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McCain hits one out of the park on immigration

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published October 15, 2007

Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain, who often faces challenging questions on illegal immigration, confronted a voter Sunday who called for ending legal immigration as well.

For months, McCain has been telling New Hampshire audiences that he still believes in the immigration plan that failed in Congress earlier this year but that he now realizes that none of its components can be enacted until the borders are secured first.

That wasn't enough for a man who spoke up at the Hopkinton Town Hall, telling McCain legal immigration could result in civil war in the next five years.

"Do the people in Washington - the politicians and the lobbyists and the rich people writing the checks - do they understand the amount of anger the average European Christian, native-born American feels when they see their country turning into a multicultural chaos Tower of Babel?" he said.

"I believe the greatest strength of America is the lady who holds her lamp behind the golden door that says send me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses," McCain answered, referring to the Statue of Liberty. "And I am grateful to live in a nation that has been enriched by people coming to our nation from around the world.

"I will do everything in my power to secure the borders, but I love this nation and I love the people who have come from around the world," he said to loud applause.

PORTSMOUTH, N.H.

Giuliani: I'm above the fray, and yes, we can take aliens

Republican Rudy Giuliani says he will try to follow Ronald Reagan's lead and stay out of the latest dustup between presidential candidates.

"Everybody wants the nomination. You point out the things that are most important to you," he said Sunday. "... (Reagan) used to have an 11th commandment, that was thou shall not attack another Republican.

"I'm going to try to follow that commandment as much as I can," Giuliani said. He said Republican voters will decide who is the best candidate.

Later Sunday, during a town hall meeting in Exeter, Giuliani assured a young questioner that preparedness will be key for all crises, including those from outer space.

"If (there's) something living on another planet and it's bad and it comes over here, what would you do?" a boy asked.

Giuliani, grinning, said it was his first question about an intergalactic attack.

"Of all the things that can happen in this world, we'll be prepared for that, yes we will. We'll be prepared for anything that happens."

HUDSON, N.H.

Edwards challenges Clinton to stick with 'truth mode'

Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards has spent two weeks questioning Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's judgment in voting to declare the Iranian Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization. On Sunday, he questioned her sincerity.

At several stops, Edwards referred to a New York Times column in which unidentified Clinton supporters say she voted for the resolution in part because she already has shifted from "primary mode," when she must appeal to liberals, to "general election" mode, when she must find broader support.

"I may have missed something - and you can tell me - have we already had the New Hampshire primary? Have we decided who's going to win the New Hampshire primary yet? I think we're going to actually have a campaign and an election," Edwards said.

"Instead of moving from primary mode to general election mode, why don't we have tell-the-truth mode, all the time, and not say something different one time than we say another time?" he said.

Elsewhere

Republican Fred Thompson was missing this week from the campaign trail. After participating in his first presidential debate in Michigan on Tuesday, he was scheduled to be in New Hampshire this weekend, but canceled. New Hampshire voters noticed. "He's a late entry. That will probably hurt him," said Geri Gormley of Bow who remains uncommitted.

environmental endorsements:Edwards won the backing of Friends of the Earth Action, the San Francisco political arm of Friends of the Earth. ... Republicans for Environmental Protection endorsed McCain for the second time. The group also backed his 2000 campaign.

[Last modified October 14, 2007, 22:56:36]