Sorry Megyn Kelly, there’s hardly any choice between the anti-immigrant plans from Republicans on stage tonight.
There are four candidates left in the race for the GOP nomination — but in terms of immigration policy and rhetoric, there might as well only be one: Donald Trump.
Trump’s push to “build the wall” has gone from farcical to the motto of every GOP presidential candidate. From “anchor babies” to “rapists,” Trump’s offensive and incendiary rhetoric has spread like wildfire. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio have spent months running to the right in an attempt to catch Trump, and even “moderate” Kasich wants to finish “the wall.”
The lessons from 2012 aren’t forgotten — they’re under siege. The Republican Party is still pushing the exact same xenophobic and hateful anti-immigrant policies.
Here’s how Cruz, Rubio, and Kasich are emulating Trump’s immigration plan:
- Last week, Ted Cruz ran hard to the right on immigration and proposed using Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to “look for” and forcibly deport 11 million undocumented immigrants. It should come as no surprise that Cruz also pposes a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and is an outspoken critic of DACA and the DREAM Act. Going fullTrump, Ted Cruz’s has even started blaming undocumented immigrants for the opioid epidemic.
- Marco Rubio has said he’d end Obama’s executive order protecting Dreamers against deportation on day one. Rubio also opposes a path to citizenship. And he remains very opposed to comprehensive immigration
reform — hard to believe it’s the same guy who helped outline and pass a comprehensive reform bill less than three years ago. Of course he’s now trying to re-write history and claim that he never thought it was “headed towards becoming a law.”
- John Kasich plays up his “bridge builder” image. The catch is he wants to get “the country to unite around” finishing “the wall.” Like the rest of the GOP field, Kasich’s against a path to citizenship and DACA. He opposes sanctuary cities, and thinks Latinos are hardworking, so “uh, that’s why in the hotel you leave a little tip.”
Published: Mar 3, 2016