Discussion of Bills that remove the Per Country Limits - H.R.3012, H,R. 213

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Originally Posted by immitime

gs,

If we can believe this... below statement on Irish echo site stated yesterday.[link below]

But now, Schumer staffers are looking at a new bid for House of Representatives backing that would potentially see an E3 standing on its own feet --and not attached to any “country caps” bill.

http://irishecho.com/?p=71868

And combining the previous news or statement from Sen.Grassley.

if you can read in between the news coming out. Now Schumer and Brown stopped adding amendments to H.R.3012 and Grassley is ready to lift the hold provided there is no Irish E-3 provisions added. Please see below.

See Grassley's exact wording on National Journal article approximately 2 months back.

“It’s the only immigration bill that’s going to be around for two years. So if you want to get some reforms, you take every opportunity you can to take an immigration bill and [fix] other things wrong with immigration.” —Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, on the Chaffetz bil
http://www.nationaljournal.com/featu...d-out-20120315

So now it is all set as per the news coming out. Only thing Senators should act!

So now is the time to pass H.R. 3012... at least if not this Summer by late fall.

That is why positively HR 3012 should be law soon! Praying for all of us .

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In our dreams. I think Grassley was just posturing and has no intention of releasing the HR3012 hold. I think it's dead.

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Originally Posted by abcx13

In our dreams. I think Grassley was just posturing and has no intention of releasing the HR3012 hold. I think it's dead.

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Politics won't work that way.. As we Think!... The Bill H.R 3012 is valid until the present Elected Senate session is Valid. So obviously it is not dead at present. This bill is kept pending for Election--(bipartisan) Politics! And everyone knows this bill is non-controversial and it will pass in the Senate without much issues, sometimes with unanimous voice votes. Now Mr.Grass Uncle came out with a Bill S.3245 now Congressmen Chaffetz can bargain with Guncle for his bill HR 3012, Otherwise Tea party supporting Republican Senators can hold S.3245 Bill.. so that is an option. There are lot of other options & opportunities in Politics!.. Things can change within a day!!! Another turn around that can happen is as a Bipartisan bill there is another bill introduced in Senate S.3217, which includes the same provisions as HR 3012. So each Senator is aware of the content of the HR 3012, and it should be law soon!

Unfortunately, Hypocrites, scoundrals, money laundrers, and uneducated lots are more in Politics nowadays--- Otherwise our life would have been easier!(this is applicable to any politican from any country--if you analyze)..

so no point in conclusion that bill is dead.. because that is only a non-verifiable belief for now!

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Originally Posted by immitime

Politics won't work that way.. AS we Think!... The Bill is valid until the the present Elected Senate session is Valid. So obviously it is not dead at present. This bill has kept in pending for Election--(bipartisan) Politics! Now Mr.Grass Uncle came out with a Bill now in the Senate. Congressmen Chaffetz can bargain with him for his bill Otherwise Tea party supporting Republicans Senators can hold his Bill.. so that is an option. There are lot of other options in Politics!.. Unfortunately, Hypocrites, scoundrals and uneducated lots are more in Politics nowadays---(this is applicable to any politican from any country--if you analyze).. so no point in conclusion that bill is dead.. because that is only a non-varifiable belief for now!

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I have to agree with Immitime - anything might happen. Look at the 3 bills below - they are some way related to employment-based immigration

S. 3217 Startup Act 2.0, Sen. Moran's STEM legislation with elimination of employment-based immigration per country limits
S. 3192 Smart Jobs Act, Sens. Alexander and Coons STEM bill
S. 3835 Star Act of 2012 Sen. Cornyn's STEM bill with elimination of diversity immigration.

Guys - realistically - and this is just my "opinion" - nothing will happen between now and november election. The president can't take a chance on a hot topic. So even if both congress and senate sign it - obama may not necessarily sign it. All this bill creation frenzie IMHO is political posturing and pandering.

The good news otherwise is - the demand is substantially lower than usual years and so EB2IC will continue to see shorter approvals times (3-4 years as opposed to 5 years - PERM to GC times).

Teddy & Gurus,

Based on the latest 485 inventory can we predict how the PD shall move if HR3012 becomes law of the land?

Q,

I sincerely hope your prediction comes true - Coming this from you makes me feel much more comfortable.

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Originally Posted by qesehmk

Guys - realistically - and this is just my "opinion" - nothing will happen between now and november election. The president can't take a chance on a hot topic. So even if both congress and senate sign it - obama may not necessarily sign it. All this bill creation frenzie IMHO is political posturing and pandering.

