White House fires back at Ryan on immigration

By Nicole Duran, Nicole Duran

Published December 20, 2015

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A White House spokesman fired back at Speaker Paul Ryan on immigration Monday by saying the Wisconsin Republican is the one who cannot be trusted on the issue.

"It's particularly ironic for Speaker Ryan to make that claim when Speaker Ryan himself was instrumental in putting together the agreement and blocking its consideration, even though he knew it would have passed," White House spokesman Josh Earnest. He was responding to Ryan's argument, first made Friday, that Obama cannot be trusted when it comes to immigration.

In 2013, Ryan encouraged House colleagues to forge a bipartisan plan to overhaul the nation's immigration laws. But after a sweeping bipartisan plan passed the Senate, he eventually worked to keep the House from following suit. Leadership never brought it to the floor and the effort died at the end of 2013.