Thread: Immigration resounds from border states to Capitol

http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centreda ... 619833.htm

Posted on Wed, Sep. 27, 2006


Immigration resounds from border states to Capitol


By Jill Zuckman

Chicago Tribune

(MCT)

TUCSON, Ariz. - Standing under the gnarled branches of an ancient mesquite tree, Gabrielle Giffords takes a tough tone against the flood of immigrants illegally crossing the border just south of here.

"We have no idea who these people are, where they're going or what they want," Giffords, the Democratic nominee for Congress, tells several dozen voters gathered on the patio of a supporter's low-slung Spanish-style home to hear her views. "This is a federal issue, and the federal government isn't doing anything about it."

With six weeks to go before the elections, Democrats and Republicans are embracing the complicated and emotionally powerful issue of immigration reform. But as the Republican-controlled Congress prepares to adjourn, most likely without passing an immigration bill, the debate is not playing out in a predictable way.

Republicans are deeply divided over how to secure the border and contend with the 12 million undocumented immigrants already in the country. Some Democrats, meanwhile, are taking a tough stance, especially those running in districts where illegal immigration is a hot issue.

In a wide range of House and Senate races, the debate has spawned attack ads and counterattack ads that blur the lines, and sometimes the truth, between candidates and parties.

"The public has to stand up and tell their elected officials that Washington has to get its act together," said Randy Graf, the Republican candidate for Arizona's 8th Congressional District and Giffords' opponent, who describes the constant flow of illegal immigrants as "an invasion."

Graf's candidacy illustrates the complexity of the issue. Republican Party leaders backed his GOP primary opponent, who had taken a more moderate stance on immigration. Graf once hung a photo of President Bush upside down in his office to protest the president's relatively moderate position on immigration.

While most candidates around the country sound tough as they denounce lax border protection, there is wide disagreement over what should be done.

"There are no varying opinions about sealing the borders and stopping the sieve now," said Matt Salmon, chairman of the Arizona Republican Party. "Where the difference of opinion comes is: How do you deal with the people who are already here?"

Participants in the debate say the Nov. 7 election may provide needed clarity.

"We're actually glad that immigration is going to be tested in this election," said Frank Sharry, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, which advocates comprehensive reform. "We predict that playing the anti-immigration card will not work, and we're quite confident that in the long run it's going to backfire badly for the candidates and for the party that's going to use it."

It's not just border states where immigration is a hot topic. Across the country, in House, Senate and gubernatorial races, candidates are using the issue to level searing attacks against one another.

In Illinois, for example, Republicans are airing a television advertisement slamming Democratic congressional candidate Tammy Duckworth, claiming she supports amnesty for undocumented immigrants, opposing the use of the National Guard at the border and agreeing to give Social Security benefits to illegal immigrants. Duckworth actually favors the approach of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., which does not provide amnesty or Social Security to illegal immigrants, and she has called for adding 12,000 Border Patrol agents.

In Georgia, former GOP Rep. Mac Collins says he wants English to be the official language of the nation and accuses Democratic Rep. Jim Marshall of voting to "waste" tax dollars by printing election ballots in Spanish. "Muchas gracias, Senor Jim Marshall," Collins' ad concludes.

And in Ohio, the tables are turned as Democrat John Cranley wonders in an ad what Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, has accomplished over the past 12 years in Washington. "Six million immigrants have crossed our borders since Steve Chabot went to Congress, yet Chabot has failed to do anything to fix the problem," Cranley's ad says.

Nowhere is the complex issue more compelling than Arizona, with its 361 miles of border attracting about half of all those illegally entering the United States. Citizens here complain about trespassing, vandalism, mountains of litter and unfettered crime as couriers called "coyotes" ferry their charges, as well as drugs, into the country.

Bruce Merrill, a pollster at Arizona State University, said almost everybody in the state agrees that illegal immigration is a problem, but politicians are divided over what to do about it.

"They're jockeying for who can be the meanest, toughest sheriff in the West," Merrill said.

On Capitol Hill, lawmakers are preparing to adjourn at week's end but have little to show on immigration after spending well over a year trying to craft legislation.

A bill to build a 30-foot high fence along 700 miles of border passed the House but may falter in the Senate.

A broader bipartisan approach, including guest-worker visas to allow immigrants to come and go more easily, failed to win over House Republicans despite Bush's ardent backing.

House GOP leaders on Monday did manage to insert a narrow border security provision into a homeland security spending bill that would make it illegal to dig tunnels under the border.

Just what to do about immigration is at the heart of the Senate race in Arizona between incumbent Republican Jon Kyl and his challenger, Democrat Jim Pederson. It is a significant dimension of the race between Gov. Janet Napolitano, the Democratic candidate, and her challenger, Republican Len Munsil.

And it is likely to dominate the House race between Giffords, the Democratic nominee, and Republican Graf, a former golf pro and longtime opponent of illegal immigration.

Giffords and Graf are running to replace Rep. Jim Kolbe, a moderate Republican retiring after 22 years in office and a career spent trying to resolve the problems of illegal immigration in southern Arizona.

It is Giffords, 36, who supports the approach of Kolbe and McCain, calling for high-tech military equipment to secure the borders while also creating guest-worker visas.

She questions the effectiveness of building a fence along the border. "If you build a 30-foot wall, someone's going to build a 31-foot ladder," said Giffords, a former state senator who took over her family's tire business when her father became ill.

Graf, 47, is a member of the Minuteman Project, which mobilizes volunteers to monitor the border for illegal immigrants. He wants to deport people who are in the U.S. illegally, use the military to secure the border and require proof of citizenship to vote or receive public benefits.

What no one knows is whether the tenor of the immigration debate will help Republicans in the short term by exciting their base to vote in November, but hurt them in the long term as Latinos register to vote and embrace Democrats.

"This could be the Waterloo for Republicans," said Kolbe, who refused to endorse Graf and has denounced his views on immigration.

"If we continue with what appears to be an anti-Hispanic vendetta, we will lose Hispanic voters for years and possibly decades to come."

In Illinois, for example, Republicans are airing a television advertisement slamming Democratic congressional candidate Tammy Duckworth, claiming she supports amnesty for undocumented immigrants, opposing the use of the National Guard at the border and agreeing to give Social Security benefits to illegal immigrants. Duckworth actually favors the approach of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., which does not provide amnesty or Social Security to illegal immigrants, and she has called for adding 12,000 Border Patrol agents.

Put on the boots, because the B.S. is getting deep around here!