Above: Senate gallery chants “Yes we can!” as Vice President Biden reads the immigration vote results aloud

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate passed the so-called “Gang of Eight” immigration bill on Thursday by a 68-32 vote margin, resulting in the Senate gallery breaking out into a “Yes we can!” chant.

While the bill’s passage in the Senate wasn’t entirely unexpected, its failure to hit 70 votes is problematic for its future in the U.S. House according to Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile.

“Sponsors of this legislation — despite the array of financial, establishment and special interest support — failed to hit their target of 70 votes,” Sessions said in a statement. “The more people learned about the bill the more uneasy they became. Failure to reach 70 votes is significant, and ensures the House has plenty of space to chart an opposite course and reject this fatally flawed proposal. So while the bill passed the Senate, this is just the beginning. The legislation adopted today guarantees three things: immediate amnesty before security, permanent future illegal immigration, and a record surge in legal immigration that will reduce wages and increase unemployment.”

Also in his statement, Sessions expressed his skepticism that the bill would do enough to increase control of the border.

“There will be no border fence, no border surge, nothing but the same tired illusory promises of future enforcement that will never occur,” he said. “Americans have begged and pleaded time and again for Congress to end the lawlessness. But this amnesty-first bill is a surrender to lawlessness. As ICE and USCIS officers have warned, it will decimate immigration enforcement and erode the constitutional rule of law upon which our national greatness depends. And it remains unfair to the legal immigrants who put enormous time and expense into following the rules our nation has established. This legislation demonstrates that the governing body in Washington has become severed from the people it is supposed to represent. It is a broken promise 1,200 pages long.”

Sessions continued his statement by reiterating his belief that the Senate’s loyalty should lie with the American people, which he said was not the case with the passage of the Gang of Eight’s bill.

“The Senate’s loyalty must be to the American people — immigrant and native-born alike — who work hard, pay their taxes, fight our wars, and obey our laws,” he continued. “Twenty-one million Americans cannot find full-time work. Medium household income is almost ten percent lower today than it was in 1999. But this proposal would double the number of guest workers for businesses and provide permanent legal status to more than 30 million mostly-lower skill legal immigrants in the next ten years. This huge increase in the legal immigration flow will reduce wages and raise unemployment, and displace those who have suffered the most economically. As wise observers have said, we are a nation with an economy—not an economy with a nation. We can create a lawful immigration system that makes us proud. But for that to happen, this bill must never become law. We must return to the drawing board and produce legislation that serves the just and legitimate interests of the nation, its people, and all who wish to call America home.”

Other members of Alabama’s delegation acknowledged the leadership role Senator Sessions has taken during the debate over immigration reform.

“I would like to acknowledge the diligence and leadership of my colleague from Alabama, Senator Sessions, on this issue. I commend his relentless effort to bring to light the many problems and questions surrounding the legislation before us,” Senator Shelby said during his Senate floor speech yesterday.

“I applaud Senator Sessions for his steadfast defense for the rule of law throughout this process. Because of his work, Americans are more aware of the onerous parts of this bill,” Rep. Martha Roby added.

Fourteen Republicans joined the Democrats in voting for the Gang of Eight’s bill. They are listed below.

Marco Rubio (Fla.)

Lamar Alexander (Tenn.)

Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)

Kelly Ayotte (N.H.)

Jeffrey Chiesa (N.J.)

Susan Collins (Maine)

Bob Corker (Tenn.)

Jeff Flake (Ariz.)

Lindsey Graham (S.C.)

Orrin Hatch (Utah)

Dean Heller (Nev.)

John Hoeven (N.D.)

Mark Kirk (Ill.)

John McCain (Ariz.)

Related:
1. Shelby says immigration bill is “mother of all amnesties”
2. Mike Rogers to Obama: Get serious on border security
3. Sessions: Can anyone explain how this immigration bill will help struggling Americans?

What else is going on?
1. Sims: DOMA decision is a ‘loss for big government’
2. Shelby says immigration bill is “mother of all amnesties”
3. Rep. McClendon appears on MSNBC discussing SCOTUS ruling on Voting Rights Act
4. Flashback: Jo Bonner, Terry Everett voted against Voting Rights Act of 1965 renewal
5. Obama declares war