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Immigration May Decide the GOP Race

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First Read: “It’s always been clear that immigration was going to be THE wedge issue for Republicans in 2016, but it really exploded onto the campaign trail in full view yesterday, with Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz blasting each other over their stances on the 2013 immigration battle in the Senate. Welcome to the new normal, folks. In a Trump-less world, Cruz probably would have been positioned to be the field’s staunchest conservative on immigration, but he was outflanked the minute Trump entered the race. This will be the defining issue for the campaign’s major players: If Rubio isn’t the nominee, immigration will be the reason why; if Cruz is the nominee, immigration will be the reason why; if Trump survives, immigration will be the reason why.”

“The trouble for the GOP: They’re talking to a primary electorate that is getting whiter, while the general electorate is heading in the opposite direction.”

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About Political Wire

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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