Gay families will not be included in immigration reform bill

After review of the initial text of  it looks like gay couples/families will not be included in the current immigration reform bill.

From the Washington Blade:

Immigration Equality Executive Director Rachel Tiven on Monday said she does not expect same-sex couples will be included in the comprehensive immigration reform bill a bi-partisan group of senators could potentially introduce by the end of the week.

“We are not expecting LGBT families to be included in the Gang of 8 bill,” she told the Washington Blade during a conference call ahead of a rally in support of comprehensive immigration reform on Wednesday that is expected to draw tens of thousands of people to the U.S. Capitol. “That in our minds means that of course the bill is incomplete.”

President Obama's original proposal did include a provision for addressing gay bi-national couples.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler confirmed to the Blade that "LGBT-specific language will likely not appear" in the bill. Says Nadler, "This is disappointing but not particularly surprising."

The issue isn't dead in the water as yet, though.  Once the bill hits the Senate floor for debate, it will be possible to revisit the LGBT-inclusive language.