McCain Says Supporting Immigration Legislation Hurt Campaign

By Nicholas Johnston

Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Republican presidential candidate John McCain said his support of legislation to give illegal immigrants a way to gain legal status has hurt his campaign.

McCain, a U.S. senator from Arizona, was a major supporter of immigration legislation that died in the Senate in June because of opposition from other Republicans.

The senator said he is now committed to making sure the borders are secure before implementing broader changes to U.S. immigration law. ``I got the message,'' he said in an interview on ``Fox News Sunday.''

McCain's presidential campaign has suffered from low poll ratings in the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire, and poor fundraising. He trails former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani in money and public support.

McCain, 71, said he hasn't decided whether he will accept public financing for his campaign and said borrowing money ``is not something I would prefer to do'' though he is ``not going to rule anything out.''

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

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