The Colorado Senate has approved a bill to provide discounted college tuitions to undocumented students, according to a report Tuesday in the
Denver Post. The bill passed with all 20 Senate Democrats voting for it and all 14 Republicans against it.
The vote strictly along partisan lines did not come as a surprise, the Post said. But what did strike Democratic supporters as strange was the fact that no Republican members spoke on the floor against it.
Generally, Republicans nationwide have rejected the idea of providing tuition breaks for undocumented students or illegal immigrants.
“I thought it was startling,” said Democratic state Sen. Mike Johnson, a co-sponsor of the measure that sets tuition for undocumented students somewhere between what Colorado schools charge in-state and out-of-state residents.
But Republican state Sen. Nancy Spence said she thought it was probably smart for her party to keep mum on the issue for the time being, considering the beating the GOP has taken lately on issues related to women and minorities.
“We need all the friends we can get in an election year,” she told the Post.
The question remains, however, how long Republican opponents will maintain their silence. The bill still has to be approved by the state House, where the GOP holds a one-seat majority.
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