The good news otherwise is - the demand is substantially lower than usual years and so EB2IC will continue to see shorter approvals times (3-4 years as opposed to 5 years - PERM to GC times).

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I think there is also a general concensus that there is no chance of HR 3012 passing this year, in fact I would be surprised if it even passes the next year! Not to sound negative but given the existing political sceanrio I don't see how or why Senator Grassley wold take his hold off this.

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Originally Posted by qesehmk

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The good news otherwise is - the demand is substantially lower than usual years and so EB2IC will continue to see shorter approvals times (3-4 years as opposed to 5 years - PERM to GC times).
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I don't understand. There are 100,000 visas for EB2 and EB1 combined (ignoring EB4 and 5 because they are so few). The inventory demand is 16K for EB1 and 60K for EB2. Even considering unfiled applications. EB2 should become current in about 1.5 years. I don't understand how you people are predicting 3-4 years.

I am EB3. I waiting for EB2 to be current and then spillover to EB3 :-) Too optimistic I guess.

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Originally Posted by sportsfan33

As someone who is completely oblivious to the happenings between the movers and shakers behind the scene, the meteoric rise of HR3012 was more surprising. The fact that this bill has been presumably *forgotten* is *not* surprising - this happens to most immigration bills anyway regardless of political climate.

HR3012 was the victim of its fast success, because the Irish E3 impeded its progress substantially. In the hindsight, E3 was a hindrance than an ally. However by the recent reports, E3 is now separated from HR3012, so there is a chance that the bill may be brought on the Senate floor.

Grassley is a dangerous senator too. Usually for non controversial bills, Senate will not dare invoking cloture, because then it becomes a political hot potato, and the general public will turn extremely anti immigrant (as if they are not enough already). However reports are there that Grassley is willing to compromise. I don't know about their accuracy.

In the end, this is still a very clever bill. It has something for both Democrats and Republicans, and members of the Congress may be willing to pass the bill in order to tell their constituents that *something* was done. I don't yet believe the bill is dead. I think by early August, we can pass the judgment.

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The bill is on the Senate calendar 293. I just don't know how to translate the Senate Calendar to normal human calendars.

CNBC Poll: Does the U.S. Have a Shortage of High-Skilled Workers?

Go click on Yes. Does NOT require a login or registration.

It don't matter whether clicking in the poll will help or change anything or not. But some one like Larry Kudlow or Cramer might end up speaking a sentence or two on these.

Link: http://www.cnbc.com/id/47444489

And good to see people still talking about HR3012. Keep the itch alive. We don't know which bill and when turns into a law. As Q said, it is all politics, but that doesn't mean all hope is lost.

CNBC Poll: Does the U.S. Have a Shortage of High-Skilled Workers?

Go click on Yes. Does NOT require a login or registration.

Link: http://www.cnbc.com/id/47444489

mniwas - EB2I will never become current. So please give up that hope and switch to EB2. Your analysis of numbers is a bit simplistic. The ROW and EB1 and all other demand keeps pouring in every year every month. So even as you remove old backlog - new backlog gets built up and effectively SOFAD is limited. That's why 3-4 years is what it will take going forward and not 5 months! Hope this helps.

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Originally Posted by mniwas

I don't understand. There are 100,000 visas for EB2 and EB1 combined (ignoring EB4 and 5 because they are so few). The inventory demand is 16K for EB1 and 60K for EB2. Even considering unfiled applications. EB2 should become current in about 1.5 years. I don't understand how you people are predicting 3-4 years.

I am EB3. I waiting for EB2 to be current and then spillover to EB3 :-) Too optimistic I guess.

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On other note - guys, do vote on the CNBC poll and vote "Yes"!!

HALT AMERICA'S DECLINE BY WELCOMING SKILLED AND ENTREPRENEURIAL IMMIGRANTS

http://blog.cyrusmehta.com/2012/05/h...welcoming.html

While the chances of this bill [Startup act] passing in the current partisan political climate, prior the 2012 Presidential elections remain remote, one can still be surprised. After all, immigration ought to cut across partisan lines, and our elected representatives need to enact sound immigration proposals for the good of the country and the world.

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Originally Posted by immitime

HALT AMERICA'S DECLINE BY WELCOMING SKILLED AND ENTREPRENEURIAL IMMIGRANTS

http://blog.cyrusmehta.com/2012/05/h...welcoming.html

While the chances of this bill [Startup act] passing in the current partisan political climate, prior the 2012 Presidential elections remain remote, one can still be surprised. After all, immigration ought to cut across partisan lines, and our elected representatives need to enact sound immigration proposals for the good of the country and the world.

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Another good article by Cyrus Mehta !

