House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Thursday shut down attempts by members of his party to force a vote on bipartisan immigration legislation. "Going down a path having some spectacle on the floor that just results in a veto doesn't solve the problem," Ryan said, as reported by Politico. He explained that "the White House will need to be a part of this and we'll need a bill the president will sign."
Ryan has been working to halt a petition by five centrist Republicans that would force a floor vote against his wishes in order to address the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protects young undocumented children from deportation. President Trump ordered last year that DACA be dismantled, although a number of court rulings have blocked it from ending.
The centrists' petition requires the signatures of 218 lawmakers, or every Democrat and 25 Republicans. Politico writes that "within just a few hours of filing, 17 Republicans had signed on or were about to do so."
Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas), one of the Republicans supporting the vote, explained that "there are million-plus men and women who don't have certainty." Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) said: "This is a way to force a vote ... to add fire. This issue can't continue to linger."