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Reporter asks Ted Cruz four times: “How do you define amnesty?”
Hot Air ^ | 12/01/2015

Posted on 12/01/2015 10:41:52 AM PST by BlackFemaleArmyColonel

The best part is when she asks the obvious follow-up -- is a path to legalization "amnesty"? -- and he won't even make eye contact.

There's a spectrum of answers to this question on the right, of course:

1. Amnesty is citizenship without preconditions. That's the strictest definition, and naturally the one preferred by Beltway Republicans like Marco Rubio in his Gang of Eight days. (Marco Rubio circa 2010 had a different view.) As long as you're forcing illegals to jump through some sort of hoop, be it learning English, paying back taxes, going to the back of the line, etc, that's not amnesty -- even if you're granting them citizenship. Anything short of immediate voting rights for illegals, no questions asked, is A-OK.

2. Amnesty is citizenship. That's Jeb Bush's position, as I understand it. Jeb will legalize 'em, let 'em stay in the U.S. and work, but allowing them to become full citizens with voting rights goes too far in rewarding them for breaking our laws. The most an illegal can aspire to be is a permanent legal resident. Beyond that lies amnesty.

3. Amnesty is legalization unless you've improved security first. That's Ted Cruz's position (and Marco Rubio's current position), again as I understand it. This isn't so much a literal definition of "amnesty," which is a matter of legal status, as it is a political compromise between the two prongs of comprehensive immigration reform. Legalization (i.e. work permits) is on the table if and only if we see concrete improvements in internal enforcement first. Border hawks got suckered in 1986 by accepting promises of future border security in return for immediate grants of amnesty; despite the Gang of Eight's best efforts, they won't get suckered again.

(Excerpt) Read more at hotair.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Front Page News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Texas; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: 2016election; aliens; amnesty; anchorbabies; bordersecurity; buildthewall; citizenship; crime; cruz; culturalinvasion; deport; deportthemall; drainonresources; election2016; elections; fence; health; illegalimmigration; illegals; infiltrators; invasion; jobs; legalstatus; nationalsecurity; sanctuarycities; security; sendthemback; tedcruz; texas; trojanhorse; trump; trumpwasright; wall
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VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE I WANT EVERY CANDIDATE TO ANSWER.

From Wikipedia: Amnesty (from the Greek ἀμνηστία amnestia, "forgetfulness") is defined as: "A pardon extended by the government to a group or class of persons, usually for a political offense; the act of a sovereign power officially forgiving certain classes of persons who are subject to trial but have not yet been convicted."[1] It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the offense.

1 posted on 12/01/2015 10:41:52 AM PST by BlackFemaleArmyColonel
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To: Fiddlstix; celmak; HarleyLady27; firebrand; Gondring; erkelly; CaptainK; LucyT; cpdiii; ...

PING


2 posted on 12/01/2015 10:42:38 AM PST by BlackFemaleArmyColonel (I LOVE JESUS CHRIST because He first loved me!)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

Bttt


3 posted on 12/01/2015 10:44:57 AM PST by Guenevere (If.the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do....)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

This is likely the first area Trump will ‘hit hard’ on, at Cruz.

Just the first.


4 posted on 12/01/2015 10:46:03 AM PST by Jane Long (Go Trump, go! Make America Safe Again :)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

Do they ask sanders/clinton the same questions?


5 posted on 12/01/2015 10:47:20 AM PST by I want the USA back (Media: completely irresponsible. Complicit in the destruction of this country)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

Cruz loses on this. Anything that legalizes and rewards illegal behavior is AMNESTY. There is no gray area here. Shame on Cruz for still trying to play games with this one. He loses.


6 posted on 12/01/2015 10:48:04 AM PST by Reno89519 (American Lives Matter! US Citizen, Veteran, Conservative, Republican. I vote. Trump 2016.)
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To: I want the USA back

We already know their answer. They want to “fundamentally change this nation.”


7 posted on 12/01/2015 10:48:36 AM PST by BlackFemaleArmyColonel (I LOVE JESUS CHRIST because He first loved me!)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

Anything

that allows

those who entered the USA illegally

to benefit from that

illegal act

is

AMNESTY

and will incentivize

millions more

to come for their amnesty.

STOP

giving prizes to invaders!


8 posted on 12/01/2015 10:49:51 AM PST by Paine in the Neck (Socialism consumes EVERYTHING)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain
The authors summary is essentially accurate.

And Ted Cruz has been avoiding the question.

