House Republicans on Wednesday jump-started the immigration debate, pushing through the Judiciary Committee a key immigration-enforcement measure to require businesses to check new employees’ work status against a government database — but the fight highlighted deep divides that make it unlikely any bill clears Congress in the near future.

In a sharp turnaround from their usual stances, Democrats fighting to defeat the bill accused Republicans of offering “amnesty” to at least some illegal-immigrant agriculture workers who would be exempt from checks for three years. Meanwhile, Republicans, who usually argue on behalf of states’ rights, defended their bill, which would override existing state laws on electronic background checks. Read more from Washington Times