The Z visa is a deal breaker for many people. I'm not sure the McCain team really gets that yet or they are being extremely disingenuous trying to equate the two knowing that the average voter is too dumb to figure out the difference.
“There’s an old rule in Washington that in dealing with any tough issue, half the politicians hope that citizens don’t understand it, while the other half fear that people actually do.” —John Fund
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Governor Romney strongly opposes the McCain-Kennedy approach to immigration reform or other amnesty measures offering benefits to those in the country illegally.
Governor Romney: "I strongly oppose today's bill going through the Senate. It is the wrong approach. Any legislation that allows illegal immigrants to stay in the country indefinitely, as the new 'Z-Visa' does, is a form of amnesty. That is unfair to the millions of people who have applied to legally immigrate to the U.S." "Today's Senate agreement falls short of the actions needed to both solve our country's illegal immigration problem and also strengthen our legal immigration system. Border security and a reliable employment verification system must be our first priority." (Governor Mitt Romney On The Senate Immigration Agreement, May 17, 2007)
Governor Romney: "McCain-Kennedy isn't the answer. As governor, I took a very different approach. I authorized our state police to enforce immigration laws. I vetoed a tuition break for illegals and said no to driver's licenses. McCain-Kennedy gives benefits to illegals that would cost taxpayers millions. And more importantly, amnesty didn't work 20 years ago, and it won't work today." (CPAC 2007 Speech, March 2, 2007)
What day of the week and months was this his position. I'm sure it's flipped and flopped since then.