Thread: Jeb Bush: No Path to Citizenship in Immigration Reform

Jeb Bush: No Path to Citizenship in Immigration Reform

By JORDAN FABIAN (@Jordanfabian)
March 4, 2013

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said Monday he does not support a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants living in the U.S., a central provision of immigration reform plans being considered by Congress.

Bush has long chided the Republican Party to adopt immigration reform and improve its outreach to minority and immigrant voters. But he said that a path to citizenship would violate the rule of law, and instead is proposing giving a path to legal permanent residency to many of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in this country.

See Also: Top House GOPer Softens Stance on Citizenship

"Our proposal is a proposal that looks forward. And if we want to create an immigration policy that's going to work, we can't continue to make illegal immigration an easier path than legal immigration," Bush said during an interview on NBC's "Today" show. "I think it is important that there is a natural friction between our immigrant heritage and the rule of law. This is the right place, I think, to be in that sense. Not to take away people's rights."

Bush, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, is promoting his new book titled "Immigration Wars" that he co-authored with conservative attorney Clint Bolick. It hits the shelves this week, and it will include concrete details on how they believe immigration reform should be handled.

The ex-governor's stance is notable because of his reputation as an immigration moderate within the GOP, especially during the 2012 campaign season. Yet, Bush's position on a path to citizenship is to the right of the bipartisan "Gang of Eight" Senate proposal, which has been endorsed by his former political mentee Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and several other Republican lawmakers.

The Senate's plan would offer temporary legal status to undocumented immigrants who apply, pass a criminal background check, pay fees, and back taxes, and learn English. Those eligible immigrants would then be able to pursue a green card, and then full citizenship once certain border-security metrics are met along the U.S.-Mexico border. President Barack Obama's plan contains a more direct path to citizenship that is not specifically tied to a border security "trigger."

A path to citizenship has long been the number-one policy priority for immigrant-rights groups, who say that citizenship is necessary for immigrants to compete in society. The alternative, according to these groups, a population of second-class citizens.

But Bush aligned himself with other Republicans who say that a path to full citizenship is not necessary.

"Half the people in '86 that could have gotten amnesty didn't apply. Many people don't want to be citizens of our country," he said. "They want to come here, they want to work hard, they want to provide for their families. Some of them want to come home, not necessarily all of them want to stay as citizens."

He said that offering a path to citizenship to undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S. could incentivize future waves of illegal immigration.

"I think there has to be some difference between people who come here legally and illegally," Bush said. "It is just a matter of common sense and a matter of the rule of law. If we're not going to apply the law fairly and consistently, we're going to have another wave of illegal immigrants coming into the country."

Despite the divisions over key issues like a path to citizenship, Bush sounded optimistic that Congress could pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

"This is the one place where cats and dogs seem to be getting along a little more," he said. "So I am optimistic there could be a consensus going forward on immigration."

Jeb Bush: No Path to Citizenship in Immigration Reform - ABC News

Bush has long chided the Republican Party to adopt immigration reform and improve its outreach to minority and immigrant voters. But he said that a path to citizenship would violate the rule of law, and instead is proposing giving a path to legal permanent residency to many of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in this country.

The Rubio Con. This way Republicans can lie and say they did not give illegals citizenship and the vote once a judge does it for them ruling that Congress cannot be allowed to legislative create a permanent underclass of people in America.

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http://www.alipac.us/f12/mitt-romney...grants-273835/

Bush: Romney's stance on immigration was costly

Posted: Mar 04, 2013 10:16 AM PST Updated: Mar 04, 2013 10:16 AM PST
By KEN THOMAS
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush writes in a new book that Mitt Romney moved so far to the right on immigration that it proved "all but impossible" for the Republican presidential nominee to appeal to Hispanic voters in the 2012 election.

Bush writes in his new book, "Immigration Wars," that many Republicans have been "remarkably tone-deaf" when it comes to attracting Latino voters. He says if the party doesn't change, the influence of Hispanic voters "will doom" the party's future.

In the book, Bush says he supports creating a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants who live in the U.S. but says tougher border security should not be a prerequisite. He says a path to legal status should not include citizenship for those who entered illegally as adults.

