John McCain not invited to Obama immigration "reform" confab on June 17; Obama not serious about "reform"?

Barack Obama had previously scheduled a meeting with Congress on comprehensive immigration reform for Monday. That's now been moved to the 17th. And:

The White House has kept the guest list private, but invitees include, Sen. Chuck Schumer, who may introduce an immigration reform bill by the end of this year, as well as Reps. Xavier Becerra, the vice chairman of the Democratic Caucus, and John Conyers, the House Judiciary Committee chairman. Not invited: Sen. John McCain, who introduced an immigration bill with Sen. Edward Kennedy and played a central role in the debate in recent years...

[One senior GOP aide, whose boss had been involved in recent immigration debates] suggested the White House might be using the meeting as a "smokescreen to cover Obama’s campaign promise," giving proponents of immigration reform a symbolic victory, but not necessarily making a good-faith push to pass legislation.

"This is a show," the aide continued. “There’s neither the time nor the inclination to deal with immigration later this year and going into next year. It’s a political football. Why not highlight the perceived divide between Hispanics and Republicans? What better wedge issue than immigration?"

Thu, 06/04/2009 - 18:16 · · Importance: 4