Thread: Anger over immigration plan surprises GOP senators

Anger over immigration plan surprises GOP senators
Story Highlights• Constituents expressing intense anger over immigration bill at GOP senators
• Nearly half of voters who oppose immigration plan view it as extremely important
• Those who support immigration reform not demanding that Congress act
By Bill Schneider
May 29, 2007
CNN Senior Political Analyst
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In his speech Tuesday on immigration reform, President Bush was trying to provide political cover for members of Congress to support the legislation. That could be tough.

Republicans are getting an earful on immigration. "I have learned some new words from some of my constituents," Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Arizona, said.

The angry response comes as a shock. "The level of intensity and volume is, I think, surprising,'' CNN contributor and radio talk show host Bill Bennett said. "We've talked to a number of Republican senators, and they confessed to being surprised by the reaction."

There's a big difference in intensity. Among those who favor a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, 28 percent say the issue is extremely important to them, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll. Those who oppose a path to citizenship feel much more strongly about the issue. Forty-seven percent say it's extremely important.

The poll, conducted May 4-6, had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

President Bush said the legislation puts enforcement first. "If you're serious about securing our borders, it makes sense to support legislation that makes enforcement our highest priority," Bush said Tuesday.

Conservative critics responded with a scathing indictment. Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said, "The folks out there in America who, when they see Washington saying we have this wonderful plan, they say 'Yeah right. We saw what you did with Katrina, we saw what you did with corruption, we saw what you have done in terms of managing the war. So when you tell us you fixed immigration, we are not buying.' "

President Bush used equally harsh language to assail his critics. "If you want to kill the bill, if you don't want to do what's right for America, you can pick one little aspect out of it. You can use it to frighten people,'' Bush said.

But critics of the legislation are not frightened. They're angry.

You don't see as much intensity among supporters of the legislation. "People have begun to realize that the bill is not quite as bad as those who said it was before they had read it," Kyl observed.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, put it this way: "Our product is better than those who want to do nothing.''

Those who favor the legislation are not demanding that Congress act, or else. Those who oppose it are threatening retaliation.

Which is why President Bush felt he had to say: "It takes a lot of courage in the face of some of the criticism in the political world to do what's right, not what's comfortable."

President Bush may not be in a position to offer much by way of political cover. When he spoke at the event in Georgia, only one Georgia lawmaker -- Sen. Saxby Chambliss -- appeared on the platform with him.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/29/ ... cnn_latest

Goodbye Chambliss! I hope you enjoyed your time on stage with your buddy. You are so finished!

W

Those who favor the legislation are not demanding that Congress act, or else. Those who oppose it are threatening retaliation.

This is the most important part. The liberal media could be an unwilling ally since they would love to see Bush "fail" at something like this....

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This interesting story just reinforces, no matter how tired many of us are from making tons of phones calls etc., WE CAN'T LET UP. We have to keep the pressure on with more calls, emails, and especially in-person visits to Senate offices this week.

Spoiled, silver spoon Bush has never experienced first hand what's its like for entire neighborhoods and communities to overrun by poor, 3rd world illegal immigrants. He's never had to worry about coughing up 20-30k a year for private school because the local public school is dominated by kids who don't speak English!

I have sympthay for little kids from other countries, but their parents and their own country should take of them, not overstretched American middle class taxpayers.

Victor Davis Hanson, a brilliant scholar and writer, sums it up well in this blurb:

"12 million illegal aliens: the amoral, nationless corporate right wants cheap labor any way possible, the government to pay for the ensuing entitlement costs, cares little about the stability of its own country, and figures its own elites have enough privilege to shield themselves from the social consequences; while the race industry feels that a new Latino majority is, with just a few million unassimilated more, almost here in American Southwest, and it will require an entire cadre of special interest, bloc politicians, academics, and journalists, as well as providing some sort of psychological tweaking for an array of past perceived ethnic grievances."


SO KEEP UP THE FIGHT, FOR OUR CHILDREN!! PLEASE!

Why are these people surprised? Do they really have their heads that far up their rears?

The Senate is surprised by the American people's reaction to their lousy bill, because after years of misrepresenting the people, they finally woke a sleeping giant, and they don't know how to handle it. We need to keep this sleeping giant awake. If it starts to nod off, we'll give it a nudge.

You can use it to frighten people,'' Bush said.

I surprised the president was not overtaken by a wave of irony.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, put it this way: "Our product is better than those who want to do nothing.''

When will they learn that we do want something done - enforce the laws already on the books. It isn't that difficult to understand!

I have written off Senator Craig (R-ID) as beiing too far gone with the special agricultural interests in our state. I am watching Senator Crapo (R-ID) closely; he has some weird votes on the recent spate of bills and amendments! I have been all over these two since this mess started - including the wrongly convicted Border Patrol Agents and Depurty Sheriff Gilmer Hernandez in Texas. To me this is all part and parcel of some strange appeasement to the government of Mexico. Still doesn't stop me from giving these two what for!