Convention to duck immigration

By Stephen Dinan (Contact) | Sunday, August 31, 2008

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ST. PAUL, Minn — It's the unmentioned issue — Democrats were nearly silent on immigration during their convention, and on Sunday House Minority Leader John Boehner said the Republican convention won't say much about it either.

"Probably nothing," Mr. Boehner told reporters. "In every election cycle, some issues rise to the top and others all to the wayside."

The issue, which rocked the Senate in 2007, has fallen in importance in part because the election doesn't offer voters much of a choice.

Both Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and presumptive Republican nominee John McCain sharing similar positions: Both men support a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, though Mr. McCain now says that must come after border security, while Mr. Obama says they must be combined.

At Democrats' convention several speakers did mention the issue, including Sen. John Kerry, who criticized Mr. McCain for backtracking from the broad bill the Republican wrote along with Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

"Are you kidding? Talk about being for it before you're against it," he said.

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