US House Republicans reject immigration bill
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An influential group of Republicans in the US House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected President George W. Bush&#39;s sweeping immigration reform bill -- before even seeing the final product.
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Senate Republicans rejected complaints that a new law that denies terrorism detainees the right to appeal their detention to federal courts ran against the nationâs principles.
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The House of Representatives on Tuesday crushed a bill to reinstitute the draft as Republicans accused Democrats of raising the specter of compulsory military service
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Senate Republicans are facing off against the White House in an effort to block a controversial immigration bill
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The US House of Representatives moved to prohibit US funding of the UN Human Rights Council, derided by one member as a &quot;poisonous talk shop,&quot; as part of a mammoth funding bill passed early Friday.
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(InfoWorld) - Two IT trade groups, as well as Microsoft, expressed disappointment after the U.S. Senate failed to move ahead with a comprehensive immigration reform bill that would include a higher annual cap on visas for highly skilled workers. In a vote Thursday, the Senate failed to cut off debate on the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act and move the bill forward for a vote. The bill, which critics say provides amnesty to illegal aliens living in the United States, also would have expanded exemptions to the cap on the controversial H-1B visa program, a move supported by many tech vendors. The bill would increase the annual H-1B cap from 65,000 to 115,000 and exempt all foreign students who have earned a master's degree or higher from a U.S. university from the annual cap. Right now, there's a 20,000 annual limit on exemptions for students with master's degree and higher. The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), a trade group, called on the U.S. Congress to move ahead with legislation addressing only high-skilled visas, including H-1Bs and EB "green card" visas, not other immigration issues. The ITAA was "tremendously disappointed" by the Senate's failure to move the bill forward, ITAA president and CEO Phil Bond said in a statement. "Our own immigration system is restricting America's ability to compete, to grow, and to prosper," Bond said. "Congress must find a way to remove this chokehold." The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) said it was "profoundly disappointed" in the Senate's action. Without the immigration bill, the U.S. "high-tech industry will be challenged to find the skilled workers it needs and therefore put at a significant disadvantage to its global competitors," SIIA President Ken Wasch said in a statement. CompaniesÂ such asÂ Microsoft will be hurt by the failure to pass the bill, said Pamela Passman, the company's vice president for global corporate affairs. Comprehensive immigration reform is "desperately needed," she said in a statement. U.S.-based tech worker groups such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-USA (IEEE-USA) have opposed a higher H-1B cap, arguing that companies use the program to hire foreign workers for less money than unemployed U.S. workers would receive. This month, a video surfaced on the Internet showingÂ lawyers talking about how to cheat the skilled-worker visa system.
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Republican congressional leaders decided yesterday not to bring to the floor a bill giving the District a full voting member of the House, dooming the measure's chances in this legislative session.
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Legislation to overhaul the U.S.  private pension system suffered another setback on Thursday as  key House Republican lawmakers boycotted a negotiating meeting  in a fight over whether to keep some $35 billion in tax breaks  in the bill.
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U.S. Senate Republicans on Tuesday accused Democrats of trying to rush a vote on immigration reform, casting doubt on the fate of the White House-backed bill that would tighten border security and legalize millions of illegal immigrants.
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A House of Representatives panel on Thursday rejected along party lines a Democratic bid to force the Bush administration to turn over records about the estimated cost of last year&#39;s Medicare drug bill.
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The Senate narrowly rejected two proposals today that would have upset the delicate compromise embodied in a bipartisan bill to overhaul the nationâs immigration laws.
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The House emphatically rejected a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage Thursday, the latest in a string of conservative pet causes advanced by Republican leaders in the run-up to Election Day.
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House Republicans held up debate for a second day on the budget for the Department of Homeland Security as the GOP protested Democrats' handling of lawmakers' pet projects.
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WASHINGTON - The House followed the Senate in decisively rejecting a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, ending for this year debate on what has become the dominant issue for the Republican Party's conservative base.    The 227-186 vote in the House Thursday was well short of the two-thirds majority needed to advance a constitutional amendment, but fulfilled a promise by backers to get lawmakers on the record on the highly sensitive issue in the run-up to Election Day...
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Sweeping plans to reform the US spy network run into trouble after key Republicans in Congress object to the bill.
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RICHMOND, Feb. 16 -- The Virginia Senate has rejected efforts by House Republicans to crack down on illegal immigration and limit abortions, exposing a widening gap within the GOP over how far the party should go in addressing controversial issues.
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US House Republicans are under attack for changing their party rules to protect House Majority Leader Tom Delay. The new rules would allow Delay to keep his leadership position even if he&#39;s indicted by a Texas Grand Jury.