It’s what’s for breakfast this morning in Washington:

On Tuesday, I mentioned the list of 15 GOP senators that the Shamnesty Grand Schemers want to flip to their side (asterisked senators are up for re-election in 2008):

* Alexander (R-TN)
Bennett (R-UT)
* Cochran (R-MS)
* Coleman (R-MN)
* Collins (R-ME)
* Cornyn (R-TX)
* Craig (R-ID)
* Domenici (R-NM)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lott (R-MS)
* McConnell (R-KY)
Murkowski (R-AK)
* Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Stevens (R-AK)
* Warner (R-VA)

Put Sen. Craig in the soggy waffle category along with mushies McConnell and Lott, for sure. Roll Call reports (hat tip: Noam)

Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) said he already has told Senate GOP leaders he will not support the immigration filibuster any longer. “They’ve had ample opportunity,” Craig said of the Republican dissenters who successfully rallied a majority of their Conference to block the bill last week. Craig added that he supports McConnell’s efforts to goad the conservatives into capitulating, saying that over the years “when I was in a minority position I was given fair fun, but I was never given carte blanche to kill something.”

Grand Schemer Lindsey Graham and waffler Jon Kyl are hoping that Teddy Kennedy’s promise of border security funding will persuade other Republican holdouts to buy into shamnesty:

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, the lead Democratic negotiator, said he supported the bid to provide mandatory funding for border security and enforcement.

“You give the assurance that when this is signed, that there are going to be the resources to do the kind of security protections that are in this legislation,” Kennedy said.

Under the proposal by Kyl and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., border security and workplace enforcement would be funded up front, and eventually covered by the fines and fees set out in the broader immigration bill.

Teddy Kennedy keeping a promise on immigration enforcement and homeland security protection? Fat chance.

Oh, puke. Here are Commere Sec’y Carlos Gutierrez and Teddy K in the NYTimes parroting the national security talking points that both the Dem leaders and the White House have obviously agreed on:

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, who was haggling with senators over possible amendments, said: “This is a national security bill. We are fixing a national security problem.”

…Even Democratic architects of the bill, like Senators Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and Ken Salazar of Colorado, are portraying the bill as a way to restore the rule of law.

“It’s a matter of our national security,” Mr. Kennedy said Wednesday. “We have broken borders and a broken immigration system.”

And as Kennedy knows full well, his pals in the immigration lawyers lobby will make sure it stays that way–shamnesty or no shamnesty.

A reader forwards this e-mail bulletin from Steve Elliott of Grassfire.org:

I was just informed that the back-room plan is currently underway to bring Bush-Kennedy back and get it quickly passed through the Senate. I call it “amendments for amnesty.”

Here’s what’s happening.

President Bush and the Amnesty Republicans are attempting to convince about a dozen Republicans to support “cloture” on Bush-Kennedy in exchange for a commitment that a set list of amendments will be considered — thus, “amendments for amnesty.”

Also, Bush and the amnesty leaders are strong-arming conservatives into accepting the “amendments for amnesty” deal or face being banished into Senate oblivion.

Amnesty Republicans have already submitted their list of amendments to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Once the “amendments for amnesty” deal is finalized between Reid and the Republicans, the bill will be quickly brought back to the floor. The amendments will be defeated and amnesty passed…

…this is the FOURTH TIME our leaders have gone behind closed doors to work out some secret scheme to get this bill passed. Despite unprecedented and overwhelming grassroots opposition, they think they can still pull off their legislative, slight-of-hand trickery!

+ + Call to Action #1 — Call these Senators and say you oppose
this “Amendments for Amnesty” deal

Sen. Hagel (202) 224-4224
Sen. Nelson (202) 224-6551

Key Senators to call:

McConnell 202/224-2541
Lott 202/224-6253
Kyl 202/224-4521
Brownback 202/224-6521
Burr 202/224-3154
Chambliss 202/224-3521
Cornyn 202/224-2934
Hutchison 202/224-5922
Isakson 202/224-3643
Warner 202/224-2023
Webb 202/224-4024

And at Right Wing News, John Hawkins reports what his Senate source is telling him about the backroom negotiations:

First off, it does look like the Senate immigration bill is coming back. The conventional wisdom seems to be that it’s going to be brought up right before the July 4th break, so that the Senate Republican leadership can try to use that as leverage to get votes (in other words, “vote for the bill or we’ll have to waste your vacation time until you do”).

This is despite the fact that the conservative leaders of the anti-amnesty movement are refusing to cooperate, and won’t give Mitch McConnell a list of amendments that they want considered. My source tells me that the reason for this is that the game has now been rigged. McConnell is essentially promising to bring the amendments up in exchange for cloture votes, but he’s publicly saying that they will strip any problematic amendments out in committee.

In other words, if the bill gets through the Senate and the House, the Democrats and the open borders Republicans will work together when the bills have to be reconciled in committee to strip out any amendments that the “grand bargainers” don’t like. Therefore, at this point, it doesn’t matter what amendments pass, because any tough enforcement provisions slip through will be rendered toothless when the bills are reconciled.

My source also noted that the cloture vote to end debate will be the “real” vote on the bill because if debate is closed off, the bill is sure to pass. Then, what will happen is that the votes for the bill will be counted, and a few Senators who are afraid that their election prospects will be jeopardized by a “yes” vote, will be allowed to vote against the bill. This enables those Senators to tell their constituents that they voted against the bill, but it will still allow them to collect campaign contributions from lobbyists who have a better understanding of how things work, and know that the bill couldn’t have been passed without their support. Put another way, they get to reap the rewards of supporting amnesty while telling the voters in their home states that they opposed the bill.

Your handy-dandy amnesty hotline number again is 1-800-417-7666.

***
Previous:

Welcome to the deportation abyss
A message for the RNC
Kill the Bill: Quote of the day
June 12 - Kill the Bill: What’s going on behind closed doors?
June 12 - Kill the Bill: Exposing the dirty deal
Update- Senators to Bush: Enforce the laws first
June 12- Kill the Bill, Round 2
June 11 - How Congress gives special relief to convicted murderers,
smugglers, and other alien law-breakers
June 11 - Video: The 1st Annual Open Borders Oscars Awards
June 11- It’s aliiiive!

comments (1)   trackbacks (9)