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Chuck Schumer vs. John Kerry

I guess we'll all see by April according to this article by politico.Hopefully,Schumer has enough influence to get immigration at the forefront of the Democrats issue & I also think the recent earthquake sadfully highlights the importance of the issue even more.I guess Senator Graham is now the X-factor due to Demorats' in-fighting.

Quote:

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is heading for a collision with Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) over whose pet issue will get top billing in the Senate later this year.

Schumer is taking a lead role in immigration — and is pushing Democrats to prioritize a potentially toxic issue leading up to the November elections. Kerry is a lead negotiator on climate change and is demanding that a climate bill get pushed to the front of the line.

Kerry and Schumer — who have a history of competitive tensions — are maneuvering behind the scenes to get White House and Senate leadership to promise to give their respective issues time this spring.

But the reality is that there is room for only one more big issue on the 2010 agenda: the so called third thing, after health care and financial reform. And accomplishing even one will be a serious stretch for lawmakers unwilling to take on another politically explosive fight after the bruising health care battle.

“If it’s a competition, then it’s a good competition,” said Jim Kessler, a former policy and legislative director for Schumer. “Each one independently has its own challenges.”

Schumer is quietly spreading the word within the immigration community that he has the White House’s support to pass a bill by April. At the same time, Kerry has been mounting his own campaign to pass a climate bill — telling environmentalists, business groups and fellow senators that his bill will pass this spring, ideally by June.

“Schumer would lead us all to believe that the White House is completely on board with doing all that in that time frame,” said Bruce Josten, head of government relations at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, whose lobbyists have met several times with Schumer and his staff.

Both offices declined to comment on any sort of competition between their bosses. But the realities of timing and the increasingly rough 2010 election environment for Democrats might mean both issues get punted into 2011.

“All of these things are huge lifts,” said a Republican aide. “How many forklifts do they have around here?”

Schumer and Kerry are not only competing for political airtime but also wooing the same Republican for support: South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Graham is working with both Kerry and Schumer to craft plans that could attract more Republican backing — but he says it’s too early to start playing favorites.

“Right now, Sen. Graham’s attention is focused on trying to stop a government takeover of health care,” said Kevin Bishop, Graham’s communications director.