• Chris Christie Begins Retreat on In-State Tuition for Illegals 10 hours after ALIPAC alert!

    ALIPAC NOTE: Please keep calling Chris Christie 609-292-6000 to speak out against his support for in-state tuition for illegal aliens!
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    Chris Christie OK with Dream Act, but will not sign N.J. Senate version


    By Jenna Portnoy/The Star-Ledger
    on November 25, 2013 at 8:27 PM, updated November 25, 2013 at 8:34 PM

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    Gov. Chris Christie, shown here on the campaign trail, answered listener questions on his monthly radio show on NJ 101.5 tonight.
    John O'Boyle/The Star-Ledger

    TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie tonight said he would not sign the current Senate version of the so-called Dream Act, but that he still wants to extend in-state tuition to the children of immigrants who came to this country illegally.

    “They’re overreaching and making it unsignable and making the benefits richer than the federal program, the federal Dream Act, that’s simply not acceptable for me," the Republican governor said during his monthly call-in show on NJ 101.5 FM.


    The Senate on Nov. 18 approved the measure (S2479), which advocates say will affect tens of thousands of New Jersey residents. A different version of the bill is working its way through the Assembly, where leaders say they expect to put it up for a vote soon.


    “They have time to change that between now and Jan 14. If they do, I will, if they don’t, I won’t," Christie said of the likelihood he would sign it.


    The Assembly version covers in-state tuition, but not financial aid, which is in the Senate bill, according to Assembly Democrats spokesman Tom Hester Jr.


    Christie did not lay out all of his problems with the Senate bill, but he told listeners Senate President Steve Sweeney (D-Gloucester) and state Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex), the prime sponsor, know what they are. Sweeney did not immediately return a request for comment tonight.


    "There are a number of problems with the Senate bill that I’ve made very clear to the Senate President and that my staff has made very clear to Senate Ruiz," Christie said.


    The governor did point to a loophole in the bill that could allow out-of-state residents – regardless of their immigration status – to qualify for in-state tuition if they attend private high school in New Jersey.


    State Sen. Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth) has said she abstained on the bill for that reason, and because New Jersey residents could move to other states for years, then return and qualify for in-state tuition because they went to high school here.


    These provisions could make New Jersey a “magnet state” for students seeking in-state tuition, Christie said.


    “I think most people in New Jersey would go, ‘Well that’s stupid, let’s fix that.’ We asked the Senate to change that, they have not,” Christie said.


    Christie — who won 51 percent of the Hispanic vote in his Nov. 5 re-election, according to exit polls — has expressed general support for the idea of in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants, but has offered little in the way of details. He previously opposed the idea, citing tight budgets, but reversed his position days before the election.


    Sixteen states already offer in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.


    Star-Ledger Staff Writer Susan K. Livio contributed to this report.



    This article was originally published in forum thread: Chris Christie OK with Dream Act, but will not sign N.J. Senate version started by JohnDoe2 View original post