Free Republic

"The USA Freedom Act has not made us less safe at all." Republican Sen. Mike Lee on Wednesday slammed Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for attacking Texas Sen. Ted Cruz over the USA Freedom Act at Tuesday night's GOP debate. Lee, who along with Cruz sponsored the bill that halted the National Security Agency's bulk collection of phone metadata, said Rubio was wrong to say the bill made America less safe. "Look, Marco Rubio has been attacking Ted Cruz on the USA Freedom Act, for his vote in favor of the USA Freedom Act, and he's been doing so by suggesting...

As the Republican presidential primary heats up, illegal immigration is again taking center stage. While this is nothing new (as we know President Reagan attempted to address it in the ’80s, John McCain made it a priority in ’08, and on), the discussion has taken an interesting turn this election cycle. At issue, of course, are Obama’s executive amnesty, the recent influx of illegal immigrants (including huge numbers of children), the vast number of illegals currently living and working in the U.S., border security (such as it is), and a host of related issues including the burden of illegal immigration...

Skip to 5:10 of the first clip below for the immigration bit from this morning’s interview with Mike Gallagher. Actual quote from Cruz about Rubio’s claim that the two are alike on immigration: That's like Obama saying my position is the same as his on Obamacare. That’s like Ayatollah Khamenei saying my position is the same as his on the Iranian nuclear deal. Rubio and the Ayatollah Khamenei, huh?Anyway. There are at least three broad differences between Rubio and Cruz on legalization. One: Cruz opposes a “legalization first” approach to reform, arguing correctly that that’s the same bait-and-switch that...

The 2013 Gang of Eight comprehensive immigration reform bill is the signature achievement of Marco Rubio's four years and ten months in the U.S. Senate. Yet in the first four Republican presidential debates, in which Rubio has played an increasingly prominent role, he has not been asked even once about the specifics of the legislation. Despite that omission, it seems likely that if Rubio continues to rise in the GOP race, someone, somewhere will pay attention to his most important accomplishment. The 1,197-page Gang of Eight bill is so far-reaching, and at the same time so detailed, that it provides...