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  1. #1
    Administrator Jean's Avatar
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    Rubio tries to regain conservatives on immigration

    Ledyard King, The News-Press Washington bureau 10:10 p.m. EDT September 4, 2014

    WASHINGTON – Sen. Marco Rubio's visit to South Carolina last week to raise money for a local congressman could have been an awkward moment.

    The Florida Republican was invited to address an audience of some 1,200 conservatives, many still deeply wary of Rubio's role last year co-sponsoring a comprehensive immigration bill that would have allowed undocumented immigrants to stay in the U.S. while seeking citizenship.

    Those qualms remain, even though Rubio, R-West Miami, has distanced himself from the measure and has spoken out against funding for an Obama administration program (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) that prevents the deportation of some young immigrants whose parents brought them here as children.

    But Rubio's speech didn't prove awkward at all, thanks to a small but vocal group of young Latinos who interrupted his remarks with angry shouts. They said Rubio had betrayed them by not sticking with immigration reform and by calling for defunding the deferred deportation program, which allows them to obtain work permits.

    It couldn't have worked out much better for Rubio. The protesters gave him a chance to show just how far he's pivoted on the immigration issue.

    "You're doing harm to your own cause because you don't have a right to illegally immigrate to the United States," Rubio said as the protesters were led out of the civic center in Anderson, S.C.

    The audience applauded, and a Rubio aide later joked that the senator's office should send thank-yous to the protesters, according to a story in U.S. News and World Report.

    Such moments could help Rubio regain his footing with conservatives if he enters what now looks like a wide-open presidential field in 2016. South Carolina traditionally is the first southern state to hold a primary, and a strong finish there often helps propel candidates to other successes.

    Any hint of softness on illegal immigration is a political liability for Republicans. And no potential presidential contender has as much to overcome on the issue as Rubio, who now says the border must be fully secure and enforcement measures in place before the nation's approximately 12 million undocumented immigrants get legal status.

    "If we can make real progress on stemming the tide of illegal immigration, I am convinced we will have the support necessary to address this serious issue once and for all," Rubio wrote in an Aug. 26 letter to President Barack Obama.

    Clemson University political scientist David Woodard, who attended the South Carolina fundraiser, said the event only elevated Rubio's star power.

    "There was a magical moment in that room," said Woodard, who is part-time Republican consultant. "Any reservations I think (the audience) had about his stance on immigration were washed away. These protests had exactly the opposite effect on this audience. By the time he actually spoke, he had them in the palm of his hand."

    Rubio, the son of Cuban-American immigrants, might need more moments like that to make conservatives comfortable he's changed his approach to immigration.

    And he'll probably get those opportunities.

    One protestor at the fundraiser said he plans to follow Rubio to other speeches. Another said he'll do what he can to hold the senator accountable at public forums as well.

    "The biggest beef we have with him is the flip-flopping," said Felipe Sousa-Rodriguez of Tampa, who emigrated to the U.S from Brazil when he was 14. "He tells us one day, 'I'm a pro-immigrant person who supports immigration reform, who wants to end deportations.' And the next day he's saying he wants to defund DACA, which ultimately means deporting more than half-a-million dreamers."

    Sousa-Rodriquez, 28, is deputy managing director of United We Dream, which supports efforts to help undocumented youths remain in the U.S.

    Some anti-immigration advocates aren't convinced Rubio has fundamentally changed his views. While they applaud his retreat from the immigration bill he once championed, they still oppose the idea of granting what they call "amnesty" to illegal immigrants, no matter how secure the border becomes.

    "Sen. Rubio is basically saying he is for everything in (the Senate bill), but in a different order," said Roy Beck, executive director of nonpartisan NumbersUSA. "And that's certainly not going to sell with primary voters. He is for enlarging the flow of foreign workers and so we regard him as an opponent of our values and our principles."

    There is some consolation for the senator, Beck said.

    "At this point, we're happier with Rubio than the other side because he's moving in our direction," he said.

    http://www.news-press.com/story/news...tion/15103747/
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  2. #2
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    He may be making noise to indicate that he is moving towards our side, but flip-floppers deserve no trust. If they flipped one way, when they flop they are again going the wrong direction. I cannot tell which lie to put faith into, so they are just discards.

  3. #3
    MW
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    Sort of brings back memories of Sen. John McCain who has flipped and flopped more than a fish out of water on the issue.

    "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing" ** Edmund Burke**

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