House Republicans Defy Bush on Immigration Ahead of Election

Brian503a

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a9aZe_m9.LB4&refer=us

House Republicans Defy Bush on Immigration Ahead of Election

By Nicholas Johnston

Sept. 6 (Bloomberg) -- When it comes to U.S. immigration policy, House Republicans are placing self-preservation ahead of loyalty to President George W. Bush.

Lawmakers returning to Washington this week said immigration legislation -- Bush's top domestic priority -- is doomed for 2006. House Republicans say that a Senate measure backed by Bush to create a guest-worker program is unacceptable to their party's core constituency; they say a get-tough-on-immigration message will raise voter turnout among their supporters and help them avoid a debacle in the Nov. 7 congressional elections.

The immigration plan's demise would mark the second- consecutive year in which a proposal identified by Bush's administration as its No. 1 domestic goal foundered. Social Security overhaul, his top priority in 2005, never reached a vote.

``Leadership has concluded all our best chances for electoral success are by beating up on the border,'' said Representative Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican who supports Bush's plan. ``There are some who think this is our magic carpet to ride.''

Republicans in competitive races across the country are pressing House legislation that calls for strengthening the border without addressing the status of new immigrants or those here illegally.

In Virginia, Representative Thelma Drake, locked in a close race with Democratic challenger Phil Kellam, has called illegal immigration the nation's top issue. Colorado Republican Marilyn Musgrave, facing a challenge from Democrat Angie Paccione, held a hearing in her district to assail a proposal to give tuition benefits to undocumented immigrants.

Multiple Hearings

The Colorado hearing was one of 20 in 13 states that Republicans held over the summer to demonstrate their commitment to safer borders -- and to distance themselves on the issue from Bush, who is sagging in the polls.

Last week, at a final hearing in Dubuque, Iowa, House Republicans charged that the Senate provision giving a path for undocumented immigrants to gain legal status was as flawed as a measure passed 20 years ago that granted amnesty to almost 3 million undocumented immigrants.

Dubuque is in Iowa's first congressional district, where Republican Mike Whalen is running against Democrat Bruce Braley for a seat being vacated by Republican Representative Jim Nussle. Whalen favors legislation to strengthen border security and create better employment documentation so employers can know whether they are hiring legal workers. Charles Cook, editor of the non-partisan Cook Political Report in Washington, rates the race a toss-up.

`Political Calculation'

``I don't think this was an accident, the places they picked for the hearings,'' said Angela Kelley, deputy director of the Washington-based National Immigration Forum and a supporter of Bush's goals. She called the hearings ``pure political calculation.''

While polls show that voters generally favor the Senate's approach, it is anathema to core Republican supporters, said Representative Tom Tancredo of Colorado, leader of a caucus that favors tough immigration restrictions. The Senate measure has ``essentially no support among the base,'' Tancredo said.

In a Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll taken July 28 to Aug. 1, self-identified Republican voters named securing the border as the most important action the government could take to protect the country from terrorist attacks.

Powerful Proponents

While the two sides of the debate don't appear close to a compromise, proponents of the Senate legislation retain powerful allies such as Bush, Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona and Senator Edward M. Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat.

A compromise pushed by Republican Representative Mike Pence of Indiana -- requiring border-security measures to be put in place before any immigrant-legalization or guest-workers steps -- has grown less likely after criticism from other House Republicans, including Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin and Tancredo.

``This is a square and a circle,'' Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington- based group that advocates restrictions on immigration said of the competing House and Senate approaches. ``There is no compromise between the two of them.''

Ron Bonjean, a spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert of Illinois, said Hastert will meet tomorrow with the chairmen of committees that held immigration hearings to decide whether to even appoint negotiators to work with the Senate.

More Measures

Meanwhile, he said, the House may take up additional border- security measures this year, such as proposals to build more fencing along the border or hire more immigration agents and inspectors. While such steps wouldn't stand a chance in the Senate, they might help energize Republican voters to turn out on Nov. 7.

``I can see an even tougher bill being passed by the House and sent over to the Senate, so that we are able to even more clearly again establish the fact that House Republicans have a position that is pretty hard-core,'' Tancredo said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nicholas Johnston in Dubuque, Iowa at njohnston3@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 6, 2006 00:13 EDT
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CCUSA · Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2006 8:12 am Post subject:

I think illegal immigration is a major issue that will bring out voters in November!

Iraq war is a tough issue, but I think immigration is just as important to people these days! Look at Pat Buchanan's book, it's flying off the shelves at #1. These two issues alone will draw a big crowd to voting booths.