Brian Beutler April 30, 2010, 8:07 AM

In the latest rejoinder to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and the GOP, the Senate’s most senior Democrats last night unveiled a framework for immigration reform legislation, which, they say, they will turn into a bill and try to pass this year. Graham recently threatened to scuttle immigration reform—a politically contentious subject for the GOP—as well as a climate/energy bill he helped to draft, unless Democrats take the former issue off the table for the rest of this Congress.

It’s a risky gambit for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who has angered many—even in his own party—by throwing the agenda for the rest of the year into greater doubt and risking perhaps the last, best hope the country has for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Complicating matters is the fact that Reid has plenty to gain back home, politically, by making immigration an issue, leading many, particularly on the right, to question his motives. Reid faces a tough re-election fight this year in the heavily Hispanic state of Nevada, and drawing out the GOP’s demons on immigration reform could increase voter turnout among Democrats come November.

But if you look at it another way, the Democrats’ calculus on this issue makes somewhat more sense.

Until he backed out last week, Graham guaranteed Democrats at least one GOP vote on climate/energy legislation—himself. This week, he told me, and the Washington Post that he hopes (or had hoped) to bring more Republicans aboard, but he named no names, and made no guarantees. “Maybe if business gets involved,” he told the Post. Graham has never promised Reid he’d bring (or be able to bring) any Republicans into the fold, aside from himself.

That leaves Reid, at this point, with a fairly stark decision: Put immigration reform back on the shelf, and take a flyer from Graham, hoping he can sway enough Republicans to ultimately pass a climate/energy bill (a number of Democrats broadly oppose efforts to price greenhouse gas emissions). Or, dubious of Graham’s powers of persuasion, he can move ahead on his own schedule—with climate in the lead, but immigration right behind it—and (perhaps) call Graham’s bluff.

And it looks like he’s chosen the latter.

“I don’t know how my friend Lindsey Graham can say this kills energy [legislation],” Reid said last night in response to a question from TPMDC. “It’s up to him.”

While he was at it, Reid pointed out that all the focus on Graham lets the rest of the GOP caucus, which has abandoned both issues, off the hook. “There’s 40 other Republicans,” Reid said. “Why Lindsey Graham?”

Climate Change, Democrats, Harry Reid, Immigration, Lindsey Graham, Republicans, Senate