Bush: Romney's stance on immigration was costly

Bush writes in his new book, "Immigration Wars," that many Republicans have been "remarkably tone-deaf" when it comes to attracting Latino voters. He says if the party doesn't change, the influence of Hispanic voters "will doom" the party's future.

Mr Bush would it not be better for a candidate to concentrate on jobs for all Americans rather then welfare benefits for a few, seems to me a broad approach would be best then pander to various groups.

I must admit I ponder if the Bush dynasty really wanted a Romney win because it would eliminate a Bush run in 2016. A Jeb run will push me to a third party or not voting for the first time in my life.

By Cameron Joseph

 - 03/04/13 07:59 PM ET
The Hill

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) is positioning himself to the right of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) on immigration, arguing in a new book that illegal immigrants shouldn’t be given a pathway to citizenship.

The harder line from Bush, a potential 2016 presidential candidate who has long been a leading GOP voice on immigration, drew fire Monday from pro-reform advocates who called it a “political blunder of huge proportions.”

The stance puts Bush at odds with Rubio and other Republicans negotiating immigration legislation with Democrats and the White House, potentially complicating those efforts.

And it could loom large over the 2016 GOP primary, inserting a wedge into a race in which both Bush and Rubio are considered early front-runners.

In Immigration Wars, set to be released this week, Bush argues that people who are in the United States illegally should be given permanent legal status as part of a major immigration overhaul. But he argues the integrity of the country’s immigration system would be undermined if illegal immigrants are placed on the citizenship path.

“It is absolutely vital to the integrity of our immigration system that actions have consequences — in this case, that those who violated the laws can remain but cannot obtain the cherished fruits of citizenship. To do otherwise would signal once again that people who circumvent the system can still obtain the full benefits of American citizenship. It must be a basic prerequisite for citizenship to respect the rule of law,” Bush writes in the book, co-authored by Clint Bolick. “A grant of citizenship is an undeserving reward for conduct that we cannot afford to encourage.”

Bush argues illegal immigrants should only be able to begin their path to citizenship by returning to their country of origin, saying that would be much easier in the future because of expanded legal immigration.

The former Florida governor’s position is markedly different from the view Rubio has adopted as part of his work with the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” group of senators currently drafting immigration legislation.

Rubio believes that people in the country illegally should be allowed to stay in the U.S. while applying for citizenship, provided they’ve completed the process of applying for legal status, that they pay penalties and fines for unpaid taxes and that they wait a required number of years before applying.

He reiterated his position in response to his former mentor Bush's statements.

Rubio told reporters Monday evening that he disagrees that illegal immigrants should not get a pathway to citizenship.

“I just personally, ultimately concluded that to permanently say that you’re going to have millions of people that can never apply for citizenship hasn’t really worked well for other countries that have tried it,” Rubio said.

Rubio said his principles envision a process whereby illegal immigrants who pass background checks and pay a fine can receive a non-immigrant visa, a status they would have for a long period of time before they could apply for citizenship.

“After that all they get is a chance to apply for a green card and they’d have to do it through the same process as everybody else,” Rubio said.

Bush defended his position Monday on NBC’s “Today Show,” saying that “we can’t continue to make illegal immigration an easier path than legal immigration.”

The fight over whether or not illegal immigrants should be given an eventual pathway to citizenship was a major reason why immigration talks fell apart in Congress six years ago.

Most conservative criticism of the bill this time around has focused on efforts to give illegal immigrants permanent status before the border is secure. The citizenship issue has been secondary.

But Bush’s words give the bill’s opponents major ammunition to attack negotiations, and could force Rubio and other Republicans to choose between risking backlash from the GOP base and scuttling negotiations with Democrats, which could hurt the GOP even more with Hispanic voters.

Looking toward 2016, it also puts Bush to the right of Rubio, and could make him more appealing to some in the party’s base.

Among Republicans, it’s considered unlikely that Bush and Rubio would run against each other — they are friends and their fundraising base overlaps significantly.

But their differences over immigration could help shape the “invisible primary” in which the two jockey for position with donors and conservative thought leaders long before anyone jumps into the race.

Rubio confidants in recent days downplayed any concern about Bush’s book, assuming the two would fundamentally agree on most principles for immigration reform.

But that’s been seriously undercut by Bush’s hard opposition to creating any pathway to citizenship.

Rubio’s office did not respond to requests for comment on this story.

Bush’s position is a seeming departure from his past views.

