ISOLATED FROM THE ISOLATIONISTS?:

McCain Sets Self Apart in Debate (Dan Balz and Michael D. Shear, 6/06/07, Washington Post)

McCain stood his ground as Giuliani, Romney and virtually all the other candidates criticized the bill. Calling immigration reform a national security issue, McCain said that inaction represents "de facto amnesty" for the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the country.

Challenging his rivals to offer a better solution that could pass Congress, McCain defended the bill as the best compromise on an issue that has deeply divided the Republican Party. "It's our job to do the hard things," he said, "not the easy things."

At one point, Rep. Tom Tancredo (Colo.) called for suspending most legal immigration, which drew rebukes from many on stage. McCain called the idea "beyond my realm of thinking" and said that the United States must remain a beacon for the rest of the world. "And the lady that holds her lamp beside the golden door is still the ideal and the dream," he added.

Always helpful when the leader of the Know-Nothings makes it clear that it's not actually about legality.

Posted by Orrin Judd at June 6, 2007 6:59 AM