The Senate on Thursday voted to prolong the debate over President George W. Bush's plan to legalize millions of illegal immigrants, which will likely postpone major action on the measure until after the 2008 presidential elections. The vote was 46 to 53 in favor of limiting the debate, which means supporters of the measure fell 14 votes short of the 60 votes needed to limit debate and clear the way for the final passage of the bill. Opponents of the measure said the bill offers amnesty to illegal immigrants, and Senators in both parties said the issue is so volatile that Congress is unlikely to discuss it again before the presidential elections next year. Early Thursday, President Bush made a frantic effort to save the bill by making early morning calls to senators to ask for their support. “We have been in contact with members of Congress over the past couple of days and the president has made it clear that this is important to him,” said White house spokesman Tony Snow. However, Bush's last-ditch bid failed as Republican senators led the opposition to the measure. The vote was a victory for Republican conservatives who strongly oppose the bill's provisions that would have granted lawful status to many of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States. “Americans feel they are losing their country-to a government that has seemed to not have the competence or the ability to carry out the things that it says it will do,” said Senator Bob Corker (Republican from Tennessee), one of the bill's opponents.