Some new hope maybe?

http://beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.bl...-path-for.html

Can somebody enlighten us about who the other 2 Republican Senators are that are opposing 3012?

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In another sign of a thaw, Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, said last week that he is ready to drop his hold on a bipartisan House bill (HR 3012) that would lift the per-country limits on green cards. That would reduce the backlog of green card applicants from countries where demand for the visas is high, such as India or China.

Grassley said he was able to include language tightening the requirements for temporary work permits known as H-1B visas. But two other Republican senators oppose the legislation and could block it should Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., attempt to bring it up.

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We didn't hear this news from elsewhere. I don't think lawmakers supporting HR3012 will support grassley's H1B dreams. If it were added to HR3012, it will have to go to house where many republican reps would oppose the H1B component and the bill will die there.

To gcq
My thoughts are along the same lines as yours. I did an exhaustive google news search for more information about Sen.Grassley's hold using every possible keyword but found no additional information. The article itself does not clearly say which Bill he is planning to add it to. The Congressional Daily Digest does not show any new amendments being submitted. I usually rely on the AILA website which reported the first set of amendments back in December and they are quiet on this. If the news of the hold being ready to be lifted is true,the blogs would have lit up with this information by now. On a different note,the proposed amendments which he has championed for quite a while are so punitive that the tech lobby is not going to like it.Having held the Bill for so long he will ensure that the final version will include these restrictions and this is worrying as you said because the Bill may die in conference.On a different note HR 3012 may be the vehicle for much broader EB reform including STEM legislation

To gcq
I stand corrected.AILA included it in their daily news clips section but just provided a link to the Article in CQ. More significant news stories are usually on their recent postings page.Still no other source for this piece of information

To gcq,qesehmk and others

I am very puzzled by the lack of excitement over the news that some negotiations are going on about H.R 3012 and Sen.Grassley's hold on the Bill. I have been following this blog and trackitt and there is no chatter whatsoever.I don't visit ** anymore and so I am not sure what they have said about this.Is this because our hopes have been raised multiple times only to be led down the road of disappointment? BTW, I am yet to find another source for the information about the potential release of the hold or the identity of the 2 other senators who object to this bill.
Incidentally, Sen.Grassley does not seem to be slowing down on his complaints about the H-1B/OPT program

http://www.computerworld.com/s/artic...0&pageNumber=1

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Originally Posted by gs1968

To gcq,qesehmk and others

I am very puzzled by the lack of excitement over the news that some negotiations are going on about H.R 3012 and Sen.Grassley's hold on the Bill. I have been following this blog and trackitt and there is no chatter whatsoever.I don't visit ** anymore and so I am not sure what they have said about this.Is this because our hopes have been raised multiple times only to be led down the road of disappointment? BTW, I am yet to find another source for the information about the potential release of the hold or the identity of the 2 other senators who object to this bill.
Incidentally, Sen.Grassley does not seem to be slowing down on his complaints about the H-1B/OPT program

http://www.computerworld.com/s/artic...0&pageNumber=1

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Grassley is a representative of anti-immigrant groups like NUSA. For grassleys' concern for fraud, look at his own fraud in this article which originally appeared in readers digest.
http://forums.soompi.com/discussion/..._vanilla=true/

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Other members of Congress have profited from subsidies directly. Arkansas Democratic senator Blanche Lincoln’s family received more than $700,000 over a ten-year period, and Republican Iowa senator Chuck Grassley, a millionaire deficit hawk, reaped $238,000 in federal dollars from 1995 to 2006.

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Rightly said, our hopes have been raised multiple times so we are in wait and watch mode. Only ** donors will know what is going on behind the scenes. As for commoners like us we have nothing to do as action item. We just need to wait with hopeful prayers.

Slightly off topic by here you go

Sen. Chuck Grassley Launches Attack Against 29-Month OPT Program Requesting the U.S. Controller General to Investigage Abuse of the Program - http://www.immigration-law.com/

He is not going to stop...I'm starting to wonder whether he does any contribution to US other than being a road block for immigration.

I totally agree with sportsfan's post. Personally, the whole immigration process needs to be ripped apart and rebuilt. Revamp EB, get rid of the damn lottery (or atleast put tighter controls on who can apply). I think the FB process while painful is probably the most fair.

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Originally Posted by sportsfan33

Not everything that Grassley or other senators do is wrong. It is perfectly right from the perspective of the Americans. Note that it is election year and the labor report has been disappointing. With Facebook sinking, the silicon valley shine has taken a hit. Expect more and more tightening of screws going forward. Q's view about HR3012 not passing any time soon is consistent with this larger theme.