I don't think he has the will to tell the GOP primary voters what his position is.

And Trump will not let that stand. He will force Cruz to respond clearly.

Then, the fight is on.

9 posted on 12/01/2015 10:50:01 AM PST by Mariner (War Criminal #18 - Be The Leaderless Resistance)
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To: Reno89519

Lol...maybe he’ll say Midge lied to him, again, about what the true definition of what amnesty is.


10 posted on 12/01/2015 10:50:13 AM PST by Jane Long (Go Trump, go! Make America Safe Again :)
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To: Jane Long

You got that one right. Trump can be so very polite, nothing personal and just point out the four things Cruz has done that disqualify him: Amnesty, until recently a 500% increase in H1B, gave Obama TPP, and gave Obama Iran deal. Cruz can argue the definition of “is” and try to nuance these but the simple fact is that he is on the wrong side of each, hypocritical to criticize Obama for using the authority on TPP and Iran that Cruz voted to give him.


11 posted on 12/01/2015 10:51:04 AM PST by Reno89519 (American Lives Matter! US Citizen, Veteran, Conservative, Republican. I vote. Trump 2016.)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

Bookmark


12 posted on 12/01/2015 10:51:09 AM PST by dragnet2 (Diversion and evasion are tools of deceit)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

ill O’Reilly: Now, the 15 million illegal aliens already in the United States, what do you do with them? Donald Trump: I think right now you’re going to have to do something. It’s hard to generalize, but you’re going to have to look at the individual people, see how they’ve done, see how productive they’ve been, see what their references are, and then make a decision. Bill O’Reilly: All right, on a case-by-case—going to take a long time and a lot of people. Donald Trump: A long time, but you know, you have some great, productive people that came. You have to give them a path. You have 20 million, 30 million, nobody knows what it is. It used to be 11 million. Now, today I hear it’s 11, but I don’t think it’s 11. I actually heard you probably have 30 million. You have to give them a path, and you have to make it possible for them to succeed. You have to do that.

Source: http://www.glennbeck.com/2015/07/09/pro-choice-pro-amnesty-pro-oprah-all-the-reasons-you-should-not-vote-for-donald-trump/?utm_source=glennbeck&utm_medium=contentcopy_link


13 posted on 12/01/2015 10:51:19 AM PST by gwgn02
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To: Jane Long
Who did you vote for in the Texas Senatorial election?
14 posted on 12/01/2015 10:51:23 AM PST by gov_bean_ counter (Tony Schwartz and Meredith McIver, a couple of dam* fine authors...)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

Ted Cruz on Immigration

End Obama's illegal amnesty via Congress' checks & balances

Q: How to respond to the split within your party on immigration? What you're saying is that the Republicans should vote to fund the governments for all departments except one: no funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which handles immigration, rescinding President Obama's executive action, and if he vetoes that, he's responsible for shutting down the department. The problem is that's almost exactly what you did with the government shutdown across the entire government in 2013 with ObamaCare, and it backfired badly on your party.

CRUZ: All across this country, Republicans campaigned, saying: if you elect a Republican Senate, we will stop President Obama's illegal amnesty. We need to honor what we said. We should use the constitutional checks and balances that we have to rein in the abuse of power of the executive. Step #1 is if the president implements this lawless amnesty, that the Senate will not confirm any executive or judicial nominees.

Source: Fox News Sunday 2014 interview of 2016 presidential hopefuls , Nov 23, 2014

Defund amnesty; and refuse any nominees until rescinded

Q: How would you rescind President Obama's executive action on immigration?

CRUZ: We should use the constitutional checks and balances that we have to rein in the abuse of power of the executive. Step #1 that I have called for is the incoming majority leader should announce if the president implements this lawless amnesty, that the Senate will not confirm any executive or judicial nominees, other than vital national security positions, for the next two years, unless and until the president ends this lawless amnesty. That is an explicit authority given to the Senate.

Q: Are you saying the Senate should refuse to confirm the president's new nominee for attorney general?

CRUZ: We have to rein in the executive. In the Federalist Papers, our Framers talked about a president who would behave like a monarch. And step #2, we've got is the power of the purse, and we should fund one at a time the critical priorities of the federal government, but also use the power of the purse to attach riders.

