Obama Stands By Support For Spitzer Plan

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Il, is standing by his support for granting driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants, even after Gov. Eliot Spitzer, D-NY, abandoned the proposal amidst rising political opposition.

"Obama said in the debate he supported it and he's standing by it," an aide to the Senator told the Huffington Post. "He supported a similar bill in the state senate as a law enforcement measure."

Obama's backing stands in stark contrast to the position taken by Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, whose campaign now cites the issue as a basic policy difference between the two Democratic frontrunners.

Earlier today, Clinton applauded Spitzer's decision to take the measure off the table. "As president, I will not support driver's licenses for undocumented people and will press for comprehensive immigration reform that deals with all of the issues around illegal immigration, including border security and fixing our broken system," she said in a statement.

Spitzer's withdrawal of the hotly-contested proposal, and Clinton's subsequent support of his decision, sparked a fierce back-and-forth between the two leading Democratic presidential candidates. This afternoon, Obama's spokesman Bill Burton pressed the perception that Clinton is reluctant to take tough stances on this and other issues.

"When it takes two weeks and six different positions to answer one question on immigration," he said, "it's easy to understand why the Clinton campaign would rather plant their questions than answer them."

In a statement released late Wednesday afternoon to the Huffington Post, Clinton spokesperson Phil Singer shot back:

"It's unfortunate that the other campaigns are employing hot rhetoric, but there are basic differences between the candidates: Sen. Clinton would not give driver's licenses to undocumented people, Senator Obama would, and nobody seems to know what Senator Edwards believes on the issue."

The issue of whether to grant driver's licenses to illegal immigrants was thrust into the 2008 campaign two weeks ago during the Democratic presidential debate at Drexel University. Clinton said, at the time, that she supported Spitzer's desire to provide safety and security on New York's roads but not necessarily the proposal itself. Obama said, as he does now, that he supported the measure, while Edwards said he could not support it in the absence of more comprehensive immigration reform.

Spitzer announced this morning that he was dropping the plan because he believed it stood little or no chance of being passed into law.

"I've concluded that New York state cannot conduct this program on its own," the governor said. "It does not take a stethoscope to hear the pulse of New Yorkers on this topic."

Comments

[CaptainVideo]

Who would Jesus deport?

[Blutus]

Room for a billion more??

ER delays are already lethal.

Bridges falling down, running out of water.

The infrastructure, the schools are shot.

Room for a billion more???


Feel the clarity!

Love Mexicans?
Then seal the border.
Stop allowing them to be exploited.

People with good intentions
doing exactly the wrong thing.

[EspressoAtNoon]

1. Secure the borders
2. Fine all businesses that hire illegal aliens.
3. Continue to implement system whereby employers will be able to check a national database to ensure social security numbers of employees is legitimate, and that they are legal citizens.
4. Make all public services unavailable to non-citizens (welfare, free public education, etc..)
5. Arrest and deport illegal aliens that commit crimes.

This would affectively resolve our illegal immigration problem. As the jobs dry up they'll move on to Canada or return to Mexico and try and reform their own government.

[EspressoAtNoon]

1. Secure the borders
2. Fine all businesses that hire illegal aliens.
3. Continue to implement system whereby employers will be able to check a national database to ensure social security numbers of employees is legitimate, and that they are legal citizens.
4. Make all public services unavailable to non-citizens (welfare, free public education, etc..)
5. Arrest and deport illegal aliens that commit crimes.

This would affectively resolve our illegal immigration problem. As the jobs dry up they'll move on to Canada or return to Mexico and try and reform their own government.

[HumeSkeptic]

1. Secure the borders.
2. Grant unconditional amnesty to all illegal immigrants.
3. Raise the minimum wage.

That would solve the "problem". However, it will not satisfy those whose opinions are based in bigotry and prejudice.

[miamirat]

The neo-con movement, is based on racism. The 'illegal' immigrant issued is also racism at work. Theory has it that we decide what is legal or not. A significent number of the elites are likely to be decendents of not-legal immigrants. They just showed up at the north american shores and took over. This isn't an Available Space issue. We've got enough available space for another billion residents here in the 48 continental states. The problem is the elite whites fear of losing control of this vast space. I watched the exodus of Miami by the whites when the cubans began escaping their Island. I also watched the economic growth of dade county as well.


Pat Bucanan and Lou Dobs are among the leading fear mongers spewing this garbage for their own reasons. Bucanan has been at it for a couple of decades and i think is quite honest about his racism.

Lou Dobs is just opportunistic and or stupidly trying to sell the concept of illegals taking all our jobs. What a bunch of crap. Corporate America began shipping those jobs out 30 or 40 years ago. It had nothing to do with illegals. It was quite clearly a war against LEGALS. It was an expensive corporate jesture to put the lower classes back into the getto they belong in after things got out of control domestically the Americans world Takeover In WW-2.

