Posted on 04/25/2015 5:46:19 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
LAS VEGASSen. Ted Cruz on Friday took a shot at rival presidential contender Scott Walker for comments the Wisconsin governor has made regarding immigration policy.
Cruz opposes comprehensive immigration reform that includes a path to citizenship for the estimated 11-12 million illegal immigrants living in the United States. But the Texan is a big proponent of legal immigration and making adjustments to U.S. law that would facilitate more legal immigration. He criticized Walker for suggesting that he supported limiting legal immigration if it has a negative impact on the wages of American workers.
"There is considerable bipartisan agreement outside of Washington that we need to improve and streamline legal immigration so that we can remain a nation that welcomes and celebrates legal immigrants," Cruz said in an interview with the Washington Examiner during a brief campaign swing through Las Vegas.
"I think it is a mistake for any politician to on the one hand embrace amnesty, embrace a pathway to citizenship for those who are here illegally, and on the other hand seek to restrict or punish legal immigrants," Cruz continued. "I am the son of an immigrant who came legally from Cuba. [President Ronald] Reagan referred to legal immigrants as Americans by choice and there is no stronger advocate of legal immigration in the U.S. Senate than I am."
"I think the right approach is to secure the border, follow the rule of law and embrace and improve legal immigration," Cruz said.
Walker has conceded a change of heart on immigration policy as he gears up to launch a 2016 presidential bid. The governor, 47, previously supported a pathway to legal status for illegal immigrants. Now he is opposed.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...
January 3, 2011 - Walker assumes Office of Governor of Wisconsin.
June 27, 2011: Walker Revokes In-state Tuition For Undocumented Students Attending Univ And Colleges In Wisconsin "- On Sunday, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R) signed his two-year 2011-2013 budget, which included ending in-state tuition for undocumented students attending public universities and colleges. In-state tuition for undocumented students was approved two years ago by former Governor Jim Doyle (D) after the Hispanic community struggled for 10 years to pass it....
Walker signed his two-year budget at the Fox Valley Metal-Tech's Plant in Ashwaubenon near Greenbay. More than 200 protestors were outside the company with signs calling Walker, "You dirty rat" and "Shame, shame."..."
[NO other governor has revoked instate tuition for illegals. NO other governor has survived a recall election.]
March 2015: We strongly dispute this account. Governor Walker has been very clear that he does not support amnesty and believes that border security must be established and the rule of law must be followed. His position has not changed, he does not support citizenship for illegal immigrants, and this story line is false, she announced in an email to journalists Thursday afternoon.
I made it clear that for me, if somebody wants to be a citizen, they need to go back to their country of origin, get in line, no preferential treatment, Walker said. In terms of what to do beyond that, again, thats something we got to work with Congress on.
Chatting with Glenn Beck on Monday morning, Walker said:
>>> The next president and the next Congress need to make decisions about a legal-immigration system thats based on, first and foremost, protecting American workers and American wages. . . . What is [current legal immigration policy] doing for American workers? What is this doing to wages? We need to have that be at the forefront of our discussion going forward.<<< But, Walker observed, among elected officials, questioning our currently legal immigration policy is a fundamentally lost issue.
And Republicans quickly proved him right. Utah senator Orrin Hatch dismissed as poppycock Walkers insinuation that high levels of legal immigration might have negative effects on employment and wages. Arizona senator John McCain declared that immigrants were necessary to supplement an aging population: I think most statistics show that they fill part of the workforce that are much needed. South Dakota senator John Thune, head of the Senate Republican Conference, admitting that he had not heard Walkers comments exactly, still declared: We have a workforce issue in this country. . . . So having a robust legal-immigration process helps us fill jobs that otherwise wouldnt be getting filled. And Ohio senator Rob Portman retreated to sentiment: As a party, weve always embraced immigrants coming here legally, following the rules. And its enriched our country immeasurably.
But these are, of course, responses to a straw man namely, that Scott Walker opposes legal immigration. His campaign has been clear that that is not the case: He strongly supports legal immigration, said spokeswoman AshLee Strong, and like many Americans, believes that our economic situation should be considered, instead of arbitrary caps on the amount of immigrants that can enter. Walker is simply suggesting that American policymakers consider Americans when making policy.
