Posted on 01/07/2016 11:50:23 AM PST by VinL
GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz told a young woman who expressed fears that the next president might deport people like her that there are consequences for law breakers.
Cruz's response to Ofelia Valdez, who works for a non-profit that assists children with special needs, drew applause from those attending the Storm Lake, Iowa, event Wednesday. The exchange was captured on video by the Democratic Party, which provided a copy of the video to NBC News Latino. To see the video, click here.
Valdez, 30, identified herself as one of the approximately 700,000 immigrants who arrived or stayed in the country illegally, but have been allowed to remain and work under President Barack Obama's 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
"As a DACA holder myself, I worried about whoever comes next to the presidency and what's going to happen to people like us," Valdez says in the video, her voice sounding nervous. "I think of myself as a part of this community and you know, first day of presidency, you decide to deport, you know, people like myself, you know, it's just very difficult (inaudible)."
Cruz responds that by definition, a DACA recipient was brought to the U.S. illegally "and violating the laws has consequences."
"One of the problems of our broken immigration system is that it is creating human tragedies and and there are human tragedies when people break the law," he said.
He goes on to say other countries deport people who arrive illegally and U.S. laws should be equally respected and the consequences to breaking the law are "part of what makes America what we are."
Reached in Storm Lake by phone, Valdez told NBC News Latino that she had been wanting to hear the candidates and learned in a Google search that Cruz would be in town.
"I didn't know what to expect ... and was surprised when he was talking about things on his list for his first day of his presidency and at the top of the list was to deport immigrants here with DACA," Valdez said. "That's myself."
She told NBC she came to the U.S. at 15; she and her family are from Mexico.
"We are dealing with so much as a country of so much more importance and that is what he is focusing on," she said. "I agree with some of the things he has on his agenda, terrorism and other things the country is experiencing, and then he decides to do deportation as a priority his first days in office."
Valdez said she is a human resources director and oversees 140 people and also is an English as A Second Language instructor. She said she hopes the exchange helps put a face to who is being discussed when candidates talk about illegal immigrants.
"They need to know this is who they talk about when they talk about deportations," she said.
Cruz was flanked at the event by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, whom he recently named a national co-chair of his campaign. King has tried to pass end the DACA program through legislation and legislative provisions he's drafted and has stirred controversy by comparing immigrants to drug mules and cattle.
Many DACA recipients were brought to the country as young children and have grown up here as the Congress has failed for more than a decade to address their situation. Legislation known as the DREAM Act, which would have provided a path to legal residency or citizenship for many of the immigrants who attended college or served in the military, has failed repeatedly.
Cruz's position on immigration has been under scrutiny because of his previous support for expanding legal immigration avenues. But since he was grilled about his position by Marco Rubio in a GOP presidential debate last month, Cruz has been toughening his stand, which the addition of King to his campaign is helping to demonstrate.
whhhaaaaa...
Oh well, then. After this sob story, I guess I can’t vote for him. /S
Send her ass home.
30 is a "Dreamer"???? I thought these were supposed to be 10 year old kids who were in school "Dreaming" to go to college. Not some 30 year old border jumper who wants to live off the public teat.
What I would have said is, “As President, my responsibility is to the dreams of American children first.”
Unfortunately, her fears are unwarranted.
So are people who commit crimes afraid of going to prison if they speak to a policeman, judge, etc...?
They should be. She is a criminal.
Less than a month until voting in Iowa and she has no idea what Cruz’s position is on illegals? Uh huh.
Glad to hear it. Illegal aliens should be fearful.
She's ill-informed. She is not part of the 'we."
Works for me.
Bwahahahahaha!
Sorry Ofelia ..... your parents criminalized your future. Don’t let the door hit ya in the ass on the way out..... bye !
Cruz has said as such before that I heard. “Not fair to Americans and legal immigrants”. Last spring. The man just is as true as true can be. Does not pander here there everywhere.
Adopt Mexicos immigration laws Now!!!
As well she should. Break the law, suffer the consequences.
Adios
I’m sorry. At age 15 you damned well know when you are entering the country illegally. If she had been brought here as an infant I might have some sympathy for her predicament.
Or as Rick Perry would say, “Adios, MoFo!”
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