Casey Higgins Quoted in Law360 on Prospects for Immigration Reform

Akin Gump senior policy advisor Casey Higgins has been quoted in the Law360 article “Despite Senate Wins, Broad Immigration Reform Still Far Off.” With not enough votes in the U.S. Senate to end a filibuster as well as division among Democrats themselves, the article reports that comprehensive immigration reform could face an uphill battle.

A piecemeal approach to immigration is the more likely scenario, Law360 says.

“I think there’s a realization among the left now as well, that wasn’t the case in ‘13 and ‘14, that rather than giving everyone a reason to vote yes, comprehensive gives everyone a reason to vote no, and too often it collapses under its own weight,” said Higgins, who previously worked for former House Speaker Paul Ryan.

Higgins said there is the possibility of extending benefits to immigrants who acted as essential workers during the coronavirus pandemic as well as a bill to provide a path to citizenship for DACA recipients. Both of them as standalone issues, she said, could garner enough bipartisan support to pass.

On the other hand, the article points out that competing priorities could doom the chances of immigration reform altogether.

“Two years can go pretty quickly. There’s a lot that could happen, there’s not a lot of time, and immigration is hard and complicated,” Higgins noted.