Politics

John McCain Promises "Most Militarized Border Since the Fall of the Berlin Wall"

Bad political pitches, part XCVIII.

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Bear in mind as you read this: John McCain is trying to argue for the amendment.

I don't want a holiday in the sun.
James Gill

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Tuesday said that an amendment advanced by the Senate would leave the U.S. with the "most militarized border" since the fall of the Berlin Wall and pave the way for the passage of comprehensive immigration reform.

"The legislation concerning beefed up border security removes any validity to the argument that border security is not sufficient," McCain said of the amendment from Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and John Hoeven (R-N.D.) in an interview on CNN.

"I mean this is not only sufficient it is well over sufficient. We'll be the most militarized border since the fall of the Berlin Wall. That's why I think this amendment was very important," he added.

I realize he's saying this with a bit of exasperation. (You want a goddamn Berlin Wall to pass this bill? Fine! Here's a Berlin Wall!) But that doesn't make it more acceptable—just more cynical.

Elsewhere in Reason: "What John McCain's Immigration Dishonesty Tells Us About the Folly of Comprehensive Reform."