« Previous | Main | Next »

Immigration Bargainers: Down, But Not Out

June 08, 2007 1:03 PM

ABCNews Z. Byron Wolf Reports: Immigration bargainers say they're like the '67 Red Sox, on the ten yard line, in the third inning, down but not out. Choose your own analogy, but the grand bargainers who wrote the compromise Immigration legislation that stalled Thursday night in the Senate gathered Friday morning to sew up the coalition that ripped.

In a news conference with reporters, the Senators who failed to bring their legislation on immigration to a vote, explained why they turned on each other, and they argued that an immigration bill will pass the Senate this year.

Several of the bargainers used sports analogies to describe the comeback they are mounting for their immigration reform compromise.

"This morning I'm reminded of the 1967 Boston Red Sox team, the impossible dream team, that was behind for a good part of the season, but came roaring back and grabbed victory out of the jaws of defeat," said the grandest of the grand bargainers, Democratic Sen. Teddy Kennedy, D-Mass., of his hometown team. "And that is what we intend to do with the immigration bill. We are not giving up. We are not giving in."

How they plan to resurrect the deal? Both the Republicans and the Democrats who appeared this morning, a bit bleary-eyed and in the case of Sen.Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in a polo shirt, said they are confident that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., will bring the bill back to the Senate floor this year.

Even the Republican bargainer Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona said in the meantime that the onus is on Republicans to come up with a "reasonable" list of amendments to the bill that could be debated in a number of days.

Graham, who broke with Republican leaders to support cloture on Thursday night, said to expect President Bush to take a more vocal role lobbying both for support for the bill among Republicans and for it to be brought back to the Senate floor by Democrats.

"America's best days are ahead of her, and America soon, with the help of our president and those behind me, have a bill come out of the Senate that I predict will get a majority of both parties' votes and then we'll turn to the House," Graham declared. "Within a matter of weeks, this issue can and will be resolved."

Graham said he expects President Bush to travel to Capitol Hill as early as next week to argue that the immigration debate resume.

The Senators attempted to explain why the deal broke down?

"The United States Senate, I believe, is a chemical place," said Kennedy, the grandest of the bargainers. "There's a flow to activity here. The tide comes in and goes out. And once in a while, the stars get lined up correctly, and we move ahead. That moment can't be manufactured. And it always takes more time than you think."

The stars did not align last night when some of Kennedy's bargaining compadres voted against limiting debate and moving toward a vote on the immigration bill. One of the Republican bargainers who voted against the bill was Jon Kyl of Arizona, who stood at the press conference Friday with Kennedy.

"This was perhaps the most difficult vote I've ever cast in the Senate," said Kyl. "Because on the one hand I'm trying to protect conservatives' right to offer amendments that they believe will improve the bill, amendments which as an advocate for the bill I know are going to be very difficult to deal with.

But Kyl still said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was unreasonable not to allow more time for the bill to be debated before moving along with the cloture vote.

"Both sides can point fingers as to who was to blame for not allowing enough amendments to get up," he said. "I don't think we should engage in that blame game. I'll take the responsibility myself. I didn't do a good enough job of either working with the Democratic leader or my Republican colleagues to get everybody together and get it done. But that is the weakest of excuses given the historical significance of what we're talking about. If all we're talking about is 12 or 13 amendments and a couple of days of work in the Senate, think about it. Who would allow that opportunity to be wasted, to dissipate, to wash away?"

Graham, who has taken immeasurable pressure from his Republican base in South Carolina over the compromise bill, noted the political jeopardy that continuing to push for immigration reform, but that the end result would be worth it.

"I think we have a chance here to rise above the reputation politicians have earned and replace getting-through-the-moment politics -- 'What about my next election? Oh, my God, how will it work out?' -- with, what about the American people and their needs long after I'm gone?" said Graham. "Now, I don't know how my political career ends, but I know what it's going to be about while I'm here. It's going to be about thinking beyond the next election cycle and embracing the hard with principled opposition."

June 8, 2007 | Permalink | User Comments (0)

User Comments

Post a comment

Name:

Email Address:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comments: