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Dream Act Sidelined

Senate Democrats on Thursday pulled what is being called the DREAM Act after Republicans refused to allow a vote on a version of the legislation that had cleared the House on Wednesday. The measure would have allowed illegal immigrant students to earn legal status through education or military service.

Rather than try to break a Republican filibuster, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., forced a vote to call off the attempt, presumably so he could try again later. Democrats prevailed on the motion to table the legislation, 59 to 40. If the bill had been approved by the Senate the bill would have gone straight to the President for his signature. 

Supporters of the legislation say it was needed to assist children who were brought into the country illegally by their parents and find themselves without a country through no fault of their own. Observers believe the bill has its best chance for passage during the 111th Congress.