Before the immigration debate exploded on the national scene, Americans were evenly divided as to which political party they trusted more on the issue. After the earliest rounds of the debate, the GOP gained ground and were favored by a 37% to 31% margin.

Since then, Democrats have focused more attention on the enforcement side of the debate. DNC Chairman Howard Dean even stated that enforcement of the border is his party's top priority. As a result, Democrats appear to have won round two of the debate among the general public--42% now trust Dean's party more on this issue while 35% trust the GOP.

Democrats have gained ground primarily by solidifying their base--77% of Democrats now trust their party more on the issue than Republicans, up from 60% earlier. Democrats have also made gains among unaffiliated Americans. Republicans still trust their own party more on this issue by a 70% to 12% margin.

However, while Democrats have gained ground, they still trail among the 53% of Americans who say that immigration is very important in terms of how they will vote this November. Among this group, 43% trust the GOP more and 33% trust the Democrats. To the degree that intensity matters, that's good news for Bill Frist and his GOP colleagues in Congress.

Fifty-seven percent (57%) of Americans still favor building a barrier along the Mexican border (a number that jumps to 73% among those who consider the issue very important).

Just 26% of Americans have a favorable opinion of those who have marched and protested for immigrant rights. Fifty-four percent (54%) have an unfavorable view.

An earlier survey found that, in a hypothetical race for Congress, a plurality of Americans would vote for the candidate who favors more enforcement on the immigration issue.

Another earlier survey found that two-thirds of Americans believe it doesn't make sense to debate new immigration laws until we can first control our borders and enforce existing laws. That same survey found that 40% of Americans favor "forcibly" requiring all 11 million illegal immigrants to leave the United States.

While the short-term benefit may accrue to those who favor a tougher enforcement policy, the long-term implications of the issue are less clear. At the moment, neither political party enjoys unity within its own ranks on the issue. Politicians from both sides are struggling with the nuances of the issue.

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