In a January op-ed he wrote that comprehensive immigration reform must include “a system that will include a path to citizenship” — it’s unclear if he was talking about those already here illegally or future legal immigrants.

Whether or not legislation includes a pathway to citizenship is likely the difference between a bill that could pass, and one that gets little Democratic support.

Already, pro-reform advocates are sounding the alarm bells about Bush’s remarks.

America’s Voice, a leading immigrant rights group, issued a statement calling Bush a flip-flopper, warning him not to be an “obstacle” in the debate and comparing him to 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, a bogeyman for reform advocates.

“If he stays with this new, ‘let them be workers but not citizens’ stance, it will be a political blunder of huge proportions,” America’s Voice Executive Director Frank Sharry said in the statement.

“By endorsing the failed concept of a permanent underclass for a mostly Latino group of workers, Bush will put a ceiling on potential Latino voter support. Let’s hope he clarifies his position in the coming hours to show that he will be a proponent of reform with citizenship in 2013 and not an obstacle.”

Pro-reform Republicans, especially those close to Bush, downplayed any chance of a rift with Rubio.

“They’re in agreement on 95 percent of the policy, that there should be a pathway to permanent residency. That’s the big issue for Republicans to address. Whether or not there’s a pathway to actual citizenship is open to debate,” said Justin Sayfie, a former Bush spokesman who remains close to the governor — and who has been friendly with Rubio for years. “It’s important not to lose the forest for the trees.”

Carlos Gutierrez, former President George W. Bush’s Commerce secretary and a significant player in the immigration debate during that administration, said he didn’t think it would a “major sticking point” in negotiations.

“I tend to think citizenship is more an issue that people have made of it more so than immigrants themselves, who I think first and foremost just want to be legal,” said Gutierrez, who is now running a super-PAC supporting pro-immigration Republicans.

“We want to see reform, and unfortunately any reform that passes by nature will be imperfect. ... Whether you have to leave the country in order to apply [for citizenship] or not, the whole idea has always been you can’t create a special pathway for them.”

But Gutierrez admitted the focus on a schism could be problematic.

“Hopefully [the book will] spark a debate and clarify. Once again people are confused,” he said. “People use this as a wedge issue and it creates confusion as to what exactly we’re talking about.”

Bush puts Rubio on the spot, rejects citizenship path for illegal immigrants - The Hill

We're not fooled by this. Jeb still supports mass amnesty, whether he tepidly opposes a so-called "path to citizenship" or not, which would be entirely secondary and less important than the instant "green card light" legalization/amnesty that illegal aliens would get under his scheme.

He flipped.

Jeb Bush: 'I Don't Have A Problem' With A Pathway To Citizenship

The Huffington Post | By Elise Foley Posted: 03/05/2013 9:14 am EST | Updated: 03/05/2013 10:28 am EST

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) walked back one of his new book's principles on immigration reform on the same day it was released, telling MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Tuesday that he would support a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants if it could be done without creating a magnet for more unauthorized immigration.

"So going forward -- we wrote this last year -- going forward, if there is a difference, you can craft that in law where you can have a path to citizenship where there isn't an incentive for people to come illegally, I'm for it," he said on MSNBC. "I don't have a problem with that. I don't see how you do it, but I'm not smart enough to figure out every aspect of a really complex law."

Bush penned "Immigration Wars" with Republican lawyer Clint Bolick last year -- long before Republicans and Democrats began work on a comprehensive immigration reform that would allow some undocumented immigrants already in the United States to become citizens.

"Immigration Wars" surprised many observers because it explicitly stated that undocumented immigrants should be ineligible for a path to citizenship. The former governor has said in the past that he would support such a measure, but states with Bolick in the book that it should not be included in immigration reform. In opposing a pathway, Bush put himself to the right of fellow Republicans such as Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).

"It is absolutely vital to the integrity of our immigration system that actions have consequences -- in this case, that those who violated the law can remain but cannot obtain the cherished fruits of citizenship," Bush and Bolick write. "To do otherwise would signal once again that people who circumvent the system can still obtain the full benefits of American citizenship."

Bush repeated on MSNBC that there must be "a difference between a path to citizenship or a path to legalization" to prevent "a magnet" for future unauthorized immigration.
But he acknowledged twice that things had changed politically since he penned the book. Republican strategist Sally Bradshaw, his former chief of staff, explained his thinking to National Journal.

