When he was Milwaukee County executive in 2006, now-Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) paid for a lobbying organization to push the White House and Congress to support a comprehensive immigration overhaul.
As he’s been gearing up to running for president, Walker has taken a hawkish tone to immigration reform, expressing strong opposition to illegal “amnesty.” But almost a decade ago, The Huffington Post reported, Walker gave a thumbs up to a lobbying push for the McCain-Kennedy comprehensive immigration overhaul.
Disclosure documents show that Walker, when he was county executive, approved the county government to pay the Waterman & Associated lobbying firm to encourage both the White House and Congress to support the McCain-Kennedy proposal, which required undocumented immigrants to pay back taxes and take a probationary status in order to get legal status. The bill never made it out of Congress.
Walker’s political team recently stressed that the Wisconsin governor opposes most immigration proposals conservatives consider amnesty, like the McCain-Kennedy bill.
“Governor Walker has met amazing people from all over the world who immigrated here and contribute greatly to our country,” Walker spokeswoman AshLee Strong told The Huffington Post. “He has clearly and repeatedly stated that President Obama’s unconstitutional executive action and the collateral damage it has had on his fellow governors has made it evident that we need to set priorities, including repealing the executive action.”
As TPM has previously noted, Walker’s stance on immigration reform has remained a bit murky. Earlier in April he signaled a willingness to limiting legal immigration to the U.S. But in 2013 Walker said he was open to a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants. In February, Walker went on Fox News to stress that he was misquoted in that 2013 interview and repeatedly say, “I oppose amnesty.”
