A bill passed the Texas state house shortly before 3am on Thursday, after 16 often heated hours of debate amid pro-immigrant demonstrations outside the capitol building in Austin. Democrats in the Republican-dominated Texas legislature proposed a series of amendments in a futile effort to stall and weaken the bill, a version of which was already advanced by the senate. The two Texas chambers will have to agree on a final version before the Republican governor, Greg Abbott, can sign it into law. The renewed effort comes after Donald Trump issued an executive order in January proposing to cut federal funds to sanctuary cities. “The legal analysis is different when it’s a state law versus a federal law.

Source: The Guardian April 27, 2017 16:41 UTC