"Gov. Bush has always wanted to move the party towards a bigger solution that would provide residency and a path to legal citizenship, but he knew it would require getting Republicans to the table," she told National Journal in an email. "This book and his recommendations reflect that situation and his attempt to get the GOP talking about a possible solution. The focus of this effort is legal residency and a completely redesigned immigration system."

Jeb Bush: 'I Don't Have A Problem' With A Pathway To Citizenship

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Jeb Bush rankles bipartisan group over immigration

Alan Gomez, USA TODAY8:37p.m. EST March 5, 2013

Story Highlights

• The former Florida governor has a new book on immigration
• He says he opposes granting illegal immigrants citizenship
• Some politicians are unhappy with his comments

WASHINGTON -- Former Florida governor Jeb Bush is angering Democrats and some in his own party over his opposition to allowing illegal immigrants to attain U.S. citizenship, a stance he reveals in his new book on immigration.

In the 2012 presidential campaign Bush said that the GOP was being "tone deaf" on the issue of illegal immigration and what to do about it, saying the Republicans were alienating Hispanic voters.

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney did not favor amnesty for the estimated 11 million people living in the country illegally. He supported securing the border and improving the ability of businesses to know whether a job applicant was an illegal immigrant, which he said would reduce the number of illegal immigrants who "self-deport" because there would be no work for them here. GOP primary contender Herman Cain suggested, among other things, building a moat on the border to keep people from entering the country illegally.

At the time Bush was saying the government needed to allow illegal immigrants a chance at legal residence and U.S. citizenship. On Monday, his new book, Immigration Wars, was released, and in it he says he now opposed granting citizenship to illegal immigrants.

A "pathway to citizenship" is an integral part of immigration bills being considered by the White House and bipartisan groups in Congress. Bush explained that his idea is for illegal immigrants who came to the country as adults to attain a level of legal status. But he said that it should not be full U.S. citizenship, arguing that "those who violated the laws can remain but cannot obtain the cherished fruits of citizenship."

The idea is one that has been floated in conservative circles as a way to solve the thorny issue of illegal immigration: recognize that millions of illegal immigrants will not leave nor should they be forced to leave, but at the same time do not reward them for breaking U.S. immigration laws.

The Florida Democratic Party said Bush's credibility on immigration reform has "vanished." Senate President Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Bush "made a fool of himself."

"Poor Jeb Bush. So far from God and so close to the Tea Party," said Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Calif. "This is why things are they way they are, because Republicans let themselves be bullied by the most extreme members of their party."

Republican members of the bipartisan Senate group working on an immigration overhaul bill with Democrats were not pleased with Bush's comments. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Bush's stance "undercuts what we're trying to do." Another member of the group, Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., said he was "a bit perplexed" and "disappointed" to learn of Bush's approach.

Flake has said that he opposes "blanket amnesty" for illegal immigrants. But because of the different components of the bill they are working on with Democrats - including added border security and a requirement that all U.S. businesses check the immigration status of prospective workers -- Flake and other Republicans in the group agreed to Democrats' priority of granting citizenship to illegal immigrants.

Bush -- the son of one president, brother of another and a possible contender himself for the 2016 race -- took to the airwaves Monday to promote his book and defend his position.


On the Today show, he said many illegal immigrants don't want citizenship and that granting it to those who do want it could open the door for future waves of illegal immigrants.

"Our proposal is a proposal that looks forward. And if we want to create an immigration policy that's going to work, we can't continue to make illegal immigration an easier path than legal immigration," Bush told host Matt Lauer, alluding to immigrants who apply legally to come to the United States and often wait several years for citizenship. "I think it's important that there is a natural friction between our immigrant heritage and the rule of law."

On MSNBC's Morning Joe, he suggested he may agree to citizenship or illegal immigrants here already if it was part of a package that sufficiently reduced the magnets for future illegal immigrants.

"If you can craft that in law where you can have a path to citizenship where there isn't an incentive for people to come illegally, I'm for it, I don't have a problem with that," Bush told host Joe Scarborough. "I don't see how you do it, but I'm not smart enough to figure out every aspect of a really complex law."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/03/05/jeb-bush-immigration-citizenship/1965345/