Miami Immigration Debate Puts Heat on Republicans
By SUSAN DAVIS
December 8, 2007; Page A2
online.wsj.com
With less than four weeks to go before the first presidential contests, Republicans face a precarious test on immigration Sunday.
For months, the candidates have largely been trying to outdo each other on who would take a harder line cracking down on illegals. This weekend, they'll be asked to elaborate in a debate hosted by Spanish-language network Univision at the University of Miami.
"Look, this is going to be a painful experience for the Republican Party to stand up to a Hispanic audience and explain themselves on immigration," said Frank Sherry, executive director of the pro-immigration National Immigration Forum. "The jujitsu is going to be fascinating to watch."
"Most importantly, we'll be watching for consistency," said Dan Stein, president of the anti-immigration Federation for American Immigration Reform.
It is the first Republican debate before a predominantly minority audience, and the candidates will be in the hot seat before one of the most scrutinizing audiences on the topic. It comes as new surveys show Republicans rapidly losing support among the growing Hispanic population -- voters President Bush and his chief strategist, Karl Rove, saw as an essential element of the 21st-century Republican coalition.
Seven of the eight contenders will participate in Sunday's forum. Immigration-foe Rep. Tom Tancredo (R., Colo.) said he wouldn't join a debate not conducted in English. The candidates will be speaking English, but the event will be broadcast through simultaneous translation in Spanish.
Most of those appearing are doing so reluctantly. The original debate was slated for September but was canceled after Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.) was the only major candidate who agreed to participate. Others cited scheduling conflicts. Meanwhile, Democratic candidates participated in a Univision debate in September that was watched by 2.2 million viewers.
Among the leading Republicans, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Mr. McCain share more moderate views on the creation of a path to citizenship for the estimated 12 million undocumented workers in the country. Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney advocate a tougher approach and oppose any "amnesty" proposals.
Mike Huckabee -- the field's fast-rising dark horse -- has been attacked by rivals for taking a tolerant attitude toward illegal immigration during his time as Arkansas governor. On Friday, he decided to unveil a nine-point plan that includes one of the toughest proposals yet. Mr. Huckabee would require all illegal immigrants to register with the federal government and leave the country within 120 days before applying to return.
The candidates will be walking a fine line between appealing to the party's conservative base while not further alienating the fastest-growing minority group in the country that is increasingly trending Democratic.
In the three early states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, immigration ranks as a greater issue of concern for Republican voters than Democrats, according to a Pew Research Center poll released last week. Likely Republican Iowa caucus goers cited immigration as their No. 1 concern over terrorism.
On the other hand, the Pew Hispanic Center released new data Thursday that showed 57% of registered Hispanic voters now align themselves with the Democratic Party. Only 23% identified with the Republicans. The 34-point gap in party affiliation is up from the 21-point gap reported in July 2006.
Write to Susan Davis at susan.davis@wsj.com |
