Immigration reformists win ground against opponents

GOPUSA - Earlier this summer, there were predictions that the outcry from conservatives would sink the chances for immigration reform. Instead, advocates have out-organized opponents, rallying in cities across the country as they try to convince House Republicans that the politics of the issue have changed.

On Monday, Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez took that message to two Virginians: Rep. Frank R. Wolf, whose district sprawls from the Washington suburbs west, and Rep. Bob Goodlatte, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a key cog in the debate, whose district runs through the Shenandoah Valley.

"This movement is deep and it is broad and it is going to win," Mr. Gutierrez said as he stood on the steps of the Harrisonburg courthouse in Mr. Goodlatte's district, telling the 200 people who came to hear him speak that they have changed the debate and outworked the opponents of immigration reform this year.

In 2007, the last time immigration was debated, a public outcry - including angry constituents shutting down the Senate switchboard - helped doom the bill. This time, immigrant rights groups have increased their own presence, calling for supporters to be more visible.   More