Immigration Reform: Many High-Profile Republicans Changing Course
Immigration reform has been a sticking point for the Republican Party, as the hardline views often demanded of leaders by GOP faithful has come into conflict with a general sentiment toward greater reform.
Now, in the wake of the drubbing many Republicans faced in the 2012 election, several high-profile GOP leaders are changing course on immigration reform. Barack Obama was pushed to re-election with the help of more than 70 percent of Latino voters, and Republicans are taking notice, Yahoo! News reported.
House Speaker John Boehner noted that Republicans are ready to work on immigration reform. Speaking to ABC News‘ Diane Sawyer, Boehner said the time has come to solve the nation’s illegal immigration problem.
“This issue has been around far too long,” Boehner said. “A comprehensive approach is long overdue, and I’m confident that the president, myself, others can find the common ground to take care of this issue once and for all.”
One of the most influential voices to chance course in favor of immigration reform came from Fox News and radio host Sean Hannity.
As The Huffington Post noted, Hannity said his views on immigration reform have “evolved”:
“We’ve gotta get rid of the immigration issue altogether. It’s simple for me to fix it. I think you control the border first, you create a pathway for those people that are here, you don’t say you gotta go home. And that is a position that I’ve evolved on. Because you know what—it just—it’s gotta be resolved. The majority of people here—if some people have criminal records you can send ’em home—but if people are here, law-abiding, participating, four years, their kids are born here … first secure the border, pathway to citizenship … then it’s done. But you can’t let the problem continue. It’s gotta stop.”
The stance is an about-face for Hannity, who opposed immigration reform in the past. It is also marks a change for Boehner, who had been against immigration reform and just two years ago proposed ending birthright citizenship to discourage illegal immigration.
