WASHINGTON _ Sens. John McCain and Chris Coons plan to unveil an immigration proposal on how to solve the impasse over undocumented childhood arrivals.
The legislation would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who arrived as children with their parents and would also provide money for border security measures.
It is also aimed at breaking the logjam over funding the government. While lawmakers expect to pass a short-term spending plan to avoid another government shutdown, what to do with so-called "Dreamers" has become part of the funding debate.
The legislation is a partner piece to a measure in the House introduced by Reps. Will Hurd, a Republican from Texas, and Pete Aguilar, a Democrat from California, that more than 50 Democratic and Republican members have signed onto.
"While reaching a deal cannot come soon enough for America's service members, the current political reality demands bipartisan cooperation to address the impending expiration of the DACA program and secure the southern border," McCain said in a statement.
The Arizona Republican thanked Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, for his work on legislation.
Coons said the bill "doesn't solve every immigration issue, but it does address the two most pressing problems we face: protecting DACA recipients and securing the border."
The Wall Street Journal reported that the legislation wouldn't immediately fund construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border that President Donald Trump has previously requested and made a central part of its campaign. But it would fund a comprehensive study of which border security measures are most needed.
