MCCAIN TAILED BY 'AMNESTY EXPRESS'
By CHARLES HURT

January 18, 2008 -- COLUMBIA, SC - The only thing that could stop John McCain's "Straight Talk Express" at this point is the little, white "Amnesty Truth Express" van that's following his bus around as he campaigns in this highly conservative state.

"Get John McCain to give you some real straight talk! Ask him why he wants to give amnesty to 12 million illegal aliens," shouts a man with a sign standing in the rain outside a McCain rally here yesterday.

Supporters of the Arizona senator listen to the rant before heading on in.

These die-hard loyalists have heard it all before, and most don't disagree with man on the sidewalk.

They're convinced that McCain has seen the error of his ways, yet also admire him for sticking to his positions.

Polls show that there are plenty of South Carolinians who plan to vote for him tomorrow who aren't these die-hards.

And the best way for a Republican rival to get between McCain and these soft supporters would be on immigration.

The bill he wrote to grant citizenship rights to the vast majority of illegal aliens in the United States is opposed by some 80 percent of South Carolina voters.

But McCain has been playing the issue smartly. When asked about "amnesty," he cleverly couches his response in his military bona fides.

"I'm not going to call up a soldier in Iraq risking his life for America to tell him we're deporting his mother because she's here illegally," McCain says flatly. "I'm just not gonna do that."

It's possibly the only answer that works in a state where devotion to the military trumps any and all toxic issues, be they race, immigration or anything else.

churt@nypost.com
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