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Sen. John McCain said Sunday that the potentially powerful Hispanic vote in the upcoming presidential election remains "up for grabs" because neither President Barack Obama nor Republicans have convinced these voters that they are on their side. The one-time GOP presidential hopeful, whose own 2008 candidacy was shaped in part by immigration, said that large Hispanic populations in his home state of Arizona and elsewhere are listening carefully to what Republican candidates have to say on immigration and could become a "major factor" in 2012. "I think that the Republican Party has to discuss this issue in as humane way...

Congress should take up work on comprehensive immigration reform once the U.S. borders are secure, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Wednesday. McCain, a longtime proponent of comprehensive reform who had tacked right in his race for reelection last year, said that an immigration deal could be an area of compromise between Republicans and Democrats. "Once we get the border secured — and we can get the border secured — I would look forward to working on comprehensive immigration reform," the 2008 Republican presidential nominee said on NBC's "Today" show. The Arizona senator had in the past favored legislation that would...

Sen. John McCain was once one of the major Republican supporters of immigration reform, arguing for comprehensive legislation as recently as 2008. Faced with accusations of supporting amnesty for illegal immigrants, McCain has moved to a much tougher immigration stance during his Republican primary. But after the primary vote next Tuesday, will the old McCain come back? The winner of the GOP primary in Arizona is likely to have a straight shot to the Senate seat, NPR reported yesterday. But first McCain must beat opponent J.D. Hayworth, a former congressman who has attacked McCain for his previous support of immigration...

(CNN) - At a Tea Party rally Sunday on the U.S.-Mexico border in support of tough immigration laws, Arizona Senate candidate J.D. Hayworth slammed his opponent, Arizona Sen. John McCain, and turned McCain's words back on the veteran senator. On a ranch in Hereford, Arizona, and with the border fence visible several hundred yards behind him, Hayworth also praised Arizona's new immigration law that was signed by the state's governor, who has spent the last two days campaigning with McCain. Pulling a word from a McCain letter on immigration which first surfaced in April, Hayworth said it was time to...

The slayings of 10 aid workers in Afghanistan by the Taliban are a stark reminder of what could happen without American involvement there, U.S. Sen. John McCain said. McCain stumped Sunday at Mesa State College for Grand Junction native Jane Norton, urging about 150 people to get out the vote in the Republican primary election. Norton faces Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck in the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate, and the winner will face the victor in the Democratic Party primary pitting Sen. Michael Bennet against former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff. (snip) McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential...

The Obama administration is considering it. The idea is to have the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) just start handing out green cards to illegals. USCIS, a part of the Obama administration, outlines the ideas in a draft memo that includes the possibility of issuing green cards to tens of thousands who entered the country illegally. "In the absence of Comprehensive Immigration Reform, CIS can extend benefits and/or protections to many individuals and groups by issuing new guidance and regulations," the memo advises.

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Sen. John McCain hasn't always talked tough on immigration. That haunted his presidential ambitions, and now his political survival hinges on whether he can show that his conversion is genuine. It hasn't been easy. Boycotts, vigils and a legal fight over the state's attempted crackdown on illegal immigrants have kept voters attuned to each nuance in his run for re-election. "Since 2007, I've said we have to secure the border first. I said it in 2008 and 2009 and 2010," McCain told 120 people at a town hall meeting in suburban Phoenix. Leaning against the back wall...

LAS — More of everything. That’s what Arizona Republican U.S. Sens. John McCain and Jon Kyl said is needed to secure the U.S.-Mexican border. They spoke after touring parts of the border near Douglas with area law enforcement leaders on Saturday. “A tremendous amount of progress has been made, but as we also heard when we said, ‘What do you need?’ the answer was essentially more of everything,” Kyl said. When the senators visited the same stretch several years ago, none of the fencing had been constructed and many of the cameras and lights were not in place. Kyl pointed...

