GOP war on illegals:

Tancredo vs. McCain

Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo.

Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., is challenging a fellow Republican, Arizona Sen. John McCain, to debate the issue of immigration reform to help stop the rising tide of illegal entrants into the U.S.

"In order to raise the level of discourse on this pressing issue, I invite you to host a joint national tour with me," Tancredo wrote McCain in a letter. "We could present our two views of immigration reform so the American people could compare our approaches side-by-side."

McCain, considered a maverick Republican for opinions often differing from many GOP lawmakers, has just kicked off a national campaign promoting his new legislation co-authored with Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.

Their bi-partisan proposal would allow illegal aliens to stay in the U.S. legally as ''guest workers," having the opportunity to earn U.S. citizenship.

McCain told reporters alternative plans to force out or deport the illicit immigrants aren't realistic.

''They have to pay a penalty for breaking the law," McCain said, ''but saying they have to go back to the country that they came from is something someone is going to have to explain to me how you do that, much less all the humanitarian aspects of it."

Tancredo's letter to McCain takes a tough tone, stating:

Make no mistake about it – your plan and my plan offer very different solutions to our party and our country. Your plan has its fans among big business. They want to continue reaping profits from cheap, low-skill labor while passing on social service costs of that labor to the taxpayer. They cloak their desire for open borders in their demand for "one more" amnesty, knowing full well that rewarding illegal behavior merely encourages more of the same.

My plan – and the House bill that passed with the support of 36 Democrats – takes a different approach. Instead of waving the white flag and retreating from the border, I suggest that we make an honest attempt at securing our country and enforcing the law. That means that we prosecute businesses that hire illegal aliens, that means that we provide the Border Patrol with the manpower and technology to do its job, and that means that we make federal and local law enforcement cooperate on immigration matters.

There was no immediate comment from McCain's office.

While McCain kicked off his immigration campaign in Miami this week, Tancredo began his similar Secure America Now tour last month, holding events in Iowa, New Mexico, Texas and Arizona.

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