WASHINGTON — John McCain and Barack Obama told a major Latino organization Tuesday that they remain committed to passing comprehensive immigration legislation, despite its defeat in Congress and unpopularity with voters who prefer a heavier emphasis on border security.
Their remarks to the League of United Latin American Citizens came before the 79th convention of the 115,000-member Latino group, but the presumptive Republican and Democratic Party nominees, respectively, were reaching out to a broader group: the 9 million or more Latinos who are expected to vote in November.
As the Democratic nominee, Obama should benefit more from the Latino vote. The Pew Hispanic Center found last year that 57 percent of registered Latino voters aligned with Democrats, while 23 percent aligned with Republicans, a gap that increased significantly after congressional Republicans quashed legislation that would have given millions of illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.
But two factors could complicate the partisan outlook.
First, in Democratic primaries, Latino voters preferred Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., to Obama, and Democrats have some concerns that traditional tensions between Latinos and black communities could affect the general election.
Second, McCain’s record as one who crossed his party in favor of immigration restructuring with a path to citizenship endeared him to some Latino voters.
But the Arizona senator has moved in recent months to shore up his standing with his party’s base by emphasizing border security over citizenship and suggesting he wouldn’t push as aggressively for the changes he advocated in the past.
In his speech, McCain lamented that his efforts to pass a comprehensive immigration bill — one that dealt “practically and humanely with those who came here, as my ancestors did, to build a better life for their families, without excusing the fact they came illegally” — failed after opponents complained that it would grant amnesty to illegal immigrants.
“Many Americans, with good cause, did not believe us when we said we would secure our borders, and so we failed in our efforts,” McCain said. “We must prove to them that we can and will secure our borders first, while respecting the dignity and rights of citizens and legal residents of the United States.”
Obama, who spoke later, accused McCain of abandoning his own “courageous stance” on immigration to run for the White House. The Illinois senator vowed to make immigration a top priority in his first year as president.
He said an immigration bill must do more than secure the borders and crack down on employers that hire illegal immigrants.
“We have to finally bring undocumented immigrants out of the shadows,” Obama said. “Yes, they broke the law. They should have to pay a fine; they should have to learn English; they should go to the back of the line. But we also have to put them on a pathway to citizenship. That’s how we’ll finally fix our broken immigration system and avoid creating a servant class in our midst.”
