WASHINGTON — Immigrants and their supporters will take to the streets today to start a weeklong encore of the rallies that brought millions out in the spring. But as they prepare marches in Chicago, Washington, Phoenix and Los Angeles, immigration advocates are facing a less friendly political climate in the nation's capital.
Although Congress may take up immigration overhaul when it returns next week, few on Capitol Hill are optimistic about passing legislation before November's midterm elections. And any new initiatives are likely to focus solely on enforcement, not on providing more legal options for illegal immigrants.
In some political campaigns, immigration hard-liners are embracing the issue as a way to rally voters and target opponents who favor a broad rewrite of existing laws.
In response, advocates of a more comprehensive immigration overhaul are making the rallies more explicitly political, incorporating voter registration drives aimed at affecting tight races in November -- along with reminders that the Latino community, in particular, will watch what politicians say.
"We know the issue is being used politically," said Jaime Contreras, chairman of the National Capital Immigration Coalition, which says it expects more than 500,000 demonstrators Thursday on the National Mall. "Our community understands that we haven't won the war yet, that it will probably go into next year."
House Republicans are also on the offensive, tying immigration to the larger issue of national security as part of their election-year campaign strategy.
"From homeland security to national security to border security, House Republicans will focus first and foremost on addressing the safety and security needs of the American people," House Majority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said in announcing the GOP legislative agenda for September.
It's too early to determine how many races will feature immigration as an issue, said National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Carl Forti. But in a few tight and closely watched contests, it is already a factor.
In the Sept. 12 Republican congressional primary to succeed retiring Arizona Rep. Jim Kolbe, a moderate on immigration who is backing a candidate with similar views, one of the contenders is former state Rep. Randy Graf, a member of the anti-illegal-immigration Minuteman Project.
