Sen. Vitter’s amendment to strike the amnesty section from the bill was defeated this evening, but it might be an informative vote nonetheless for concerned citizens contacting their senators over the Memorial Day break. It was the first vote focused just on the question of whether we should give legal status to illegal aliens; it lost 66-29. Republicans voting against it — i.e., specifically voting for immediate amnesty — were Bennett, Burr, Chambliss, Coleman, Collins, Cornyn, Craig, Domenici, Ensign, Graham, Gregg, Hagel, Hutchison, Isakson, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, Murkowski, Smith, Snowe, Specter, Stevens, Voinovich, and Warner.