Thread: At the White House, divisions over immigration

At the White House, divisions over immigration
By MCT
From MCT

WASHINGTON — Top aides to President Barack Obama are divided over the urgency of passing an immigration overhaul, with Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel worried that pushing such a volatile issue in an election year could eat into the Democrats’ congressional majority.

Obama is the one who ultimately sets direction for the White House, and he has called for passage of an immigration bill by year’s end, if possible.

But Emanuel, mindful of the electoral implications, has urged proceeding more cautiously in the run-up to the mid-term elections in November, according to people familiar with the matter.

Other aides don’t want to wait. And Obama himself is more willing than his chief of staff to risk the political fallout that may come from providing a path to legal status for the 11 million people living in the U.S. illegally, according to people familiar with the views of both men.

The divergent opinions within the White House underscore the difficulty of the immigration issue, particularly during campaign season. Complicating the question is the tough new anti-immigration law in Arizona. The law has intensified calls for Obama to make good on a campaign promise and address the nation’s strained immigration system quickly, before more states step into the void.

Vigorous internal debates are part of the routine Obama has set up to help him make decisions. Aides describe an arrangement in which Obama solicits views across the spectrum and then makes up his mind — at which point staff who disagree are expected to get on board.

As chief of staff, he is in constant contact with the president, giving Emanuel enormous internal clout. He supports the larger goal of revamping the immigration system. But his trepidation about the year-end deadline may have influenced the president.

Emanuel’s concerns are twofold, people familiar with his reasoning said. He is worried that moving ahead with a bill that could produce a voter backlash against Democrats running in conservative districts. As a former Democratic congressional campaign chairman, Emanuel helped recruit some of these candidates in the 2006 elections that returned the House to Democratic control.

Emanuel is also the White House tactician in charge of seeing that Obama’s agenda succeeds. In this role, he is concerned that the votes to pass an immigration bill simply aren’t in place.

U.S. Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., said in an interview that he has discussed the immigration issue with Emanuel and believes that, “like the president, he supports the goal of comprehensive immigration reform.â€

Very interesting. It underlines the fact that Americans have to continue to put the heat on our elected reps about amnesty and securing our borders. Then need to know that pandering to the monied elite and foreigners in our country illegally will cost them their jobs.