GOP: Deer, headlights

They just don't know what hit them.

But amid partisan finger-pointing, the Senate left town Friday for a two-week recess, having failed to pass a bipartisan immigration compromise that appeared to have the support of a clear majority of the Senate. The deal also appears to have overwhelming support among voters. A new Washington Post-ABC News poll found that 63 percent of those surveyed backed letting immigrants who have lived in the country a certain number of years apply for legal status and eventually become citizens.

In contrast, only 14 percent favored a plan to let illegal immigrants work for a limited number of years before having to return to their home countries -- an alternative pushed by Sens. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) and Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.). An additional 20 percent said illegal immigrants should be declared felons and offered no temporary work program, a stand that corresponds with the legislation approved by the House.

Many Republicans yesterday continued to blame Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.), who has used parliamentary tactics to block votes on Republican amendments and is making demands the GOP sees as unreasonable. But they could not hide their frustration with the president, either.

When the delicate compromise was announced Thursday morning, Senate Republicans said, White House officials had told them that Bush would appear on television early that afternoon to strongly back the deal -- a move that advocates say could have shored up support and deflected opposition from conservatives. Right on time, Bush appeared in Charlotte, N.C., at 12:36 p.m., but his message was to exhort senators "to work hard."

Hitting back at preznit. That's novel.

Some conservatives believe Bush betrayed them by launching the debate, then letting Democrats such as Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (Mass.) and maverick Republicans such as Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) take control of it.

"This administration and the president's decision has had an enormous impact on the number of Hispanics who have committed crimes in this state," charged Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Tex.), whose Dallas district saw as many as half a million marchers on Sunday but whose office is fielding phone calls that overwhelmingly reject rights for illegal immigrants. "The president is ignoring the rule of law," Sessions said.

Yes, yes he is...repeatedly...though not on this particular subject.

Meanwhile, Tancredo is foiled again by the vast La Raza conspiricy.

Even Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), the firebrand leader of the movement to crack down on illegal immigration, struck a defensive tone. "Today's rallies show how entrenched the illegal alien lobby has become over the last several years," he said. "The iron triangle of illegal employers, foreign governments and groups like La Raza puts tremendous pressure on our elected officials to violate the desires of law-abiding Americans and to grant amnesty."

"Firebrand," it should be noted, is often a euphemism for "racist, populist, hate-mongerer."

They thought this was a layup of an issue for them. A way to actually do something for a change that would play well with the base. Man, did they screw it up. Thanks, guys.

Public opinion may be shifting as well. House Republican leaders rushed members back to Washington last year for a rare December session, convinced that a measure to get tough on illegal immigration would help the party battle back against the resurgent Democrats.

But in the new Post-ABC News poll, completed Sunday, 50 percent of respondents said they trusted the Democrats to better handle the immigration issue, while 38 percent trusted Republicans. A third of Americans approved of the president's handling of the immigration issue, while 61 percent disapproved. Only his handling of gas prices showed lower approval ratings.

Three-quarters of those responding said the United States is not doing enough to secure its borders, but they appeared to have rejected the argument that immigrants are an economic threat. About 68 percent said illegal immigrants are filling jobs Americans do not want, compared with 29 percent who believe they are taking jobs from Americans.