Grimes’s Immigration Ad Attacks McConnell on ‘Amnesty’

Wall Street Journal

By Laura Meckler

October 14, 2014

Grimes’s Immigration Ad Attacks McConnell on ‘Amnesty’

Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes, running for the Senate from Kentucky, appears to be trying to have it both ways when it comes to immigration.

In a television ad, she accuses her opponent, Sen. Mitch McConnell, of supporting “amnesty” and the “largest legalization program in U.S. history,” and vows that she “never will.” Her argument? That Mr. McConnell supported a 1986 law, signed by President Ronald Reagan, that gave a path to citizenship to some 3 million people who were in the U.S. illegally at the time.

The ad appears to be an attempt to counter GOP attacks on her over immigration. She has said that she does support an “earned” path to citizenship for the 11 million in the U.S. illegally now, and she has a Web ad arguing that such an approach is not amnesty.

So was the 1986 legalization bill backed by Mr. McConnell amnesty, but the 2013 bill supported by Ms. Grimes is not? Others who support immigration legislation today say the path to citizenship would be tougher now than it was in 1986, but the two approaches are not completely different, and the 2013 bill would help many more people in the U.S. illegally than the 1986 measure did. Her campaign spokeswoman did not immediately return emails or a phone message seeking comment.

The Kentucky race aside, the new spot is a sign of how toxic the immigration issues had become since spring 2013, when every Senate Democrat and 14 Senate Republicans voted for a sweeping bill aimed at repairing many aspects of the immigration system. That bill died in the House amid GOP opposition.

In the Grimes television ad, an announcer says, “Only Mitch McConnell has voted to give amnesty and taxpayer-funded benefits to three million illegal aliens, the largest legalization program in U.S. history.” Then Ms. Grimes says she approves the message because “I’ve never supported amnesty or benefits for illegal immigrants, and I never will.”

But there is politics at work on both sides. The ads attacking Ms. Grimes over immigration were paid for by the Kentucky Opportunity Coalition, a super PAC with ties to Republican strategist Karl Rove, who supports an immigration overhaul, including legalization.

Ms. Grimes new ad came under fire on Tuesday from liberal allies who normally line up behind Democrats. MoveOn.org said, “It’s deeply troubling that Grimes would stoop this low in order to try to defeat McConnell, and she needs to take this offensive advertisement off the air immediately.”

America’s Voice, a pro-immigration group, said the strategy is not likely to work. “Grimes’ ad smacks of desperation,” said executive director Frank Sharry. “By trying to get to McConnell’s right, Grimes jeopardizes her attempts to define herself as a leader who will tackle tough problems with bipartisan solutions.”

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