From the Herald:

It was three months into Barack Obama’s presidency, and the administration — under pressure to do something about alleged abuses in Bush-era interrogation policies — turned to a Florida senator to deliver a sensitive message to Spain:

Don’t indict former President George W. Bush’s legal brain trust for alleged torture in the treatment of war on terror detainees, warned Mel Martinez on one of his frequent trips to Madrid. Doing so would chill U.S.-Spanish relations.

Rather than a resolution, though, a senior Spanish diplomat gave the former GOP chairman and housing secretary a lesson in Spain’s separation of powers. “The independence of the judiciary and the process must be respected,” then-acting Foreign Minister Angel Lossada replied on April 15, 2009. Then for emphasis, “Lossada reiterated to Martinez that the executive branch of government could not close any judicial investigation and urged that this case not affect the overall relationship.”

The cable that reveals this tidbit was dated April 17, 2009, marked “confidential” and sent from the American embassy in Madrid:

Senator Mel Martinez, accompanied by the Charge d’Affaires, met Acting FM Angel Lossada during a visit to the Spanish MFA on April 15. Martinez and the Charge underscored that the prosecutions would not be understood or accepted in the U.S. and would have an enormous impact on the bilateral relationship. The Senator also asked if the GOS had thoroughly considered the source of the material on which the allegations were based to ensure the charges were not based on misinformation or factually wrong statements. Lossada responded that the GOS recognized all of the complications presented by universal jurisdiction, but that the independence of the judiciary and the process must be respected. The GOS would use all appropriate legal tools in the matter. While it did not have much margin to operate, the GOS would advise Conde Pumpido that the official administration position was that the GOS was “not in accord with the National Court.” Lossada reiterated to Martinez that the executive branch of government could not close any judicial investigation and urged that this case not affect the overall relationship, adding that our interests were much broader, and that the universal jurisdiction case should not be viewed as a reflection of the GOS position. [Emphasis added.]

Martinez chose not to comment on the Herald‘s story.

“A three-way race is producing a three-way split among Florida voters,” says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. “Meek wins majority support among Democrats while Rubio picks up seven in ten Republicans. Among Independents, it’s Crist with 45 percent, distantly followed by Rubio with 29 percent and Meek with only 16 percent of Independents.”

The survey also indicates a geographical divide.

“Crist is doing best in the Tampa Bay area and along the southern Gulf Coast. Meek does best in the Miami area. Rubio’s best region is the northern part of the state, including the Panhandle.”

The winner will succeed GOP Sen. George LeMieux, who was named to replace fellow Republican Mel Martinez, who stepped down from his seat last year.

With all three candidates shoring up support from distinct geographical areas, it’s unlikely that any will fall by the wayside completely. But demonstrating he’s within striking distance is absolutely crucial to Meek in avoiding a scenario in which Democrats flock to Crist and the race effectively becomes a two way contest between Crist and Meek. Time will tell whether the jolt to Meek’s numbers is merely a flash in the pan or something he can build upon.

DREAM Act supporters at a May rally in Michigan (Detroit Free Press/ZUMApress.com)

On Tuesday, about 300 students — many non-citizens who have been living in the U.S. for years — filed into a church near the Capitol for a mock graduation ceremony. Clad in caps and gowns, they came from as far as California to lobby members of Congress to pass the DREAM Act, legislation that would help students who immigrated to the U.S. as children obtain citizenship. Their goal is to see the bill pass this year, with or without comprehensive immigration reform.

[Immigration1] “We cannot wait one more year,” said Virginia Gonzalez of the Immigrant Youth Justice League. The other students joined her in a chant: “Undocumented and unafraid.”

As comprehensive reform looks increasingly unlikely to pass this year, many immigration activists have shifted their focus to the DREAM Act. But the legislation, introduced in this session by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) last March, is caught in a tenuous middle ground. It’s too much for conservatives, who call it a form of amnesty that would encourage others to break immigration laws. Yet it’s too little for Democratic leaders in Congress, who are still holding out hope — at least in public statements — that comprehensive reform is possible, and arguing that the DREAM Act should be incorporated into a larger reform bill rather than pushed on its own.

