Immigration Law

GILLIBRAND PLEDGES TO RE-VISIT PAST IMMIGRATION POSITIONS

By Greg Siskind

Kirsten Gillibrand was sworn in yesterday as the new Senator from New York and the complaints of pro-immigration groups and media outlets over her dismal voting record in the House of Representatives apparently has had an impact:

Immediately following the announcement, liberal blogs and New York?s ethnic media lit up with complaints about Ms. Gillibrand?s positions. A group of Hispanic state lawmakers have threatened to support a primary challenger to Ms. Gillibrand, who must stand for election next year. And El Diario La Prensa, the Spanish-language daily, described her as ?a disappointing choice.?

Ms. Gillibrand, who was sworn in as senator on Tuesday, has tried to allay some of the concerns, reaching out to Hispanic elected officials and pledging to reconsider some of her positions. Outside a reception in Washington following her swearing-in ceremony, she acknowledged that she had an obligation to revisit some of these questions as she now ?represents the whole state.?

Gillibrand's problem right now is that she needs to figure out how to move away from prior positions without seeming like a total flip-flopper (which is probably unavoidable). No easy task, but presumably Governor Paterson and Senator Gillibrand thought about this before the appointment was announced.

Full post as published by Greg Siskind's Blog on January 28, 2009 (boomark / email).