Gillibrand Mired in Ruckus Over Immigration

Name a policy that rural Upstate New York and New York City agree on, and you've got, well, try finding one first. For everything else, there's a rock and a hard place for newly appointed Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. First it was gun control, which the former upstate representative opposes. Now, reports the New York Times, Gillibrand is in trouble for her hardline on immigration. Her position, says a Bronx Democrat, “borders on xenophobia.”

Gillibrand reiterated her position yesterday: “I don’t support amnesty because I don’t think it will work.” Says an immigrant advocate, “Her past positions are pretty much out of line with the rest of New York state.” To get into line (and defuse a primary challenge), Gillibrand has admitted she may need to rethink her stand, and suggested various compromise ideas. (More Kirsten Gillibrand stories.)