Immigration activists, such as the ones gathered at the Capitol, see the DREAM Act as a way to move forward as comprehensive immigration reform stalls. “If we have the DREAM Act here and it’s alive and it has support, why not give the youth that opportunity?” said Juan Escalante, communications director for the DREAM Activist mobilization. The activists have chosen to push for smaller reform to cut their losses. It’s not that they don’t want to see comprehensive reform pass, he said — they just don’t want to go down with the ship if it doesn’t.

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act was first proposed in 2001 and fell eight votes short of overcoming a filibuster in 2007. Critics call it amnesty for illegal immigrants, but there are conditions: To be eligible, the immigrant must enter the country before the age of 16, live five consecutive years in the U.S., earn a high school diploma or the equivalent, and demonstrate good “moral character.” (There are no specifics on what that means, but it is generally interpreted as the absence of a criminal record.) Applicants would be limited to those between the ages of 12 and 35.

Once eligible, participants would be required to put in at least two years in college or the military in order to eventually become citizens. Of the 2.1 million unauthorized immigrant youth and young adults who would be eligible to apply for legal status under the DREAM Act, only about 825,000 would eventually gain citizenship, according to estimates released this month from the non-partisan Migration Policy Institute.

Critics argue that the DREAM Act would reward illegal behavior. “What you’re doing is creating an incentive for people to come here,” said Ira Mehlman of the pro-enforcement Federation for American Immigration Reform. Instead, he argued, the government should focus on enforcing the laws already in place.

But supporters of immigration reform see the DREAM Act as a good way to help fix a broken system without adding harsh enforcement measures that could be lumped in with a comprehensive reform bill. Ali Noorani, executive director of National Immigration Forum, said the DREAM Act or AgJOBS, a reform bill that focuses on immigrant farm workers, could be a good step toward reforming immigration policy. “Whether it’s the DREAM Act or AgJOBS that passes, we have to make sure that neither passes with enforcement measures,” he said.

The DREAM Act has another advantage over comprehensive reform: It has bipartisan support. Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) is the bill’s only Republican co-sponsor, following the resignation of fellow co-sponsor Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) last year. Lugar’s stance is arguably closest to the that of DREAM Act supporters when it comes to strategy.

“We’re not going to do comprehensive reform this year,” a spokesman for Lugar told TWI. “It’s not in the cards.” He said the senator supports comprehensive immigration reform, but if it’s not possible this session he’s willing to look at other options, such as the DREAM Act.

Still, Lugar’s support distinguishes him from his Republican colleagues. Most Republicans say that tougher border control is necessary before a path to citizenship is laid out. In March, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) notably called the DREAM Act a “nightmare for the American people,” arguing that it could open citizenship to “millions” if DREAM Act beneficiaries were able to help their families gain citizenship.

Other Republicans’ positions are more difficult to pin down. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), for example, in 2003 referred to the deportation of young people who grew up in the U.S. as a “tremendous loss to our society.” He was an original sponsor of the legislation, and still speaks about the DREAM Act in positive terms during town hall meetings. But he’s not a sure “yea” vote — Antonia Ferrier, Hatch’s spokeswoman, said in an email that Hatch does not support the current version of the DREAM Act and believes the Senate should prioritize border enforcement.

On the other side of the aisle, Democrats are hesitant to push for the DREAM Act if it means giving up on comprehensive reform this year, even though many of them have said a far-reaching immigration bill is unlikely. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has said he wants comprehensive, not “piecemeal,” immigration reform. A spokesman declined to comment on Reid’s plans for the DREAM Act or comprehensive reform, saying he would defer to Durbin, the party’s second-ranking senator, on his plans for the bill.

At Tuesday’s event, Durbin told DREAM Act supporters, “We can pass the DREAM Act this year,” but he added that he hopes to see it included in comprehensive reform. Durbin told The Hill in May that he planned to lay low on the act. “I don’t want anyone to think I’m pushing the DREAM Act at the expense of comprehensive immigration reform,” he said at the time.

Durbin spokesman Max Gleischman told TWI there are no definitive plans to move forward with the DREAM Act instead of comprehensive immigration reform. “We’re certainly open to that option, but right now we’re focused on making sure that’s a part of comprehensive reform conversation,” he said, adding that comprehensive reform is still possible this year. (Durbin told The Associated Press last week that it is “very unlikely” that the DREAM Act would pass before November.)

Another advocate of immigration reform, Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), has acknowledged that comprehensive reform doesn’t have the votes to pass right now. Still, he said in an email that he is in favor of tying the DREAM Act to a comprehensive reform bill as “a critical component of reform that fixes all aspects of our broken immigration system.”

