New York Times
By Yamiche Alcindor
December 17, 2015
Senator
Ted Cruz of Texas ratcheted up his attack on Senator Marco Rubio of
Florida on Thursday by insinuating that Mr. Rubio had broken his promise
to voters who elected
him to fight “amnesty” for undocumented immigrants. Mr. Cruz also
challenged his Republican rivals to declare their position on whether
people who are in the country illegally should be granted citizenship.
“Marco
Rubio campaigned telling the people of Florida, ‘If you elect me, I
will lead the fight against amnesty,'” Mr. Cruz said. “In Texas, I
campaigned telling the people
of Texas, ‘If you elect me, I will lead the fight against amnesty.’ We
said the exact same thing to voters. But come 2013, we made very, very
different decisions. Actions speak louder than words.”
Mr.
Cruz was alluding to Mr. Rubio’s sponsorship of a 2013 bill that would
have given people in the country illegally a pathway to citizenship. His
support of the measure
has made Mr. Rubio vulnerable among some of the conservative voters
being courted by both senators in their presidential bids.
During
the debate here on Tuesday, Mr. Rubio and Mr. Cruz sparred over their
stances on immigration and how best to deal with the millions of
undocumented immigrants living
in the United States.
On
Thursday, Mr. Cruz cast that exchange as having laid bare Mr. Rubio’s
weaknesses and highlighting his alliance with Senator Chuck Schumer,
Democrat of New York, over
the immigration bill.
“Tuesday
was very interesting because Tuesday, for the first time in five
debates, Senator Rubio publicly admitted not only did he support Obama
and Schumer amnesty, but
he still supports amnesty and citizenship today,” Mr. Cruz said. “He
avoided doing that in the first four debates. He explicitly admitted it
in the last debate.”
Mr.
Rubio had said in the debate that the nation’s borders must first be
secured to prevent illegal immigration, and then undocumented immigrants
could be allowed to stay
with work permits only for at least a decade before having a path to citizenship.
Mr.
Cruz on Thursday also alluded to Mr. Rubio’s claim that Mr. Cruz
supported legalizing undocumented immigrants because the Texas senator
had introduced an amendment
that would have given them legal status, but no possibility of citizenship. Mr. Cruz has said the amendment was designed to kill the
entire bill.
On Thursday, Mr. Cruz added a message for both voters and his Republican rivals.
“Let’s
have a moment of simple clarity,” Mr. Cruz said. “I oppose amnesty. I
oppose legalization for illegal aliens. I always have and I always will.
And, I challenge
every other Republican candidate to say the same thing. Or if not, then
to stop making silly assertions that their records and my records on
immigration are the same. It’s demonstratively false.”
Mr.
Cruz also said the “Washington establishment” was spreading lies and
misinformation about his record and that Americans were “fed up” with
slick politicians who were
inconsistent in the ideas they support. He said the nation’s security
rested on the country’s ability to secure its borders.
His
comments Thursday came as Mr. Cruz kicked off a weeklong tour that will
include 12 rallies in 12 cities in the “Super Tuesday” states that vote
March 1. The tour began
at the Siena Community Center in Las Vegas with the senator speaking to
a few dozen supporters.
In
his speech, Mr. Cruz touched on familiar topics, saying if elected
president he would repeal the Affordable Care Act; create a flat tax for
all Americans; investigate
Planned Parenthood’s use of fetal tissue; undo President Obama’s Iran
nuclear deal; and do away with the Department of Education.
Mr. Cruz also promised to “rebuild” the military and fight terrorism, a statement which garnered loud applause.
“No
longer will our fighting men and women be going into battle with both
arms tied behind them,” Mr. Cruz said. “When American military forces
engage, we engage to win.
And, we will utterly destroy ISIS. We will have a commander in chief
who makes clear that the object is not to weaken, it’s not to degrade,
it is to utterly destroy. We will make clear to every militant on the
face of the earth, if you go and join ISIS, if
you wage jihad against America and attempt to murder innocent
Americans, you are signing your death warrant.”
Mr.
Cruz planned to visit St. Paul on Thursday evening. After Minnesota, he
was scheduled to campaign in Virginia, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee,
Arkansas and Oklahoma.
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
No comments:
Post a Comment