McCain's About-Face

I love democracy. Mountains move if voters withhold their support and contributions from a politician pursuing a wrong-headed policy. Look at this:

Republican presidential hopeful John McCain on Thursday backed a scaled-down proposal that imposes strict rules to end illegal immigration but doesn't include a path to citizenship.

The move away from a comprehensive measure is an about-face for the Arizona senator, who had been a leading GOP champion of a bill that included a guest worker program and would have legalized many of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants living in the U.S. It failed earlier this year...

McCain's co-sponsors include Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Jon Kyl of Arizona. All three were leading advocates for the unsuccessful comprehensive immigration measure and were bombarded with criticism for their support.

The magnitude of this seismic shift is evident when we look at the actual details of the proposed bill. According to The Corner, the proposed bill:

Requires hiring of 14,000 new Border Patrol Agents to secure the borders.

Mandates construction of 700 miles of fence, 300 miles of vehicle barriers, 105 ground-based radars, and four unmanned aerial vehicles. Requires 45,000 detention beds.

Contains a “Catch and Return” provision requiring DHS to detain illegal border crossers.

Requires implementing an entry/exit system at all U.S. ports of entry.

Requires mandatory detention of criminal aliens until removal.

Makes illegal presence in the U.S. a misdemeanor offense.

Makes gang members inadmissible and deportable.

Mandates an electronic employment verification system to end hiring of unlawful aliens.

Given the cast of characters involved, however, I have but one thing to say as the bill inches its way through Congress: "Constant vigilance."

Comments

[T]

McCain can't really believe this is going to help him after he was so brazen with the amnesty. Desperate move I guess. I wonder what the newspapers that gushed over his "principled stand" in pushing amnesty will say now.

[Coyote99]

McCain has flip-flopped so many times on the illegal immigration issue that I'm surprised he doesn't have whiplash.

McCain and Kyl both understand now that they badly miscalculated just how much anger there is in Arizona over the illegal immigration issue. Expect to see both McCain and Kyl doing some heavy-duty p.r. work to try and explain to us in the coming months (and years) how their support for amnesty was really not support for amnesty at all.

[D Flinchum]

"they badly miscalculated just how much anger there is in Arizona over the illegal immigration issue."

And not just in Arizona!

McCain is running for the big one. I honestly believe that he could have been on cruise-control to the nomination if he hadn't underestimated the absolute fury that his support for the amnesty issue would cause. Plus he could have likely done well among independents in the general.

[AgingITGuy]

I think this is nothing more than a PR stunt. McCain knows that such legislation has zero chance of passing in a Democratic Congress.

"Constant vigilance" is indeed critically important; Durbin/Reid are trying to revive the DREAM act, and Feinstein is trying to revive AgJobs. I'm sure that's just a start.