Some immigration activists are hopeful that if comprehensive reform doesn’t happen this year, the DREAM Act will get a shot instead. Escalante of DREAM Activist said passing the bill would only help the odds of comprehensive reform down the line.

“It’s not like we’re going to pass the DREAM Act today and then tomorrow we’re going to go to Disney World and just live the rest of our lives,” he said. “These students will keep fighting for reform.”

Muzaffar Chishti, director of the Migration Policy Institute at NYU School of Law, said the DREAM Act is one of the few standalone pieces of immigration legislation that has a chance of moving forward. Will it mean a steeper climb for comprehensive reform in the future? Chishti said he suspects those who oppose the DREAM Act would have opposed comprehensive reform anyway.

“At the end of the day in legislative strategy you have to make choices, and this looks like a reasonable call to make,” he said. “Will it have fallout? Sure. But everything has fallout.”

For many in America, 2009 was a year of beginnings: of the Obama presidency, comprehensive health care reform, movement in the battle against climate change, and the new Republican identity as the opposition party. For these ten politicians, however, it marked the end of a chapter of their political careers. Some sought to escape the spotlight; others were pushed out; and some simply had higher aspirations.

Click here to begin slideshow.

Harsh questioning by Republicans of then-Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, confirmed earlier this month, has likely soured some Latinos on the GOP, and the warnings from conservative restrictionist groups that universal health care will waste taxpayer money on illegal immigrants hasn’t helped.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist chose LeMieux, his former chief of staff and close friend, to fill the seat of retiring GOP Sen. Mel Martinez, who’s long been a strong advocate of immigration reform. Because LeMieux has never before held office, it’s hard to know how he’ll address this issue — a huge one in Florida.

Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, said in a statement released today:

“All across America, the Republican Party’s rhetoric and actions on immigration reform have sent Latino voters into the Democratic camp these past several years.  In the 2008 Presidential race, the Latino vote in Florida swung 27 points from Republican to Democrat compared to 2004, and immigration reform is a defining issue for this group of voters.  Martinez was right to point his Party toward a new direction, and all eyes are on Governor Crist and George LeMieux to see if they will follow through and embrace a more inclusive stance on issues of importance to this group—issues like comprehensive immigration reform.”

Long answer: Retiring Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) has been a moderate voice on environmental policy — he voted for cloture on the Lieberman-Warner cap-and-trade bill last year — and his departure could deprive Democrats of one of their few potential Republican allies on this issue. Odds are that the environmentally friendly Gov. Charlie Crist (R-Fla.) will end up taking Martinez’s seat, but not until January 2011, well past when Democrats hope to enact climate legislation.

In the interim, Florida’s junior senator will be George LeMieux, a close Crist ally appointed today by the governor to fill Martinez’s seat. LeMieux doesn’t have a legislative record, but he’s broadcast his views in other ways. Ben Wessel at 1Sky has compiled some of his writings on climate policy, most of which are pretty favorable toward cap-and-trade. For instance, in the Palm Beach Post, he wrote about climate change:

There might have been a time where the jury was out, but the jury is in now, and we know this is an issue. We can’t afford to ignore it and be wrong.

And on his blog, he wrote:

Florida’s clean energy economy should be among the top in the nation … it is important to look at alternative energy solutions and build a foundation that will have a positive long-term impact on Florida’s economy.

Yet LeMieux’s primary loyalty seems to be to Crist himself — he’s Crist’s closest adviser, and he describes himself as “a Charlie Crist Republican.” And right now, the last thing Crist wants is to be seen as, well, liberal. Crist is facing a primary challenge in his bid for the U.S. Senate from the conservative Marco Rubio, who will undoubtedly challenge Crist’s conservative credentials. If LeMieux wants to do Crist a favor, he won’t inflame the conservative base by crossing party lines to vote for cap-and-trade legislation.

So, for now, the jury’s still out on LeMieux.

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George LeMieux is a talented political operative and the governor’s best friend, but that doesn’t make him the right choice to represent Florida in the Senate. Governor Crist had a wealth of consistent and principled conservative candidates to choose from, all of whom would have been a reliable check and balance on the excesses of the Obama-Pelosi-Reid agenda.

