Barely together

The Senate's comprehensive immigration legislation is hanging on by a thread, but survived a serious challenge yesterday that would have derailed it, notes this story from The Baltimore Sun.
From the story:

The defeated amendment, proposed by Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, would have permanently barred many convicted felons - including sex offenders, gang members and repeat drunk drivers - from qualifying to become legal permanent residents.Supporters of the bill said the amendment was written so loosely that it would also have barred those guilty of other felonies, such as violating deportation orders or using false identification documents, and they said that would have applied to a huge number of illegal immigrants.

TK: Meanwhile, John McCain of Arizona seems to have gotten some traction by calling out Republican opponents by saying their actions support a "silent amnesty," a never-ending state of status quo that perpetuates a broken system.