable to Dems remains unclear.