The changing demographics of the country have been talked about incessantly in the aftermath of the presidential election last week, and with good reason. Polls taken throughout the year showed that Mitt Romney was getting blown out by President Obama when it came to the growing Latino vote, yet the GOP presidential nominee never modulated his harsh tone on illegal immigration, even months after he secured the Republican nomination and therefore could begin to move toward the center.
Romney got his clock cleaned with the Latino vote on Tuesday, losing by a 71-29 percent margin to President Obama.
Now hard-line Republicans in what commentator David Frum calls the GOP "Media Entertainment Complex" — pundits like radio and cable news talk-show host Sean Hannity — say they've seen the light on comprehensive immigration reform.
A bill in the Senate could soon be introduced, co-sponsored by South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham and New York Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer.
On NBC's Meet The Press, Schumer said their joint plan would address four issues: 1) close the border, 2) insure there is a "nonforgeable" document with which employers can verify the legal status of a worker, 3) increase legal immigration for work purposes, and 4) create a path to legal citizenship for undocumented people that's fair.
This article appears in Nov 8-14, 2012.