Wall Street Journal
By Laura Meckler
June 8, 2014
Sen.
Lindsey Graham appeared to put himself in political jeopardy when he
wrote and championed an overhaul of immigration laws, but he is poised
to lap the field in Tuesday's
Republican primary in South Carolina. GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of
Tennessee, who also backed the bill, is in a strong position ahead of
his primary this August.
Rep.
Renee Ellmers (R., N.C.) easily survived a primary challenge after
backing liberalized laws. And Tim Donnelly, a leader in the movement to
stop illegal immigration,
lost to another Republican this month in California's open primary for
governor.
Opposition
to an immigration-law overhaul remains high within the Republican
Party, but primary season is showing that support isn't necessarily a
career-ending move,
nor is opposition a clear path to the nomination. That could factor
into the decision by House GOP leaders on whether to move broad
immigration legislation this year.
"So
far, being against immigration reform is not the ticket to victory that
a lot of the proponents of that point of view seemed to think that it
was," said GOP pollster
Whit Ayres, who advises Mr. Graham's campaign and supports an
immigration overhaul. He described opponents of the Senate legislation
as "an intense" minority.
Standing
against liberalized laws is still a powerful stance in some races. Many
Republicans have avoided taking a clear stand, partly because of the
perceived political
consequences. That complicates the question of which side in the
immigration debate may be drawing momentum from the primaries.
The
Senate bill backed by Messrs. Graham and Alexander would provide a path
to citizenship for illegal immigrants, a provision that opponents
attack as a form of amnesty
for people who broke U.S. law. The bill also includes enforcement
measures and changes to the legal immigration system.
So
far, House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) hasn't brought any
immigration bills to the House floor, allowing his members to avoid
taking a position. It isn't clear
whether the results of primary races to date will help persuade Mr.
Boehner and other House leaders to move legislation this summer, as the
White House and others are hoping. Defeats of Republicans who back new
legislation surely would have hurt the measures'
chances.
In
some races, the issue still packs power. In the Texas GOP primary for
lieutenant governor, for instance, challenger Dan Patrick beat incumbent
David Dewhurst after
a campaign focused heavily on illegal immigration, in which Mr. Patrick
repeatedly described the influx of undocumented Mexicans as an "illegal
invasion."
But
elsewhere, the issue has proved ineffective. In North Carolina, Ms.
Ellmers was attacked relentlessly by her GOP primary opponent, Frank
Roche, for supporting legal
status for undocumented residents, but she won with about 59% of the
vote.
In
California, Republican Neel Kashkari defeated Mr. Donnelly, who made
his name as a Minuteman, a group that believes the U.S. hasn't done
enough to secure the border,
and an anti-immigration crusader who put the issue at the center of his
campaign.
In
the final days of the Nebraska Senate primary campaign, Republican
Shane Osborn tried to resuscitate his struggling campaign by saying
opponent Ben Sasse was not sufficiently
conservative on immigration. It didn't work.
Seventy-five
Republicans have signed a pledge sponsored by the anti-immigration
Federation for American Immigration Reform, vowing to oppose "amnesty"
for illegal immigrants
as well as increases in legal immigration and guest workers. Just two
of them, both incumbents, have beaten opponents who didn't sign it.
Nearly 40 others lost, two ran unopposed and the rest are in primaries
that haven't yet occurred.
Dan
Stein, president of the FAIR Congressional Task Force, said pledge
signers have lost because they were outspent by establishment
Republicans. "The purpose of the questionnaire
is to inject the issue into the discussion in an environment where the
leadership of both parties is trying to censor debate over immigration
policy," he said.
The
immigration issue has been hotly debated in South Carolina, where Mr.
Graham has drawn a half-dozen primary challengers, some of whom are
making immigration the leading
point of their attacks.
A
poll last week by Clemson University found Mr. Graham with support of
49% of likely primary voters, with his nearest competitor, state Sen.
Lee Bright, at just 9%. About
one-third of voters were undecided—good news for Mr. Graham as he tries
to top the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.
Mr.
Graham has moved to insulate himself with conservatives by taking a
hard line on issues other than immigration. Last week, he suggested that
President Barack Obama
be impeached if he again releases prisoners from Guantanamo Bay without
consulting Congress, as required.
In
a debate Saturday night, his opponents took turns attacking his record
on immigration. "If you did not support amnesty," Mr. Bright told him,
"we wouldn't be here tonight."
Mr.
Graham defended his views on immigration and his approach to his job.
"What is in it for a Republican in South Carolina to be talking about
this issue? Not much,"
he said. But he said the problems with the nation's immigration system
were severe. "My goal is to fix it once and for all."
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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