By Phil Riske
Managing Editor, Rose Law Group Reporter
Republican leaders, prominent conservatives, including Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, shifted to new grounds on illegal immigration.
Speaker John Boehner, who had long resisted any broad immigration bill told media Thursday “a comprehensive approach is long overdue.”
Brewer’s only news release about the election stated there was one positive outcome from Obama’s reelection.
“If there is any consolation in Tuesday’s disappointing election results it is that illegal immigration has returned to the forefront of our national dialogue. This is a good thing. America’s immigration system is broken,” she said.
“But we must not rush head-long into a ‘solution’ that only makes things worse. Right now, there are well-meaning people – including some in my own party – who are advocating a grand bargain in which the American people would be promised border security in exchange for the granting of amnesty to tens of millions of illegal aliens. We’ve been here before.”
Brewer said the border should be the federal government’s priority.
“Secure our border first. Demonstrate that you take seriously the safety concerns of Americans living in the border region. With that completed, we can pursue – together – ways to fix our Nation’s broader immigration system in a fashion that is effective, practical and humane.”
One of every 10 voters who cast ballots on Tuesday was a Latino, and they favored President Obama, with 71 percent of their votes, compared with 27 percent for Mitt Romney, forcing Republican leaders to wonder if they could ever regain the presidency without increasing their appeal to Hispanic Americans, The New York Times said.
“How you talked about immigrants sent a signal on what kind of perspective you had on Latinos over all,” said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund, a bipartisan group.
In exit polls on Tuesday, 77 percent of Hispanic voters said immigrants here illegally should have a chance to apply for legal status, while 18 percent said they should be deported. In the polls, 65 percent of all voters favored legal status for those immigrants, while 28 percent said they should be deported.
The Times reported Boehner chose his words carefully on Thursday, saying he was ready for a “comprehensive approach,” but Friday declined to say whether he was endorsing a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