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I was surprised at Democrats who were so willingly supporting Irish E-3 bill without single question even though it was racist and unfair. They make Grassley look like a hero. They would pass anything without someone to stop and ask questions.

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Originally Posted by sportsfan33

This program is abused more often than not. In absence of a stricter everify, effectively, this program simply opens up doors for F1 students to be exploited as cheap labor for more than 2 years. There are a good number of reasons why a comprehensive everify is unlikely.

Ironically, this program started to cover up one massive fraud - H1B abuse. It would have been better during 2005-2008 to stop the H1B abuse, which would have helped the future GC queues as well.

Instead of keeping people on various degrees of nonimmigrant status for a long time, the system should only pick the winners and the most talented people and simply grant them GCs. That's a good immigration policy.

Not everything that Grassley or other senators do is wrong. It is perfectly right from the perspective of the Americans. Note that it is election year and the labor report has been disappointing. With Facebook sinking, the silicon valley shine has taken a hit. Expect more and more tightening of screws going forward. Q's view about HR3012 not passing any time soon is consistent with this larger theme.

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Agree with your post. This immigration system is really messed up and I hope some sane voices prevail in future. I personally feel that Sen. Grassley is not really against the HR3012 itself but is more concerned about the H1B/L1 abuse. Some of his concerns are not misplaced either because fraud in these categories is not a new thing. Now add 29 month OPT program on that. I feel that his main motive is to add those stringent measures on this bill. Now, its a different thing that those changes will probably not be accepted by technology companies and the unfortunate part is whenever H1B/L1 abuse is talked about, the discussion will almost always gets directed at IT Companies and they get truly or untruly blamed for taking unfair advantage of the system. I understand that IT and technology companies end up using most number of H1B/L1 but there are other people like me who are also on H1B and are not in technology field (physician) who are bearing the brunt of this alleged fraud/abuse of H1B/L1 and tug of war between technology companies demanding less restrictions and politicians wanting more restrictions.

I am a firm believer in Q's theory that immigration should not be tied to an employer like what we have in EB categoeries right now. I also agree with you that the immigration policy should be efficient enough to be able to pick talented people from the labor pool based on objective criteria and give them GCs instead of making talented people wait endlessly with uncertainty putting their career advancements on hold.

H1B is the only path for skilled immigrants to enter this country. Choking H1B program will force out all skilled immigration, lead to more outsourcing and make the country less competitive.

If grassley was so concerned about fraud, why doesn't he readily agree to stop all corn subsidies ? He won't because corn farmers are his vote bank. He doesn't care about H1B because it is not a prime interest for his farm state. He himself took advantage of the corn subsidy despite being a millionaire. Grassley's intentions -- always a suspect. He works in close collaboration with anti-immigrant groups like NUSA. In fact he bases his actions on inputs from these groups. If you want a real glimpse of what this man is, watch the youtube video where he explains why he prefers senate over house. He is an attention seeking lawmaker who want everyone to be begging to please him.

Did anyone wonder why illegal immigrants have such a clout in this country despite being illegal ? Because their fellow countrymen who are citizens support them. Look at us, we are speaking the language of anti-immigrants. For that reason we will never be a strong political force in this country. Irish had the guts to ask visas specifically for their illegals. Us ? good at bashing our own countrymen's prospects !

If we are really righteous and care about our dignity, we all should be in our home country make it stronger, fighting against corruption and make it one of the leading countries of the world, not sitting in US and bragging about how great we are.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/76996.html

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Grassley only recently lifted a hold on a bill by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) that would eliminate the employment-based per-country visa cap. A spokesperson for Grassley said the senator “supports legal immigration opportunities and works for measures to prevent fraud in immigration programs.”

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories...#ixzz1wpeAQ1nM

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No other source can be confirmed at this point. Please hold back all questions about impact of this and future date movements etc. It is still way to early. We need to independently confirm that the removal of hold is true.

To kd2008
I had brought this up last week in the same thread after a similar news report in the Congressional Quarterly by Daniel Harrison. However that article stated that Sen.Grassley has managed to add his H-1B restrictions onto the Bill.It also mentioned that 2 other Republican senators were opposing the Bill and could block it but did not say clearly which Bill they were opposing. The POLITICO news story you mentioned does not mention anything about these H-1B trade-offs. Thus there are 2 sources now which mention the removal of hold but they could be feeding off each other. The more reputed immigration news sources like ILW, Shuesterman,AILA or Immigration-Law.com which have their ears close to the ground have not mentioned this at all. Also when Sen.Grassley released his hold on the FCC nominees he made a statement on the Floor of the Senate and his website also reported it under the NEWS section. If an agreement was reached the Bill would most likely pass under Unanimous consent today as generally the Bills are cleared before people have a change of mind/heart.
Let us hope that there is some closure on this issue soon as we are already past the 6 month mark since the House passed the Bill

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Originally Posted by kd2008

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/76996.html



No other source can be confirmed at this point. Please hold back all questions about impact of this and future date movements etc. It is still way to early. We need to independently confirm that the removal of hold is true.

