Jon Kyl: “I want to be clear that we have a side-by-side amendment that we will also be voting on, which I think goes to the heart…”

“I want to be clear that we have a side-by-side amendment that we will also be voting on, which I think goes to the heart of what Senator Menendez is trying to get at here, but it does so in a way that will not upset the bipartisan consensus that has been worked out on the legislation. I think the Menendez amendment has been discussed in the past. It is an amendment that would, in significant ways, change the basic agreement that has been made by some of the Senators. Therefore, it would be very problematic were it to pass. There is a budget point of order against the Menendez amendment, and that point of order will be raised. Because of the extra cost that would be imposed by additional immigrants being permitted to come into the country over time, in fact, I think there is more than one budget point of order because of those increased costs. The general proposition is that some have said the bill is not family friendly and that we need to do more for families. I want to try to dispel that, Mr. President.”