Arizona Immigration Law Splits Republicans

(April 28) -- When asked about Arizona's latest crackdown on illegal immigration, prominent Republicans invariably fault the federal government and sympathize with the public frustration that prompted the legislation. As for the new law itself, there's anything but unanimity. Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush and Karl Rove are among those expressing various degrees of concern.

The debate over the Arizona law has highlighted the longstanding split within the GOP over how to protect the borders and what to do about people who are in the U.S. illegally.

"You hear a lot about intra-party rifts, many of them overstated, but here's a real one: The Republican Establishment, represented here by (yes) Marco Rubio, has been on a long, long drive to win the Hispanic support that's necessary to the party's future. A big chunk of the grassroots -- particularly in border states -- remains inflamed over the issue of illegal immigrants," said Politico's Ben Smith.

"It's easy for Democrats to demagogue and try to use this as a wedge issue," Sen. John Cornyn told The New York Times. The Texas Republican, who said one-third of his constituents are Hispanic, called immigration "a very sensitive subject."

Here's what some notable Republican dissenters are saying about the nation's toughest immigration law.

Marco Rubio
"I do have concerns about this legislation," Rubio announced Tuesday. The front-runner in the Florida Senate race is the son of Cuban immigrants, a rising star in the GOP and a tea party favorite -- so his comments drew plenty of attention from pundits.

"States certainly have the right to enact policies to protect their citizens, but Arizona's policy shows the difficulty and limitations of states trying to act piecemeal to solve what is a serious federal problem," Rubio explained in a statement. "... I think aspects of the law, especially that dealing with 'reasonable suspicion,' are going to put our law enforcement officers in an incredibly difficult position. It could also unreasonably single out people who are here legally, including many American citizens. Throughout American history and throughout this administration, we have seen that when government is given an inch it takes a mile."

Commentary's Jennifer Rubin praised Rubio as "the anomaly in this debate: someone who takes seriously the constitutional and legal issues and is unwilling to score cheap political points for the sake of revving up his supporters."

Marc Ambinder described the statement as an example of Rubio's political dexterity. "Think of his intended audience -- Republican primary voters -- and you'll get why Rubio remains the master of the 'I get your concerns, but' pose," he wrote on The Atlantic.

Jeb Bush
The former Florida governor was one of the first big-name Republicans to criticize the Arizona law. "I don't think this is the proper approach," said Bush, who supports comprehensive immigration reform. He warned of "unintended consequences" in an interview with Politico on Tuesday.

"It's difficult for me to imagine how you're going to enforce this law. It places a significant burden on local law enforcement, and you have civil liberties issues that are significant as well," Bush said.

Karl Rove
"I think there is going to be some constitutional problems with the bill," the former chief political strategist for President George W. Bush told an audience in Florida on Tuesday. "I wished they hadn't passed it, in a way." Although Rove said he could "understand where it's coming from" and did not expect the law to lead to racial profiling, he said: "I think there are better tools."

Sen. Lindsey Graham
The South Carolina Republican who's been working on a bipartisan immigration bill said Tuesday he believes the Arizona statute is unconstitutional and "doesn't represent the best way forward." But he also took a shot at federal inaction, saying the law's passage shows "what good people will do" when they have no other options.

Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart
"I strongly disagree with the Arizona immigration law,'' said the GOP congressman from Miami. Diaz-Balart, who is retiring at the end of this term, said the law "strikes fear in the hearts of many American citizens and legal residents" and "alters American tradition and long-standing policy" that immigration enforcement is done by the feds, not the states.

Think Progress has a chart of where lawmakers stand on the Arizona law -- for, against or non-committal.

Mitt Romney
The first of the likely 2012 Republican presidential contenders to comment on the controversy in Arizona didn't directly criticize the law but didn't sound overly enthusiastic either.

"Arizona's new immigration enforcement law is the direct result of Washington's failure to secure the border and to protect the lives and liberties of our citizens," Romney told Politico. "It is my hope that the law will be implemented with care and caution not to single out individuals based upon their ethnicity,"

Tom Tancredo
Opponents of the Arizona law jumped all over a report that the former Colorado congressman and presidential candidate -- one of the ultimate hard-liners on illegal immigration -- had a problem with the measure. Denver's KDVR TV quoted Tancredo as saying: "I do not want people here, there in Arizona, pulled over because you look like should be pulled over."

The notion that Tancredo thought Arizona had gone too far even set off "The Daily Show's" Jon Stewart. But Tancredo later explained that his remark was taken out of context and he fully supports the Arizona law. He's even thinking of trying to get it on the ballot in his own state.

Joe Scarborough
"It's unacceptable and it's un-American," the MSNBC host and former Republican congressman from Florida said on his "Morning Joe" show Tuesday. Meanwhile, on Fox News, anchor Shepard Smith made a crack about it being the "breathing while Latino law" and compared it to the "driving while black law."

The Ghost of Barry Goldwater
Channeling the spirit of the late Republican senator from Arizona, legal correspondent Linda Greenhouse posed this question in The New York Times:

"What would Arizona's revered libertarian icon, Barry Goldwater, say about a law that requires the police to demand proof of legal residency from any person with whom they have made 'any lawful contact' and about whom they have 'reasonable suspicion' that 'the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States?'"