Immigration battle still on for Ariz. gov

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PHOENIX, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer said she wasn't dissing President Obama when she turned down his dinner invitation to the members of the Governors Conference.

Brewer said on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday that she had "other commitments" that conflicted with the dinner, but would be at the White House with the other conference members for more-official discussions.

"I would not disrespect the president of the United States," Brewer said. "I'm going to be at the White House on Monday morning. I said this event was a social thing. I am a governor, I've got priorities and I will be there Monday, when we all meet and discuss policy."

Brewer made headlines this year when she appeared to publicly scold Obama when she greeted him at the airport during a visit to Arizona.

Brewer also said she suspected a Senate hearing on her state's controversial law on illegal immigration scheduled for April was a move by the Democrats to stir up Hispanic voters at the same time the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on the Arizona policy.

"I think that it is ridiculous that he [Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.] would invite me to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee," Brewer said. "The bottom line is why didn't he ask me when all of this was on the forefront?"

California Gov. Jerry Brown told "Meet the Press" he did not buy the idea the Obama administration was soft on illegal immigration and noted that every recent president had grappled with the complex issue without a lot of success.

"I know there's a lot of controversy in that, but you can't round up 12 million people and ship them back across the border," said Brown. "We have to certainly secure the border but we need comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship."