Kay Bailey Hutchison Stays Strong

Posted on June 21, 2007

Republican Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX) is refusing to bow to pressure from the Bush administration to vote to bring the senate amnesty bill to the floor for a full senate vote. They have been lobbying her hard, but she is standing firm, announcing that she cannot support the bill in its current incarnation. Senator Cornyn of Texas is also refusing to support the bill.

U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, who has been under intense pressure from the White House and Republican leadership to support a sweeping immigration overhaul, nevertheless announced today that she will vote against reviving the legislation when it returns to the Senate floor next week.
She was joined today by the state's other senator, Republican John Cornyn, who had been expected by the bill's supporters to take such a stance. They had aggressively lobbied Hutchison in hopes of adding her vote to the 60 necessary to revive the stalled legislation. "I could not support (bringing the bill to a vote) in its present position," Hutchison, criticizing the legislation as amnesty for illegal immigrants, said today.
As No. 4 in the Senate GOP leadership, Hutchison is the highest-ranking Republican to break from her party on a domestic policy issue of signal importance to President Bush. "Until major changes are made that reject amnesty and a more open, fair process emerges for debating one of the most crucial issues facing our nation, I cannot support this immigration bill," she said.
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The architects of the tenuous bipartisan immigration compromise, which twins increased border and interior enforcement with a path to eventual citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants, had given Hutchison a chance to propose an amendment in hopes of securing her support. But Hutchison acknowledged that her amendment, which would require most adult illegal immigrants to temporarily return home within two years of obtaining their visa, was unlikely to succeed.

Kudos to Senator Hutchison for bravely refusing to cave in to what is being reported as extreme pressure from the White House on this issue. Because we all know what happens to Republicans who aren't deemed "Bushy" enough. And it's not pretty.