Posted on 08/20/2015 2:58:34 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum isn't just the latest 2016 Republican presidential candidate to call for ending birthright citizenship, joining Donald Trump, Sen. Ted Cruz and Gov. Scott Walker -- he wants credit for being the first to push overall immigration reform.
"I am not new to this debate," Santorum said, noting that he had authored border security legislation almost a decade ago when he was in the Senate. "...Up until a few days ago, I was the only candidate in this race who put forth a legal and illegal immigration proposal that puts American workers first."
Santorum rolled out the specific details of his proposed immigration policy on Thursday at the National Press Club in Washington.
Ending birthright citizenship is not his highest priority, he said, but it is a consequence of breaking the law even though it may mean breaking up families. Santorum, who has seven children, has long touted his image as a family man.
"We're not separating them arbitrarily," he said. "We're separating them because they did something and put themselves in a position to jeopardize that relationship with their children."
With more visible GOP candidates calling for the same reforms he's supported in the past, Santorum's message was clear.
"This summer, I was joined by Gov. Walker, who was first to change his position with a few specifics called for limiting legal immigration," Santorum said. "Now Donald Trump has joined a majority of Americans, and me, with some ideas on how to put America's workers first."
Santorum said he would build "hundreds of miles of new walls" along the U.S.-Mexico border, as have other candidates, he specified that he wants the American workers to build those walls, unlike Trump, who called for the Mexican government to foot the bill.
Visa overstays, Santorum said, are one of the largest contributing factors to numbers of illegal immigrants. By enforcing a biometric tracking system for every immigrant, Santorum said, he would "track who is here and who has overstayed."
Eliminating the visa lottery and chain migration to reduce the rate of legal immigration to the U.S. were part of Santorum's plan, as well as using e-verify to check the status of employee citizenship and ending amnesty.
"Amnesty will make competition more fierce, not less; encourage more immigration, not less; and further depress wages," he said.
Santorum also said he would eliminate "sanctuary cities," which have policies to shelter illegal immigrants, by withholding federal funds from them.
In a CNN poll of 1,000 Americans conducted Aug. 13-16, only 1 percent of Republicans said they want him to win the GOP presidential nomination.
Who?
The media has it’s talking points and they are pushing the narrative that Trump cares about immigration.
No, actually, I think that Trump was the one to push that he cares about illegal immigration specifically, and he did it on the day he announced for president.
So now you’re claiming that the media are pushing Don Trump? Man, get help!!
A childish response by Santorum. Then again, what’s new.
If he wants to show he started something, he could be the first to drop out. Beat Perry.
Send him a thank you card : )
...it’s in the mail......:)
Been to this fence folks. It worked GREAT.
I do appreciate the fact that Santorum is relatively strong on border control but he was hardly the first.
Ahhh, what did you have to go and tell me this for? You know he makes me crazy.
You know Santorum is a whiner, win or lose, he whines. He has wanted credit from his birth, I’m pretty sure.
Rick needs to take his marvelous 2012 primary showing, and just find a damn job.
How does he make a living anyway, between campaigns. All he does is run for something, ever since his loss to Arlen Spector. Does he just basically live off campaign funds?
Yes, but with Trump’s Clintonian relationship with the truth that proves nothing. But the media splashes his hook lines all over the headlines, but they don’t bother to report the full story. Like how Trump has said multiple times since running that he would let illegals stay. Or that he changes his position on immigration very day. Or how his business depends on illegals. Or how his campaign manager his a major amnesty activist who flipped Rubio on amnesty. No, the media covers it all up. They ONLY present things the way the Trump camp wants them to.
Poor Baby isn't getting much attention these days...and rightly so.
I’ve always been claiming that. You need to read. It’s obvious. If the media hated Trump it would ignore him. They give him unlimited coverage, play up his campaign the way he wants, and don’t bother vetting him at all. Ever notice they only criticize him the way he wants them to, and they ignore everything else? The only reason any Freepers believe that Trump is a conservative is because the media portrays him that way. If that wasn’t happening, everyone would see through this charade easily.
Are neighbor’s dogs talking to you?
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