Dems pin immigration hopes on GOP's Ryan

By DONNA CASSATA / Associated Press / July 17, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats doggedly pursuing a far-reaching immigration bill are counting on help from Republican Rep. Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney’s running mate last year and an unlikely candidate for delivering the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s second-term agenda.

Ryan, the House Budget Committee chairman who is frequently mentioned in the GOP lineup of possible 2016 presidential candidates, stands apart from many fellow House Republicans in favoring a way out of the shadows for the 11 million immigrants living in the U.S. in violation of the law.

He casts sweeping overhaul as a necessity to ensure both economic and national security — a fitting argument for an acolyte of Jack Kemp, the late Republican congressman and 1996 vice presidential candidate who backed an ill-fated effort in 2006 to overhaul the immigration system.

‘‘Paul Ryan says we cannot have a permanent underclass of Americans, that there needs to be a pathway to citizenship,’’ says Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., who has been working relentlessly on immigration legislation. ‘‘He is my guiding light. I know I get him in trouble every time I say it.’’

Senior White House aides often mention the Wisconsin Republican as crucial to the prospects for legislation this year, hoping the Republican with impeccable conservative credentials will sway recalcitrant House members. Ryan also is a reminder of two other powerful forces backing an overhaul of immigration laws — the Catholic Church and business.

Ryan is a practicing Catholic who made a point of attending Mass every Sunday during the jam-packed 2012 campaign; the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops strongly favors the first major changes to immigration in 27 years.

Ryan also represents a southeast Wisconsin district in a state that relies on the manufacturers of Waukesha engines, Kohler generators and numerous supply chains. The companies are counting on immigrants to fill future factory jobs.

‘‘The American economy needs immigration reform, certainly the Wisconsin economy does,’’ said Kurt Bauer, the president and CEO of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, the state’s chamber of commerce.

Ryan made his appeal at last week’s closed-door GOP meeting, urging Republicans to seize the moment and opportunity.

He ‘‘made some very good points about how immigration is part of our history, it’s made us great as a country. The diversity of America is one of its greatest strengths,’’ recalled Rep. Tom Reed, R-N.Y. ‘‘I will heartily agree with that. I think all of us in the conference accept that and believe that, and that’s where we recognize that this is a problem that has to be dealt with.’’

The difficulty for Ryan — and proponents of immigration legislation — is the fracture within the Republican Party. National Republicans are pressing for immigration legislation and consider it vital to helping the party improve its standing with the nation’s fastest-growing minority, Hispanics. The Romney-Ryan ticket got just 27 percent of the Hispanic vote in 2012, a downward trend that GOP leaders fear will undermine the party in future presidential elections.

Ryan says any immigration legislation has to address the question of the 11 million living in the U.S. unlawfully. Improving border security alone is not enough.

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A lot of GOP heroes are losing any shred of respect they had over this stupid Rat Amnesty. This clown was our VP nominee for crying out loud. Now I know how the Rats felt about Lieberman after that election when he moved right.