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I called his DC office. They weren't aware of the Politico article and confirmed that the good Senator's hold remains in place. So, unless there's something Michelle Quinn knows that Grassley's office doesn't yet (unlikey), she made a mistake.

To Pedro Gonzales
Thank you for the update.I also read on another forum about a similar phone call to his office and the hold being firmly in place and that the article(s) were factually incorrect.
We have to wait and see.

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Originally Posted by Pedro Gonzales

I called his DC office. They weren't aware of the Politico article and confirmed that the good Senator's hold remains in place. So, unless there's something Michelle Quinn knows that Grassley's office doesn't yet (unlikey), she made a mistake.

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Pedro, Thanks for the legwork and the update.

Here is today's Senate Calendar: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CCAL-11...2012-06-04.pdf

On page 62, Sen. Grassley's hold on HR 3012 is still in place. So the politico story is factually incorrect.

After having extensive conversations with my Senator's office, I will say that it does not matter what I think or you think. All that matters is what they think. And what they think is based mostly on political equations. Some times based on humane or patriotic grounds. If your issue does not fit into these then it is not a high priority issue and you are S-O-L.

And as far as Grassley goes, here is the deal: This guy was pro-H-1B, then the economy tanked, bodyshoppers setup shop, and a whole lot of folks got the shaft and he got burnt. I don't think he is stubborn or racist. He knows the HR 3012 is the only thing that is close to getting passed and if he does not push protections then none will ever get passed and implemented. And clearly H-1B and L-1 visas have been abused, though I suspect fraud is minimal. He wished to tighten up the language to minimize abuse and catch fraud. While is it well intentioned, it will blow up to smithereens recruitment model of many bodyshops and many large fortune companies. These are the ones who care and have enough money to get lobbyists working on what they want.

While I want my GC fast, I do not wish to be a pawn that these folks showcase and misuse to get what they want.

Unconfirmed Reports - Grassley Lifted hold on H.R.3012

Source - http://www.immigration-law.com/

Here is the news link

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/76996.html

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Originally Posted by Mavrick

Unconfirmed Reports - Grassley Lifted hold on H.R.3012

Source - http://www.immigration-law.com/

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Originally Posted by Mavrick

Unconfirmed Reports - Grassley Lifted hold on H.R.3012

Source - http://www.immigration-law.com/

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Please read the discussion of bills thread in advocacy section. This report has been confirmed to be untrue by forum member Pedro directly with Grassley's office.

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Originally Posted by Mavrick

Here is the news link

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/76996.html

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This has been discussed few pages back. This story is incorrect. Grassley still has the hold as confirmed by his office.

HR 3012 LIFT Hold by Grassley is True and Confirmed.. ( Ron' Says it )

http://www.immigration-information.c...ed=1#post73019

Great News ..

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Originally Posted by tatikonda

HR 3012 LIFT Hold by Grassley is True and Confirmed.. ( Ron' Says it )

http://www.immigration-information.c...ed=1#post73019

Great News ..

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guys ..new is coming from Ron Gotcher's website .. I am surprised to see no one is responding !!

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Originally Posted by sportsfan33

I am very surprised, and if this is true, it will be a great day indeed.

We still don't know for sure. Let's hold our horses until there is absolute confirmation.

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Yes it is 100% true !! ( see 1st Thread on 3rd page )

http://www.immigration-information.c...ed=1#post73019

Soon after Kd posted the politico link, I thoroughly checked the congressional records for any clue with respect to the release of the hold , for my disappointment I couldn't find anything. Pedro called the Grassely's office and confirmed the news was not true. Somebody from the other forum also called and confirmed that the hold is intact. I don't know what is the true intention of the Grassley's office to confirm both ways.

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Originally Posted by Kanmani

Soon after Kd posted the politico link, I thoroughly checked the congressional records for any clue with respect to the release of the hold , for my disappointment I couldn't find anything. Pedro called the Grassely's office and confirmed the news was not true. Somebody from the other forum also called and confirmed that the hold is intact. I don't know what is the true intention of the Grassley's office to confirm both ways.

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I called Senator Grassley Office, 202 224 3744 and They say that Bill is STILL ON HOLD.