WASHINGTON — Of all the issues being discussed in all the gin joints all over the nation's capital, five-term U.S. Rep. Chris Cannon still wonders sometimes why he ever latched on to immigration.

"Painful" is one word he uses to describe his experience, which he said has evolved into personal attacks. "I have been called a liar, and worse," he said.

But as the 109th Congress shifts into full gear, Cannon, R-Utah, has again willingly stepped to the forefront of what is perhaps the second most volatile issue on the congressional agenda, behind Social Security reforms.

He is again co-sponsoring legislation that would create a guest-worker status for farm workers who have illegally entered the country, and he is working hand-in-glove with the White House on even more sweeping changes to immigration policy.

"My role is to keep the wheels on" the legislation, said Cannon, who began tackling immigration issues shortly after arriving in Congress in 1997. "I know the issue, and I have been the conservative leader on the issue for so long. I play a godfather kind of role here."

To his opponents, that makes him Public Enemy No. 1.

In a town known for being a political circus, the debate over immigration is quickly becoming a bizarre sideshow, with charges and countercharges flying back and forth, often predicated on leaps of faith, thin strands of logic and name-calling by both sides.

From the viewpoint of anti-immigration groups, Cannon is in the collective pocket of radical pro-immigration forces, which include the Chamber of Commerce and unions. He has been accused of improperly raising funds from special interests and even diverting money to his own use (the evidence gathered by opponents has been turned over to federal officials, but the status of the investigations could not be determined).

"It would be odd if Cannon were loudly championing policies opposed by eight out of 10 Americans simply to coax campaign contributions out of the cheap labor profiteers," said Craig Nelson, director of Project USA, one of the most persistent opponents of Cannon immigration efforts in Congress. "But to tell you the truth, I really don't know for sure why he continues."

Cannon insists the cacophony of anti-immigration groups is all being orchestrated by zero-population and negative-population advocates, some of them on the extreme edge, who want to see the nation's population reduced to 150 million from the current level of 300 million.

"They don't hate me because of my immigration policies, they hate me because I have eight kids," Cannon said. "Immigration is a sidebar issue compared to their fundamental philosophy."