Menendez: Graham has McCain in mind
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) is questioning whether Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) had other motivations for attempting to push off final action on an immigration bill until after the November elections.
Menendez, the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, told POLITICO that Graham may be worried about his close pal Sen. John McCain. The Arizona Republican faces a tough primary challenge from conservative former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, who has pilloried McCain's previous stance supporting a comprehensive immigration bill that included a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
Now, Menendez said, Graham may be attempting to shield McCain from political blowback on the divisive issue.
"Clearly John McCain is in a huge fight," Menendez said in an interview. "He has done a 360-degree turn on immigration – he’s getting a challenge from the hard right, I’m sure the last thing any friend of John McCain wants to see is to see is immigration come for debate."
Graham, who has been trying to strike a deal on the issue with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), denied he had any motivation other than seeing Congress eventually pass an immigration bill, which he said could not occur in the fiercely polarized 111th Congress.
"I’m not giving the Democrats cover, I’m not giving Republicans cover, I’m trying to protect an issue I care about," said Graham, who spurred a controversy over the weekend when he insisted that Democrats shelve plans on a comprehensive immigration bill this year in favor of a climate change bill.
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