Crist’s decision has gotten him some rare universally negative attention from the Florida press, but Rubio hasn’t pushed the issue past this statement.

Gov. Charlie Crist is expected to turn to his political shadow and former chief of staff, George LeMieux, to stand in as Florida’s U.S. senator until Crist can win the seat himself in the 2010 election.

The governor’s office will announce the decision at 11:15 a.m. today in Tallahassee. Crist has said that he wanted his appointment to have some time to get ready before Congress reconvenes on Sept. 8.

Crist faced the delicate task of filling a seat he is running for himself after Sen. Mel Martinez announced three weeks ago that he was stepping down. In choosing LeMieux, Crist signaled that personal loyalty and political instincts mattered more than any potential perception of cronyism.

So who is George LeMieux? Here’s his bio from his Website, thelemieuxreport.com.

George LeMieux is a native Floridian, who grew up in Broward County, Florida. He attended public schools in Coral Springs, Florida, along with his wife Meike. George graduated magna cum laude and phi beta kappa from Emory University with a degree in political science. He received his law school education at Georgetown University where he also graduated with honors.

Upon graduating law school, he returned to Fort Lauderdale where he began his practice of law at the Gunster, Yoakley law firm specializing in business litigation. In 2000, George was elected Chairman of the Broward County Republican Party. In 2003, he was asked by then Attorney General Charlie Crist to serve as Florida’s Deputy Attorney General and Chief of Staff to the Attorney General’s Office where he supervised more than 400 lawyers and 1300 total staff. As Deputy Attorney General he appeared on behalf of the State of Florida in the United States Supreme Court where he argued for and won a unanimous decision in a death penalty case. In 2006, Charlie Crist asked LeMieux to run his campaign for Governor where he supervised the campaign’s strategic, media and grassroots operations. Crist credited LeMieux as being a large part of the campaign’s success stating: “some campaigns have an architect, this campaign had a Maestro”.

For his efforts LeMieux received the prestigious “Pollie” award from the American Association of Political Consultants as the nation’s “MVP” in a Republican campaign for 2006. LeMieux served as the Executive Director of the Crist/Kottkamp transition team, and went to lead the Executive Office of the Governor as the Governor’s Chief of Staff in 2007. In 2008, LeMieux rejoined the Gunster, Yoakley firm where he now concentrates his practice on corporate counseling and litigation. In March of 2008, George was selected to lead Gunster, Yoakley as Chairman of the Firm. George lives in Tallahassee with his wife Meike and their three sons Max, Taylor and Chase.

Immigration reform has never been at the top of the president’s agenda, although he’s said he supports it, but today he made clear that health care reform comes first. (Meanwhile, some immigration restrictionists are using the immigration debate to argue against health care reform, saying we’d just be paying to provide services to a bunch of illegal immigrants.)

Putting the immigration debate off until next year could put the whole effort at risk, though, given that it’s a hot-button issue — particularly in border states — and that 2010 is an election year.

As Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) said in June — before he announced on Friday that he would resign from the Senate — “This is the kind of issue that in an election year becomes very, very difficult.”

In the meantime, Obama and Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano have been expanding controversial programs to allow local police to enforce federal immigration laws and preparing for the deportation of tens of thousands more illegal immigrants next year.

Though he has persistently denied the “rumor” that he’ll step down, Florida Sen. Mel Martinez might announce as early as Friday that he’ll leave office early, according to a number of sources in the state and nation’s capitals.

“It’s a deeply personal decision that he will expand on later today. He decided it’s time to move to another stage of his life,” said a source familiar with the situation.

Martinez, the first Hispanic chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2007 to 2008, announced last year that he would not run for re-election in 2010 and spent the first months of the 111th Congress as an obviously unhappy but fairly reliable Republican vote.

He nonetheless took a lot of heat from the GOP base for his pro-immigration reform views and for his support of Sonia Sotomayor, whom he defended from charges of “racism” and endorsed for confirmation very early on. Martinez simply never got much respect; when he announced that he’d vote for Sotomayor, Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post tweeted, “Duh.” Jim Geraghty, hearing that Martinez might have left the Senate because he was sick of his party and his colleagues, predicts that he’ll “catch hell” for that. But between this and the pressure that pushed Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Penn.) over to the Democrats, it seems like the problem is less Martinez’s sensitivity and more the GOP base’s demand for ideological purity.