Liberals hope to exploit a minority of Christian leaders of various stripes to divide and conquer the religious right with immigration reform.
-- From "Evangelical leaders make D.C. push on immigration" by Josh Gerstein, Politico 6/9/10
Evangelical and conservative Christian leaders visiting Washington to push immigration reform this year say it's a moral imperative and will also be good for their flocks.
. . . at a Capitol Hill press conference Wednesday . . . Conservatives for Immigration Reform organized religious leaders for the lobbying day. The roster included such big-hitters as Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Conference and Leith Anderson of the National Association of Evangelicals.
Organizers conceded that during the last big debate on the issue in 2007 there was a divide between "pew and pulpit"--with ministers supporting the legislation and many rank-and-file churchgoers opposing it. However, they said they think the drive has more support now, especially if combined with strong efforts to secure the border and a "tamper-proof" "biometric" Social Security Card.
. . . speakers spoke about the difficulty of deporting an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants. However, they also spoke about background checks for those who remain in the U.S. legally after reform on a path to citizenship. Depending on what rules are part of reform, as many as 4 million immigrants could be deportable because of criminal records in the U.S. or abroad. Deporting 4 million people may be nearly as unrealistic as deporting 12 million, a fact Obama and other reform proponents glossed over during the 2008 presidential campaign.
To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.
