According to an article on [1] npr.com:  “When McCain co-sponsored the bill with Kennedy, he alienated fellow Republicans. After the bill failed to pass in the House and he flip-flopped back into a more conservative stance, McCain alienated Hispanics. Obama enjoys a wide advantage among Hispanic voters. McCain can’t afford to alienate anyone else by substantively talking about illegal immigration.”

Early in the campaigns, when immigration was the hot issue du jour, I wrote several blog entries in which I pointed out that from a strategic and political point of view, the candidates should avoid discussing the immigration issue.  It seems that both campaigns have figured out that this is a lose-lose subject on which to focus.  Avoiding the topic is made all the easier by the economic issues we face. 

Will comprehensive immigration reform become a reality within the next 36 months?  It is hard to predict.  Although both Obama and McCain support CIR, unless the economy improves and U.S. job losses subside, it will be a hard sell.  On the other hand, if Obama wins the presidency and Democrats gain a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate (at least 60 seats) and increase their presence in the House, when the immigration issue does arise, it will be a great deal easier for Comgress to pass CIR and have it signed into law.        

Please visit our law firm’s new website, [2] www.immigrantconnect.com.