On Tuesday the House defeated an amendment to a homeland security appropriation bill that would have withheld federal money from cities where local law enforcement officials are free from reporting illegal immigrants.

After 90 minutes of debate, the amendment received votes from only Republicans who have taken a hard line on punishing illegal immigrants, failing 102 to 322. Amendment author Tom Tancredo (R-CO) said it would have simply required cities to enforce existing federal law and warned that the vote would become “an issue at re-election time”

“I really don’t know how anybody can defend that vote,” Tancredo said.

According to an article in the Washington Times, cities that would have been affected include Seattle, Chicago, Houston and San Francisco, among others known as “sanctuary cities” that do not require police to report illegal immigrants to federal immigration officials, even if they have been arrested or convicted of crimes.

The National Immigration Forum’s deputy director, Angela Kelley, said the amendment would have endangered immigrant families.

“If police are made to become immigration agents, it will make it more difficult to catch illegal aliens who commit crimes,” Kelley said.

The lengthy debate period revealed the sensitivity of the immigration issue in Congress, and despite being defeated, the legislation is likely to be reintroduced.

“Just before passage of the homeland security bill was not the appropriate time to discuss this,” said Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL).