Is There An Immigration Bill at The End of This Rainbow?

Michael Barone writes that in light of recent developments there is hope for a bill. Hre argues that "three developments last week may be reviving the chance immigration will be passed:"

• The renomination of Utah Rep. Chris Cannon in the Republican primary on June 27;
• An interview of Sen. Arlen Specter in The Washington Times on June 27;
• The meeting in the White House of Rep. Mike Pence with George W. Bush and Dick Cheney on June 28.

I agree with Barone and hope he is right.

Update: It appears the White House's willingness to compromise includes an interest in "triggers," which I have blogged about before. In essence, this is the idea, as expressed over a month ago by John McIntyre of Real Clear Politics:

Republicans need to craft a compromise that puts in place a program to shut down the illegal flow, which upon the proven success of dramatically halting illegal immigration will trigger a process that provides a pathway to citizenship for the millions of illegals who have been here for years. This is the type of broad-based compromise that the majority of the American people can support and it will put the onus on the Democrats to put up or shut up about whether they are serious about halting illegal immigration. [Emphasis added.]

I hope the right people in Congress are thinking along these lines.

While I am at this, I hope the same "right people" are thinking along these lines, also from John McIntyre:

Tactically, however, Congressional Republicans should change focus in how they attack the Senate bill, away from the "pathway to citizenship" or "amnesty" issue and instead concentrate on the commitment to halt illegal immigration. This is not a small point, but rather a critically important distinction in the public relations battle.

From the Republican standpoint, the core of the argument over the next few weeks (and in this fall's election) needs to be the seriousness of stopping the illegal flow over the border, not about a pathway to citizenship. If Republicans make a pathway to citizenship the primary issue, they are making a serious mistake because this comes across to the Hispanic community as mean-spirited and anti-immigrant.

Wise words.