'Cause He Talked To A Liberal

Hyper-conservative Arizona Senator Jon Kyl stumbles across a wingnut tripwire:

The head of the Arizona Republican Party launched criticism Monday at a U.S. Senate immigration compromise bill, saying the party base is "incensed" by the deal and, particularly, by Sen. Jon Kyl's involvement in drafting it.

"We have people coming in every day, tearing up their registration cards and throwing them on the floor, or coming in and changing their registration from Republican to independent," said party Chairman Randy Pullen during a press conference at the state headquarters in Phoenix.

Pullen held up what he called a "graphic" representation of how Republicans feel. It was a drawing of a hand with the middle finger pointing up and highlighted.
"This is basically the outlook that many of our party faithful are feeling right now about the Republican Party," he said.

Kyl defended his stance on the Senate floor, referencing criticisms from his Arizona constituents, noting in a chamber now controlled by the Democrats that it's necessary to work with them to get things done.

Kyl's involvement in the compromise — he was a lead negotiator in the deal and has defended it on the national stage — has exacerbated conservative border activists' ire over the proposal.

...Kyl, whose Washington staff did not return late-afternoon phone calls, has said while he doesn't like every aspect of the bill, with Democrats now controlling Congress, the legislation is the best opportunity for action on immigration.

He reiterated that position Monday on the Senate floor, stating: "Of all of the criticism that I have received for being one of the sponsors of this legislation, the one that I don't quite understand from my constituents is, why would I sit down with Sen. (Ted) Kennedy," Kyl said, according to a transcript provided by his office.

"And what I've tried to tell them is, I understand your anxiety about sitting down with Sen. Kennedy, but on the other hand, in a body of 100 senators that are supposed to try to work together to find solutions to problems, do you not at least acknowledge that every now and then you have to sit down and talk to each other, even when you're on the other side of the aisle?"