Jon Kyl is the lead negotiator on immigration for the Senate Republicans. (That's a good thing, by the way.) Kyl says that he has heard the complaints of talk radio listeners and bloggers and is preparing proposed amendments to make the bill more palatable:

Mr. Kyl's comments yesterday underscore how important talk radio and bloggers have been in the debate — even though some other Republicans, such as Sen. Trent Lott of Mississippi, have complained about the influence of talk radio.

In talking with reporters, Mr. Kyl singled out radio host Hugh Hewitt and called him "a very smart lawyer ... who I really respect."

"He had several issues and I haven't had the ability to run all of them to ground, but we're trying to include some of his specific suggestions," Mr. Kyl said.

A Republican Senator said privately last week that some kind of comprehensive bill will make it through the Senate, but it will never survive the House. The part about the House is plausible to me: all House members have to run for re-election in '08. But I doubt whether any comprehensive bill can be crafted that will get cloture in the Senate.

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Posted by John at 03:36 PM  |    |