Florida voters oppose Bush on immigration

Bush's immigration policies find few supporters in Florida:

Two-thirds of likely voters in Florida would oppose a plan to allow some undocumented immigrants to live and work legally in the United States, according to a new poll conducted for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and Florida Times-Union.

That puts them at odds with President Bush, who has advocated a guest-worker program that would allow at least some undocumented immigrants the right to live and work legally in the United States.

The survey also found that likely voters oppose -- by more than a 3-to-1 margin -- letting states issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, aligning them with many Republicans in Congress who are pushing for a law that would prevent undocumented immigrants from using licenses for identification purposes.

The poll, conducted last week by Maryland-based Research 2000, surveyed 600 likely voters in Florida. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. The poll found that fewer than four in 10 likely voters in the state think immigration helps the United States.

And these views are shared by Hispanics:

In the Sun-Sentinel poll, Hispanics, who made up 15 percent of the respondents, were no more supportive of pro-immigration changes than other groups polled. Only two in 10 Hispanics favored a law allowing undocumented immigrants to work legally in the country. Only two in 10 favored issuing driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants. And only 38 percent of Florida's Hispanics who are likely voters said they thought immigration helped the United States.

The views of Florida voters are reflected in other parts of the country:

The attitudes of Floridians in general seemed to track with poll results nationally, although responses vary depending on who was polled and where in the country they were surveyed.

In a California Field Poll released this week, 68 percent of registered voters in that state opposed a plan to allow undocumented immigrants the right to get a driver's license.

Among all Californians, not just those registered to vote, 62 percent opposed such a plan. Among all Hispanics, the response was the opposite, with 64 percent in favor of giving driver's licenses to illegal immigrants.

In a national poll by Westhill Partners for the National Journal's Hotline, 55 percent opposed a program allowing illegal immigrants to live and work legally in the United States. But 57 percent of respondents thought immigration was good for the United States.

Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, which advocates strict immigration control, said he is not surprised by the poll findings because Americans tend to oppose immigration. Krikorian said it is business leaders and others he calls elites that support immigration.

"It's the public that is concerned about immigration," he said. "It's the elite among Republicans and Democrats who like immigration."

And one of the main reasons why the elites support immigration is that it provides a work force to do the jobs that the affluent themselves want to avoid such as looking after their own children.

Around the Blogosphere:

FLORIDIANS DON'T LIKE BUSH'S GUESTWORKER PROGRAM

Florida poll: 2/3 oppose amnesty, 3/4 oppose driver's licenses for illegal aliens