A Tucson Republican is steamed at some of her colleagues for releasing an alternate immigration plan to the press late last month and says she had no idea the memo would be made available to anyone other than the speaker of the House.
“My name would never had been on that letter had I known it was going to be used as a ploy with the press,” Rep. Marian McClure, R-30, said.
On May 24, a memo penned by Ms. McClure and six other Republican representatives was delivered to House Speaker Jim Weiers. The memo, which was then delivered to the capitol press corps by four of the lawmakers, outlined an immigration plan the seven signers said would work in conjunction with the federal government.
Of particular concern, she said, was a comment by Rep. Jennifer Burns, R-25, published in the May 26 issue of Arizona Capitol Times that the group of moderate Republicans has “had trouble getting a meeting” with Mr. Weiers. Ms. McClure said she has never had a problem with getting an audience with the speaker, even if he can’t fit her into his schedule.
“If I want to see the speaker, I just go barging in,” she said.
However, Rep. Tom O’Halleran, R-1, said the intention was always to deliver the memo to the press and blamed a miscommunication and the hectic pace of legislative action on an immigration plan for any confusion.
“I think things are just moving so fast that one second we’re talking about the immigration bill not being discussed until this week and the next thing we know, it’s up for a vote [May 25],” he said.
Another of the signers, Rep. Pete Hershberger, R-26, said delivering the alternate immigration plan to the press was the intention from the beginning.
“It was my understanding that was the plan all along, and I thought Ms. McClure knew that,” he said.
Reps. Russ Jones, R-24, Bill Konopnicki, R-5, and Lucy Mason, R-1, also signed the memo to Mr. Weiers.
When the House voted on H2577, the Republican-crafted comprehensive immigration plan, Ms. McClure was the only of the seven to vote for it. Before the vote, she told the Arizona Capitol Times she would vote for it because her constituents were highly supportive of it.
FYI
Governor Napolitano vetoed H2577 June 6, saying it is “unconstitutional, unworkable and bad public policy.”