U.S. Rep. Tom Reed P-J file photo

Last week, U.S. Rep. Tom Reed, R-Corning, signed the discharge petition, which went against Republican party leadership, in an attempt to get the “Dreamers” debate to the House floor.

On Tuesday during Reed’s weekly conference call with regional media outlets, the congressman discussed his decision to buck Republican party leadership in an effort to end the six-month stalemate between House Democrats and the GOP on DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which is a President Barack Obama-era program protecting some young immigrants from deportation. The so-called “Dreamers” are immigrants who came to the United States illegally when they were children.

Reed said by signing the discharge petition, which is a seldom used congressional tactic, four different proposals dealing with “Dreamers” and border security could be discussed in an open and honest way on the House floor. He said if two more House Republicans and all Democrats sign the petition, the DACA debate gridlock will conclude.

“It is an opportunity to negotiate a potential solution to this issue,” Reed said. “A lot of folks are concerned this is an effort to support amnesty, but that is not the case.”

Reed said the discharge petition is an unusual process, but believes it is time for an open and honest conversation to take place. According to politifact.com, a discharge petition is a motion made in writing to pull a bill or resolution out of a committee and get it to the House floor. Ordinarily, a bill gets to the floor after a committee vote and referral, with the speaker of the House and the majority leader decide what reaches the floor and when.

If a discharge petition is signed by 218 members, eventually, after a series of specific steps and timetables, a targeted measure can be debated and voted on the floor. Ultimately, a successful discharge petition allows a majority of the House to bypass leadership and put measures on the floor.

In other business, Reed was asked about the ongoing investigation into Russia interfering with the 2016 presidential election. Reed said once again that his opinion is the investigation needs to wrap up. He said it has been ongoing for more than a year and it needs to come to a conclusion, with its findings released to the public so there are no open-ended questions remaining.

Reed was also asked about the on-again, off-again summit between North Korea and the United States. It was reported Tuesday afternoon a top official from North Korea was heading to the U.S. to lay the groundwork for talks between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which is scheduled to take place once again June 12 in Singapore. Reed said he appreciates Trump originally canceling the summit May 24 via a letter sent to Kim.

Trump said he canceled the summit when it seemed Kim was not really interested in a denuclearized North Korea. In Trump’s letter, he opened the door for the summit to still take place if Kim changes his attitude toward the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

Reed said he is cautiously optimistic that Kim will listen to the path to peace.

“We are dealing with a dangerous individual and one who is erratic in how he leads his people,” Reed said.