Calderon's Address Displays Divide in Congress
On Thursday's "Washington Unplugged," John Dickerson was joined by CBSNews.com's Stephanie Condon and Politico's Kasie Hunt for a reporter roundtable on immigration and Mexican President Felipe Calderon's address to Congress this morning.
Condon noted that the reaction from members clearly showed the split in Washington on the issue.
"When he mentioned the Arizona law, he got a standing ovation from half of Congress. It really had the feel of a State of the Union address where there's a real partisan divide in who applauds the president's remarks," she said.
With this division along party lines, the question is can we expect Congress to get to work anytime soon, especially in an election year? "It's going to have to start with the Senate and Senate Democrats released a comprehensive framework for Immigration Reform, but it got caught up in process problems and Democrats are looking for Republican partners." Hunt said.
Arizona Sen. John McCain is one example of a Republican ally who has since jumped ship as he faces a tough primary against former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, who has made tough immigration reform a centerpiece of his campaign.
"The president has said he wants to start working on the bill and that's probably as far as they're going to get," Condon added. "They have started writing a bill but you probably won't see the president ask Congress to do much more when they have seats on the line this year."
Watch Thursday's "Washington Unplugged" also featuring an interview with The Heritage Foundation's Lee Edwards on his new biography, William F. Buckley: The Maker of a Movement.
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"Washington Unplugged," CBSNews.com's exclusive daily politics Webshow, appears live on CBSNews.com each weekday at 12:30 p.m. ET. Click here to check out previous episodes.
