Political Analysts Shields and Brooks Discuss Immigration, Hayden Hearings

JIM LEHRER:

And to the analysis of Shields and Brooks, syndicated columnist Mark Shields, New York Times columnist David Brooks.

Mark, Senator Sessions said flatly today that he did not believe that a compromise is possible between the House and the Senate bill that's probably going to come out. Do you agree?

MARK SHIELDS, Syndicated Columnist:

I think right now he is right. I think that the House is digging in. I thought the reaction to the president's speech, which I probably did him harm by praising and to say it was the most eloquent I've ever heard the president, and get…

JIM LEHRER:

You've got to quit hurting him like that.

MARK SHIELDS:

Well, no, he got praise from all kinds of people and sources, actually, that if anything hurt his case in the House. And the House Republicans, Jim, in fairness to them, feel that they would betrayed and abandoned by the White House.

They feel that the White House in November or December, Jim Sensenbrenner, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, is very up front about this, that they had agreement from the White House on this tough border security criminalization…

JIM LEHRER:

First. Do that first, and separate it, and do not do the second part.

MARK SHIELDS:

And we support what you're doing, and all the rest of it.

JIM LEHRER:

Right.

MARK SHIELDS:

And now they feel, as Sensenbrenner put it, that what they were saying in December and November, they're singing a different tune in May.

JIM LEHRER:

Yes.

How do you feel about this? Is this thing headed for an inevitable collision and everybody's going to go into the ditch?