Bought into what? Christie thinks it is a civil not criminal crime to be in the US illegally. He supports a pathway to citizenship aka amnesty. The guy also loves NJ style gun laws. While the guy is a moderate that leans right on some issues, he’s no conservative.
Please provide clear evidence that supports your assertions.
Well, the guy is a former US attorney so I assume he knows what the law says. Technically I believe he is right ... this is why people who are found to be here illegally can be deported rather than sentenced to jail. If it were an offense with criminal penalities, the taxpayer would have to give them a lawyer at public expense, they would have the right to make countless motions that could delay their cases for decades, they would have miranda rights, they could get off on technicalities, and all that stuff that applies to criminal defendants. They would further clog the criminal courts. With a civil situation the case can be dispensed with by an administrative law judge and they can be deported promptly.
It may not sound appealing at first glance that it is "only a civil matter," but one has to consider the implications of a process that keeps them here forever at great expense to the taxpayers vs one that has the potential to move them back to their home countries far more quickly.
All that said, I'm told it is a criminal matter if a person is actually caught in the act of crossing the border.