Sen. John McCain will debate GOP rival J.D. Hayworth this summer, his campaign spokesman said Wednesday. Brian Rogers, McCain’s campaign communications director, said a newspaper report indicating McCain was “busy with his job as a senator” and would not debate Hayworth was “not accurate.” “What we said all along is that Sen. McCain will obviously debate — he’s always debated,” Rogers said, adding, but “he has a day job. Folks want him doing his job during the week, so he doesn’t have, unlike Congressman Hayworth, unlimited time on his hands.” Hayworth, who served 12 years in the House before he...

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Friday said he thinks that Congress can get immigration reform done by March 2011, if not by the end of this year. While speaking at a fundraising event for the Irish Lobby for Immigration reform in New York while on recess, Schumer praised his former negotiating partner Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), noting that Graham took his cues from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). "While Lindsey Graham is a great partner and he loves our bill," Schumer said, he really said his mentor was McCain, according to IrishCentral.com. (snip) In 2007, McCain attempted to push through a...

Those who are familiar with this site will recall that the National Rifle Association (NRA) has been on the Seeing Red AZ blogroll since the inception of this website in June 2007. Take a good hard look, because the link will soon be coming down. Yesterday we posted the endorsements U.S. Senate candidate J. D. Hayworth received from former NRA President Bob Corbin and from theGun Owners of America. Yet the NRA, which has previously referred to John McCain as “one of the premier flag carriers for the enemies of the second amendment,” inexplicably gave McCain their endorsement. In endorsing...

TUCSON, AZ (KGUN - TV) - Arizona Senator John McCain now says soldiers sent to the border should be armed. This revelation comes one day after Senate democrats shot down McCain's border plan to send 6,000 soldiers to the border. At a town hall meeting in Tucson, McCain first told 60 of his supporters in attendance that President Obama's plan to send 1,200 soldiers would not work because the soldiers would only be assigned to "desk jobs." (snip) Nunez asked: "What do you say to the those who accuse you of throwing out numbers, sending 6,000 troops to the border,...

Lindsey Graham to President Obama: Time to ‘step it up’ By: Glenn Thrush March 10, 2010 04:31 AM EST President Barack Obama is summoning two key senators to the Oval Office on Thursday for an update on immigration reform efforts — but one of them, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), thinks Obama should be the one giving the update. Graham, less than thrilled at the notion of providing the equivalent of a book report to the headmaster in chief, said Obama’s lack of direction on immigration reform is hampering Graham’s efforts to recruit additional Republicans to the cause. “At the end...

Until last night, when I watched the Republican debate, I had no idea how much John McCain dislikes me and just about everybody else but Rudy Giuliani, who if you believe The New York Times is a pretty good hater himself. As I watched McCain and Governor Romney go at it during the debate at the Reagan Library I was struck by the huge gap that separates McCain -- whose contempt for his fellow humans is patently obvious -- and my dad, Ronald Reagan, who had nothing but the deepest affection and respect for the American people. The feeling is...

It is early evening on Capitol Hill, and I am sitting with Senator Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican, who, along with John Kerry and Joe Lieberman, is trying to craft a new energy bill — one that could actually win 60 votes. What is interesting about Graham is that he has been willing — courageously in my view — to depart from the prevailing G.O.P. consensus that the only energy policy we need is “drill, baby, drill.” What brought you around, I ask? Graham’s short answer: politics, jobs and legacy. We start with politics. The Republican Party today has...

Presidential nominee in 2008 faces GOP primary fight. BY JOSEPH WEBER Former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, Arizona Republican, said in an interview Monday that his planned primary challenge to Sen. John McCain will portray the four-term incumbent as a not-so-conservative Republican who has "enabled" President Obama and his failed economic and security policies. "I'm giving Arizona Republicans a clear choice between a consistent, common-sense conservative . . . or someone who describes himself as a maverick but is a moderate," the outspoken Mr. Hayworth told The Washington Times' "America's Morning News" radio show. Mr. Hayworth, 51, quit his job Friday as...