That is controversial? Apparently, since even leading Republicans refuse to engage Walkers question.
That refusal should alarm every prospective Republican voter.".....
" "..........Mr. Walkers apparent hardening on immigration has inspired a flood of reporting and commentary. Most recently he told the radio host Glenn Beck that he favored restricting legal immigration in tough economic times, a position to the right of most other 2016 presidential hopefuls.
He repeated that view Friday after a speech in Cedar Rapids, when Eddie Failor, 24, expressed concern as a young Republican that the party must make inroads to new voter blocs, including by supporting a comprehensive overhaul of immigration.
Mr. Walker told Mr. Failor that his top priority would be securing the border. He also said he favored making sure the legal immigration system is based on making our No. 1 priority to protect American workers and their wages.
Alexander Staudt, the treasurer of the University of Iowa College Republicans, also told Mr. Walker in the meet-and-greet line that he was concerned that by talking tough on immigration, Republican candidates would turn off Hispanics.
In terms of how wide or how narrow the doors open, our No. 1 priority is American workers and American wages, Mr. Walker told him. I dont know how anyone can argue against that............"
He criticized Walker for suggesting that he supported limiting legal immigration if it has a negative impact on the wages of American workers.
"There is considerable bipartisan agreement outside of Washington that we need to improve and streamline legal immigration so that we can remain a nation that welcomes and celebrates legal immigrants," Cruz said...
With that in mind, the first question that should asked when it comes to our legal immigration policy is, Is this policy good for the Americans that are already here?.........
I am Scott Walker and I approve this message.
Just so.
".............."Everyone is trying to score what Scott Walker got at that event," said David Hogberg, senior fellow at the National Center for Public Policy Research and a University of Iowa Ph.D graduate.
Iowa tends to favor the candidates with the strongest socially conservative support, observers note. That is not because the number of those voters is necessarily that large, but because they tend to be highly dedicated and the caucus process rewards that dedication. Unlike a primary, which is a simple vote tally, the Iowa caucus involves groups in each precinct debating among themselves who to support until they reach a decision. Persistence pays off, big time....."
“Cruz is off target here:”
You need to be careful here, the Cruzers on Free Republic will tolerate no criticism of their champion.
I know, I have been accused of being everything but a child of God over any I have posted. Even some question posed.
Worth repeating...
I's also like to see the Walker camp apply this logic to American trade policy.
I think the big difference is we used to allow legal immigration to people that had education and/or skills to contribute to our society and wanted to come here to take advantage of opportunities, not free benefits. Now they are importing uneducated, unskilled people that do not want to integrate into our society, and instead of contributing to it they are a drain.
Cruz did vote against cloture though, which was more important. The confirmation vote was already a forgone conclusion.
Well, it looks like I just found an area where I disagree with Senator Cruz. Unlimited legal immigration is little better than unlimited illegal immigration. We shouldn’t be taking in more than we can assimilate.
> “I think the right approach is to secure the border, follow the rule of law and embrace and improve legal immigration,” Cruz said.
This is just but one of the many reasons I’m voting for Cruz. The man is principled, believes in God and religious freedom, and big cojones. I would love to see him debate Obama on the immigration issue and what he’s not doing about the ISIS encampments just south of our borders.
The confirmation vote was already a forgone conclusion.
***************
Foregone or not every vote is worthy of casting in the US Senate/House. IMO.
All any senator would have to do is go into a Walmart on any Saturday and watch how many timess the illegal immigrants pull out their EBT swipe cards with 2 or kids in their shopping carts and one in the oven to see why we are bleeding out on our welfare programs. He could also follow them to their brand new pickups that the finance companies are trying to repo but can’t find because they gave their 3rd cousin’s sister-in-law’s address who no longer lives there and changes out phones every month at Walmart....
Ah, the Justifiers justifying Cruz’s justification. Why not admit that Cruz blew the vote (whether intentional or not is irrelevant)? He missed doing his day job. Just admit Cruz isn’t perfect; don’t try to justify the missed vote on something so crucial.
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