By Lisa Mascaro

Published Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2008 | 2:05 p.m.

Updated Monday, Nov. 24, 2008 | 3:38 p.m.

WASHINGTON -- Nevada’s Republican Sen. John Ensign has been credited with blocking rebate checks for illegal immigrants in the economic stimulus package moving through the Senate. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is also making sure they are excluded.

When asked about the possibility of illegal immigrants getting rebates, Reid told reporters last week, "that’s not going to happen."

The House-passed bill did not explicitly deny the rebates. But it now bans rebates for those using taxpayer ID numbers that, as my colleague Timothy Pratt reported earlier this week, tend to be used by illegal immigrants.

Reid has amplified or downplayed the issue, when it suits his needs.

Initially, he dismissed the outcry being made over undocumented workers getting rebates as "one of the phantoms" in the debate, insisting the loophole would be closed in the final version of House or Senate bill.

But this week, Reid twice raised the specter of illegal immigrants getting checks as he prodded Republicans to pass the Senate's version of the bill. Speaking on the Senate floor, Reid has tried to entice Republicans to his side with the illegal immigrant provision, saying the Senate bill needs to pass so it can be melded with the House bill to be sure undocumented workers don't get checks.