The economic elite utilizing corporate warfare against it's labor force has actually cost more that it has saved with this shipping of jobs overseas. Labor represents such a tiny part of the cost of a product that slave labor in the country wouldn't actually increase profits anything like transfer pricing has done. Corporate profit lying for tax purposes has increased the take more than labor cost were. Ha ha: shipping costs have eaten it all.

I WANT COMPLETELY OPEN BORDERS FOR AMERICA. let'em come. When we have too many ... some of 'em will start leaving. I'll be glad when the political and economic elite moves on myself. They're the problem.

[joja]

I suggest you re-think this one, Senator Obama.

Granting official documents to people who are in this country illegally -- and who are Mexican, mainly -- is only enabling the corrupt, fascist police-state in Mexico City. It will only provide additional incentive for it to export more of its poor to the US to seek the jobs and social services it refuses to give its own people.

We need to put as much pressure as possible on the racist oligarchy that rules Mexico to quit playing these chicken shit games with us on immigration laws. They need to get their off their lazy asses and bring their country into the 21st century!

[nihilon x]

Whether you agree with him on the issue or not, there is a lot to be said for his honesty.

[joselopez]

CLINTON BACKS DOWN ON THIS, WHAT ELSE WILL SHE BACK DOWN ON, IF ELECTED. WE NEED A STRONG LEADER NOT SOMEONE WHO BOWS TO PRESSURE FROM THE RIGHT WING. I THOUGHT SHE WAS A FIGHTER, SHE WOULD FIGHT FOR YOU..YEAH RIGHT..CLI­NTON ONLY FIGHTS FOR HERSELF AND HER QUEST FOR POWER.

AMERICA NEEDS TO CLEANSE ITSELF FROM THE CLINTONS AND BUSHES.

[Blutus]

Obama is another candidate
who simply doesn't "get it".

Illegal immigration is THE issue right now.

The candidate with the most cogent plan,
one that doesn't allow the law to be mocked
and rendered useless,

will win.

[Independent voter]

Illegals aliens are entitled to nothing!

Obama lost my vote over this.

[Ammobob]

Can we get a reciprocity agreement with Mexico? They only allow 'legal' residents to get driver's licenses down there. This could be a bargaining chip, eh? Since alot of 'illegal' Americans transit the border heading south to enjoy the 'water'.

[hjo4]

I admire Senator Obama for making a stand and sticking to it.I'm not voting for him or Hillary because of their support for illegal aliens and not enforcing current laws against employers and illegals alike.Both should be held accountable and neither is happening, the only people who are being hurt are Americans who see their neighborho­ods,school­s,hospital­s and other things we as taxpayers pay for shot to hell because of the influx of illegal aliens.Pol­iticans are doing what they feel is best for businesses not the American people.The so called jobs illegals are doing have been done by Americans since they were created, why are Americans not doing them now, no one addresses that issue, nor does anyone address that by granting illegals amnesty or citizenship they're opening the door for more "family members" of illegals to enter the US,costing the American taxpayers more money, less services and less jobs.Final­ly no one has ever discussed the cost of granting amnesty to illegals an estimate 31 TRILLION Dollars over the next 30 yrs (according to the Heritage Foundation­).Whose going to pay for this? Those who champion the illegal alien cause are the ones who are least effected by them and their problems.I admire Senator Obama but Americans cannot afford the cost of accepting illegal aliens.

[doschi]

Ok, I get it.

It's those dirty Mexicans' fault that corporate farms and restaurants offer jobs as fruit pickers, busboys, and dishwashers. If it wasn't for those damn Mess-kins, those God-fearing, righteous CEO's and middle-management types could offer those highly desirable jobs to all the mighty-white citizens that are lining up for them as we speak.

Betcha they'd pay what amounts to a living wage in these here You-Knighted States if only it weren't for all those damned devil-worshipping, evil Mecks-o-can'ts willing to work for a dollar-two­-ninety-ei­ght an hour.

Well, I tell you what! Last thing we want to do is document 'em and hold 'em accountable fer things such as car accidents, stealin' folks identities, and the like. That means the Makes-cocaines and the terrrrists win!

/had my ID stolen by an illegal immigrant
//rang up a $7000 phone bill under my name and SSN
///thinks Obama actually makes SENSE by supporting this and attempting to document otherwise illegal immigrants
////thinks the people hiring illegals should be punished, rather than people coming to America to fulfill their dreams much as our ancestors did

[RusStyles]

This issue seems to defy common sense. First, how do you buy, register and insure a car without a license? You certainly can't in the 7-8 states I've lived. For the ones driving someone else's legally registered car, hell yea they should pass a written and driving test before getting behind the wheel. They need to know that if they caught dribing without a vlaid license they'll go straight to jail and deported.

Of course, if they're here "illegally", why would they even try to get a license and expose themselves, thus jeopardizing their undercover status? This is a no-win question/issue not worth rendering an opinion on, So, though I appreciate Obama's openess, and--on balance--agree this is an option that might help more than hurt, but I wouldn't have been disappointed if he had passed the buck . In the long run, Clinton's flip-flopping, more than her position, will hurt her to an unknown degree.