Predicting that she can succeed where President Obama failed, Hillary Clinton on Friday said flatly that she will be able to “force” the Republican-led House to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill, including a path to citizenship, if she becomes president.
Speaking at a journalists’ conference in Washington, the Democratic presidential nominee said she believes she can push through a bipartisan measure similar to the one that cleared the Senate earlier In Mr. Obama’s presidency. That bill ultimately never came up for a vote in the House amid conservative opposition.
But the next time, Mrs. Clinton says, will be different.
“I view the political landscape as increasingly favorable to us making this happen,” she told the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. “This will be fast tracked. We already know what can pass the Senate. … If we then put enough pressure on the House and do everything we can to really force them to have to take what the Senate passes, I think the outcome will be very different this time.”
The former first lady did not elaborate on exactly how she would pressure the House, which is likely to remain in Republican hands after the November elections, to adopt her favored legislation.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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