This week, John McCain’s campaign launched a TV ad in Spanish which blamed Barack Obama and the Democrats for the death of comprehensive immigration reform.
Is it true?
Not at all. The ad covers up the fact that it was Republicans who voted down immigration reform, giving into a fired-up, anti-immigrant base. In fact, just this month, John McCain’s own Republican Party unveiled an anti-reform platform on immigration. It went from bad to worse.
Since Senator Obama has been a strong and consistent supporter of comprehensive immigration reform, we can only assume that the Campaign is trying to fool Latino voters and stir up more controversy around the issue.
Tell the McCain Campaign to stop playing politics with immigration.
Sign up to help take the ad down!
We need our leaders to stand up, stand together, and enact common sense immigration reform, not play partisan politics on immigration.
For more information:
Where does McCain stand now on comprehensive reform?
In English, McCain claims to have “gotten the message” from his Party and says he would no longer vote for the bill he once supported. He now espouses a “border first” immigration agenda that would leave addressing the status of the 12 million undocumented immigrants living and working in our country for a later date. To make matters worse, Senator McCain’s new ad, which the New York Times describes as “fraudulent,” sends a message to Spanish-speaking voters that McCain refuses to say in English.
Here’s the real story on immigration reform:
The Senate has tried to move forward on comprehensive immigration reform twice in the last two years. While Senator McCain was a strong champion of the reform effort in 2006, in 2007 he backed away from his leadership role. In 2006, a reform bill cleared the Senate on a strong bipartisan vote. In 2007, Republican Senators turned against the President and his allies in order to tank the bill. More details here.
This week the McCain Campaign launched a TV ad in Spanish which blamed Senator Barack Obama and the Democrats for the death of comprehensive immigration reform.
Since Senator Obama has been a strong and consistent supporter of comprehensive immigration reform, reform that Senator McCain himself once championed, I can only assume that the Campaign is trying to fool Latino voters. The New York Times has called the ad "fraudulent," and long-time reform advocates have denounced it as an utter lie.
Now, I understand that politics can be dirty, but I believe the McCain Campaign can and should treat Spanish-speaking voters with respect, and tell the truth on immigration. This is too important an issue for the American people, and for Latino voters in particular.
The McCain Campaign should take down this ad, now!