I note that Democrats have played things closer to the vest so far, though they would seem to have as many problems with the current bill as Republicans. How big a role are unions and Latino groups playing behind the scenes? “They are playing a very large role. A lot of Democrats are being very quiet about this,” Sen. Kyl says. Before the bill was yanked, he adds: “They [were] working the amendment issues pretty hard. I think the people that are complaining about amnesty just want to kill the whole thing, whereas the other groups really do want a bill. They just want it to look a lot more like what they want.”
Sen. Reid’s move to pull the bill this week was also part of the Democrats’ playbook. By letting Republicans argue things out publicly, while keeping mum themselves, Democrats could make it appear that GOP differences were responsible for the failure to accomplish anything.
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Mr. Kyl also knows missing this opportunity will be costly, as the months go by without reform. “The lack of respect for the rule of law, it has a very corrosive effect. The lawlessness, the violence–all of those things tell me that sitting by and doing nothing is not an option. As hard as it is to make a political deal with Democrats, they are now in the majority and there is the possibility that they could pass something that could be really, really harmful. It requires that somebody like me get in the game and try my best to make sure it’s a balanced bill.”
