Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said Democratic lawmakers will have to compromise in order to get a deal on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Cotton noted President Donald Trump already has agreed to comprise and let the programs continue if other concessions are agreed on.
Cotton's comments came during an interview on "The Hugh Hewitt Show" Tuesday.
"The president has already made his fundamental concession to their condition," he said. "He is willing to give an amnesty to hundreds of thousands, if not a million or more, illegal immigrants who, by and large, were brought here through no fault of their own. That's his concession to this condition.
"It's time for them to start making concessions to our position, to ending chain migration, to ending the diversity lottery, and securing our borders and enforcing our laws."
Cotton said he suspected the Democrats will not risk a government shutdown over the issue.
"I mean, if the Democrats want to shut down the government over this, they can," he said. "They have the ability to filibuster any bill in the Senate. I don't think that will work out very well for them, so I suspect they will not."
Cotton had attended an immigration meeting at the White House where Trump was reported to have used a vulgarity when referring to Haiti, El Salvador and African nations.
Cotton has said he never heard the comment.
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