The tough votes

There are some issues - no matter how tough or politically unpopular - that Congress seems to push through. Take pay raises, for example - Congress certainly does. When did public opinion against pay raises ever stop Congress from giving themselves a raise? I heard one Senator allude to that this morning. In that context, it seems maddening that Congress can't get immigration reform done. Sure, it's tough, but did you let talk radio stop you from giving yourself a raise?

I talked to Craig Regelbrugge, senior director of government relations for the American Nursery and Landscape Association, Washington, D.C. this morning. He noted a group of lobbyists were meeting with Sen. Larry Craig later today to discuss strategy. Craig, a Senate champion of immigration reform for agriculture, will help determine what, if anything, comes next.