Senators declare immigration bill ‘dead’

06/28/2007

WASHINGTON (CNN) — The Senate effectively killed a sweeping immigration overhaul bill Thursday, dealing a major blow to President Bush and to a bipartisan group of lawmakers backing the legislation.

The bill fell 14 votes short of the 60 needed to cut off debate. Some senators had said if the Senate failed to invoke cloture, immigration reform would be “dead” for this Congress.

Only 46 senators voted in favor of “cloture,” or for cutting off debate, while 53 voted against.

Bush had lobbied heavily for the bill’s passage, creating what many analysts viewed as a test of his power in the remaining years of his administration

Notably, 16 Democrats voted against cloture, while only 12 Republicans voted for it. Moreover, 18 senators who had previously supported cloture in Tuesday’s vote, voted against it Thursday.

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