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Boehner won't crack the whip on immigration debate

WASHINGTON, July 21 (UPI) -- U.S. House Speaker John Boehner indicated Sunday he would not be taking a more active role in pushing immigration reform legislation.

Boehner, R-Ohio, said on CBS' "Face the Nation" he was "not going to predict what is going to be on the floor and what isn't going to be on the floor.

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"I can't do that, and I don't want to do that," said Boehner.

The speaker said he felt the current U.S. immigration system was "broken" and that "we have got a very big problem." He also said he would stick to his policy of keeping a light hand on the sometimes-restive House in the interest of a fair and open legislative process that would in the long run produce a better immigration bill.

"I've watched a number of speakers during my tenure here in Congress," Boehner said. "I can talk about what happened just before I became speaker. All the bills were written in the speaker's office. Those bills all turned out to be very unpopular."

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