McCain's Top Priority: Resurrecting Failed Immigration Bill

Sun, Jun 29, 2008 at 8:01:38 am PDT

Remember the ill-fated immigration bill that the American people very vocally rejected, just a few short months ago? John McCain’s top priority as president will be to resurrect it: McCain and Obama court Latino voters.

McCain, speaking first, promised the approximately 700 attendees that resurrecting the bipartisan immigration bill he helped shape last year would be at the forefront of his agenda as president.

“It would be my top priority yesterday, today and tomorrow,” McCain said in response to a question about whether he would pursue a comprehensive approach beyond his campaign promise to secure the border in his first 100 days in office.

Seeking to win some points for his initial support for a comprehensive immigration bill, McCain noted that his position “wasn’t very popular ... with some in my party.”

And, in remarks that could inflame those Republican border hawks, the Arizona senator made clear he would not just seek to secure the border first, as he promised in the primary.

“We have to secure our borders—that’s the message,” McCain said. “But we also must proceed with a temporary worker program that is verifiable and truly temporary.”