Martinez Ignores McCain’s Immigration Reversal, Calls Criticisms ‘False,’ ‘Shameless,’ ‘Unfair’

Yesterday, during a campaign conference call discussion of Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) new ad on immigration, Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL) praised McCain for “standing tall” on comprehensive immigration reform throughout the primary. He also declared Sen. Barack Obama’s (D-IL) criticism — pointing out that McCain has since disavowed his former position — as “false,” “shameless,” and “unfair”:

And I think the ad wonderfully highlights what is really the straight story on Senator McCain and immigration. Far from him running away from the issue during the primary, as it is falsely and shamelessly claimed, in fact, [McCain] stood tall during that time. … In the meantime, what I think is terribly unfair, and I will not stand idly by and let happen, is for [Obama] to trash Senator McCain’s record on comprehensive immigration reform. Senator McCain was for it during the primary. He was for it now. And he will be for it when he is president.

In fact, McCain himself has admitted to the “shift” in his position, calling it “a lesson learned.” What’s more, during the Jan. 30 primary debate, McCain admitted that he would no longer vote for the very immigration bill Martinez today insists he “stood tall” for “during the primary.” Watch it:

Strangely, Martinez also used the call as an opportunity to bash Obama, who he declared “was AWOL” during the immigration debate. Yet as Politico’s Ben Smith notes, Martinez praised Obama for “standing firm” in support of the bill in a June 2007 letter:

“While it failed, your backing of this important legislation meant a lot to me personally,” Martinez wrote. “I know that standing firm in the face of extreme pressure has not been easy, and again, I thank you.”

Not surprisingly, none of the three questions posed to Martinez asked him about his reversal.