Previous efforts to overhaul immigration laws have failed — even provisions that are popular, like providing a path to citizenship for so-called Dreamers who were brought to the U.S.
Senate rules permit including provisions related only to taxing and spending in so-called reconciliation bills, which can pass the Senate with a simple majority, thus avoiding the 60-vote filibusterThe parliamentarian argued that the proposed changes to immigration law are "policy changes" and that the budget impact was only incidental, saying it was "not appropriate for inclusion in reconciliation."