Immigration Law

MCCAIN'S HISPANIC PROBLEM

By Greg Siskind

The Politico reports that the McCain camp is polling barely half what President Bush earned in 2004 and with Hispanics expected to turn out in larger numbers this year than any election in the past, this could spell disaster for the GOP.  Why the drop in support? You guessed it.

The biggest reason for the shift, though, has been the heated debate over immigration reform that has alienated many Hispanic voters previously receptive to the GOP ? and that nearly cost McCain, a co-sponsor of the bipartisan 2006 immigration reform bill that inflamed conservatives, his party?s nomination.

In the 2006 midterm election, exit polls showed Latino support for Democrats had increased by 16 percentage points from 2004, compared to a six-percentage-point increase among whites.

While McCain?s support of the immigration bill ? which was eventually voted down ? appealed to many Hispanics, it infuriated some conservatives. McCain, his campaign then floundering, promised primary voters that he had ?got the message,? vowed to prioritize enforcement and even claimed he wouldn?t have voted for his own bill it if was to have come up again.

The shift in tone placated conservatives while infuriating many Hispanics.

Full post as published by Greg Siskind's Blog on July 28, 2008 (boomark / email).