Source: Fox News Sunday 2014 interview of 2016 presidential hopefuls , Nov 23, 2014

No path to citizenship for 1.65 million illegals in Texas

When discussing what to do about the 1.65 million illegal immigrants living in Texas, Cruz weaved into the Second Amendment, alleging his opponent didn't support gun rights. "What does this have to do with the question?" Sadler asked before fiercely denying his opponent's allegation. Cruz again said he didn't support a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants living in America, while Sadler said the opposite, as expected.
Source: WFAA-TV Dallas-Fort Worth on 2012 Texas Senate debate , Oct 2, 2012

Give police more power to ask about immigration status

Cruz accused Dewhurst of using his position as head of the Texas Senate to kill a bill last year that would have given police more power to ask anyone they detain about their citizenship status--a charge Dewhurst denied.

Both agreed that the US has failed to secure its border with Mexico, and said they oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants and the Obama administration's new directive allowing many young illegal immigrants brought to the US as children to be exempted from deportation.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle on 2012 Texas Senate debates , Jun 22, 2012

Boots on the ground, plus a wall

Border wall: James and Leppert oppose a wall, Dewhurst and Cruz tout "boots on the ground" and a wall in some places.
Source: BurntOrangeReport.com on 2012 Texas Senate Debate , Apr 18, 2012

Triple the size of the Border Patrol

Cruz on immigration: Wants to triple size of Border Patrol. Says Dewhurst supported in-state tuition for kids of illegal immigrants.

Dewhurst: I have always been against an amnesty program. "If they want to be a citizen, they ought to go home and reapply."

Dewhurst says he was against tuition for children of illegal immigrants.

Source: KVUE coverage of 2012 Texas Senate debate , Mar 29, 2012

Strengthen border security and increase enforcement

Ted Cruz has worked to strengthen border security and help ensure that America remains a nation of laws. Among other efforts, he has worked on efforts to increase penalties for felons who enter the country illegally.

Ted authored a U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief on behalf of 10 states in Lopez v. Gonzales, urging the strictest enforcement of laws punishing those with prior felony convictions who entered the country illegally.

Source: Campaign website, www.tedcruz.org, "Issues" , Jul 17, 2011

http://www.ontheissues.org/International/Ted_Cruz_Immigration.htm


15 posted on 12/01/2015 10:51:55 AM PST by ETL (Ted Cruz 2016!! -- For a better, safer America)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain

From the article:

***************

“Trump position: They broke the law by coming here illegally so we can’t reward them by letting them stay and work. They’re all going home. And then, per Trump’s plan, the “good” ones are going to come right back in legally once they’re been removed. Why that’s any better in practice than Cruz’s position, I don’t know; arguably it’s much worse since it would involve the enormous expense of mass deportations with no intention of barring the deported permanently from the U.S.”


16 posted on 12/01/2015 10:51:56 AM PST by VinL (It is better to suffer every wrong, then to consent to wrong.)
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To: BlackFemaleArmyCaptain; I want the USA back

That’s why Open Borders/Amnesty PACs/donors have invested so much into this election....for candidates on BOTH sides.


17 posted on 12/01/2015 10:52:19 AM PST by Jane Long (Go Trump, go! Make America Safe Again :)
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To: going hot; V K Lee; hoosiermama; RoosterRedux; JoeSeales; onyx; Jane Long; conservativejoy; ...

Cruz refuses to say what he would do until after he is elected.

He says we need to secure the border, but doesn’t say how, and then says we can have a CONVERSATION about what to do with those still here.

Where have we heard that “have a conversation” crap before?


18 posted on 12/01/2015 10:53:27 AM PST by Amntn
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To: VinL

Below is a copy of your post 16 without the weird special characters.
________________________________

From the article:

***************

“Trump position: They broke the law by coming here illegally so we can’t reward them by letting them stay and work. They’re all going home. And then, per Trump’s plan, the “good” ones are going to come right back in legally once they’re been removed. Why that’s any better in practice than Cruz’s position, I don’t know; arguably it’s much worse since it would involve the enormous expense of mass deportations with no intention of barring the deported permanently from the U.S.”


19 posted on 12/01/2015 10:54:34 AM PST by ETL (Ted Cruz 2016!! -- For a better, safer America)
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To: Amntn

Cruz refuses to say what he would do until after he is elected.

He says we need to secure the border, but doesn’t say how, and then says we can have a CONVERSATION about what to do with those still here.

Where have we heard that “have a conversation” crap before?


Exactly.

The fact that he won’t even define amnesty says it all. I wonder if THAT word is baked in to his “conversation”.


20 posted on 12/01/2015 10:56:21 AM PST by Jane Long (Go Trump, go! Make America Safe Again :)
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