Thread: Romney adviser Kris Kobach: No legal status of any kind for the undocumented

Posted at 12:12 PM ET, 04/18/2012

By Greg Sargent
Washington Post

It’s been widely assumed that Mitt Romney will moderate his positions on immigration to make inroads among Latinos in the general election, perhaps by supporting some sort of GOP version of the DREAM Act.

But what if Romney has no room to execute any such pivot?

I just got off the phone with Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, an adviser to Romney on immigration. He stated flatly that he didn’t think Republicans — or Romney — should, or would, support any version of the DREAM Act that provides undocumented immigrants with any kind of path to legal status.

If Romney sticks to this — and Kobach said he would — there’s very little room for him to moderate his approach to immigration. In addition to advising Romney on immigration, Kobach is a national GOP voice on the issue, suggesting the right would not permit any move of this kind.

“I’d absolutely reject any proposal that would give a path to legal status for illegal aliens en masse,” Kobach said. “That is what amnesty is. I do not expect [Romney] to propose or embrace amnesty.”

Romney was overheard at a Florida fundraiser the other day suggesting we need some form of “Republican DREAM Act.” Senator Marco Rubio has also been working on his own version. The Dem DREAM Act would provide a path to citizenship for young illegal immigrants in the military or in college. Rubio’s version, which is still being worked out, would stop short of this, but would allow young illegal immigrants who came to America with their parents to apply for non-immigrant visas and to stay to work or go to school. The distinction is between citizenship and legal status.

Such a compromise might enable Republicans to soften their hard edge on immigration and begin making inroads with the crucial Latino constituency. But Kobach drew a sharp line, claiming that any path to even legal status is unacceptable, and said Romney wouldn’t cross it.

“I haven’t seen the details of Senator Rubio’s plan, but if it involves the giving of lawful status to illegal aliens en masse then it is unacceptable,” Kobach said. He also said: “A path to legal status for someone who is here illegally is amnesty by definition. It gives the alien what he has stolen.”

Asked if he thought Romney might embrace such an approach, Kobach said: “I don’t think so...I expect him to hold firm on his opposition to amnesty.”

Separately, a little flap arose yesterday when Politico’s Glenn Thrush asked the Romney campaign if Kobach is still an adviser. A Romney spokesperson told Thrush that he is now merely a “supporter,” leading some to speculate that Romney’s pivot is underway. But Kobach then clarified to Think Progress that he is indeed still an adviser.

Asked to explain the discrepancy, Kobach confirmed to me that the Romney campaign had privately assured him that his status is unchanged. “I’m still providing policy advice on immigration to the governor and his team,” Kobach told me. “I spoke with them yesterday afternoon, and they confirmed that nothing has changed.”

Romney adviser Kris Kobach: No legal status of any kind for the undocumented - The Plum Line - The Washington Post

I hope that Kris Kobach is right about this. But the Globalist media sure is drumming up like Mitt Romney is going to shift and that comment about a "Republican Dream Act" is of great concern.

Mitt Romney is going to learn the hard way about the power of this issue if he diverges from his promises on iota!

And we need to hammer Marco Rubio so hard that he becomes politically radioactive. Rubio blocked all of our state illegal immigration enforcement bills when he ruled the legislature down in Florida and now he is cooking up a version of the Dream Act?

Any Republican that touches Comprehensive of Dream Act Amnesty needs to thrown in the Bush, McCain, Rick Perry, Elliot Spitzer, Jon Corzine, scrap heap of political history ASAP.

W

“I’d absolutely reject any proposal that would give a path to legal status for illegal aliens en masse,” Kobach said.

En Masse doesn't preclude some stupid version of 'a case by case' path.

I hope I'm wrong but I suspect some type of case by case application for 'status' could be planned then when overwhelmed by applicants turn into a blind eye granting of such.

I just got off the phone with Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, an adviser to Romney on immigration. He stated flatly that he didn’t think Republicans — or Romney — should, or would, support any version of the DREAM Act that provides undocumented immigrants with any kind of path to legal status.

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Bush and McCain both gave us the same line of veiled amnesty deception. McCain beat Romney for the last GOP nomination.

We're in trouble.

Was added to the Homepage:
http://www.alipac.us/content/romney-...ocumented-398/

Any Republican that touches Comprehensive of Dream Act Amnesty needs to thrown in the Bush, McCain, Rick Perry, Elliot Spitzer, Jon Corzine, scrap heap of political history ASAP.

W

ABSOLUTELY!

Ol' Mitt sure doesn't get much help around here does he?

Originally Posted by stevetheroofer

Ol' Mitt sure doesn't get much help around here does he?

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It would be great to help him, but it is hard to tell which day of the week to do it. One day he's for us, the next day against.

RELATED RUBIO OR KOBACH? ALIPAC News ..

Mitt Romney’s choice: Marco Rubio, or Kris Kobach?

Rubio’s proposal has not yet been released. But the Senator said yesterday that his bill would give non-immigrant visas to young illegal immigrants who were brought into the country by a certain date, provided they are high school graduates with no criminal record. That visa would enable them to work and go to school. In other words, they would be given legal status.

But Kobach — whose hardline ideas Romney adopted during the primary — tells me that the only way to make such an approach acceptable is for these illegal immigrants to be required to return to their home country before getting the non-immigrant visa.