N.C. - 12th District hopefuls part ways on immigration
Posted the illegal immigration part of the article, others issues are discussed so to view please click on the source link.
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By: Bertrand M. Gutiérrez | Winston-Salem Journal
Published: October 21, 2012
On illegal immigration, entitlement programs, military spending and other national issues, Mel Watt, who has represented parts of Winston-Salem since 1992 in the solidly Democratic 12th Congressional District, and Jack Brosch, a Republican challenger in his first congressional bid, offered responses largely in line with their respective party’s platforms.
Each said, for example, that comprehensive immigration reform must include tighter border security as well as the deportation of those with criminal convictions. But the two candidates parted ways on how they would deal with the estimated 11 million to 14 million immigrants who do not have authorization to be in the United States.
Watt said he supports a path to citizenship in certain cases and Brosch favored self-deportation.
“I believe that if you remove the incentives – whether it is jobs or social benefits, such as medical, educational and so forth – if you remove those benefits, we’ll reduce the attraction and the immigrants that are here will voluntarily go home,” Brosch said. “Those that have broken (other laws besides immigration) need to be, shall we say, escorted rapidly and without question back to their countries of origin.”
Brosch said he also supports a constitutional amendment that would prevent “anchor babies,” referring to U.S. citizens who are born of parents who are not authorized to be in the U.S. In addition, he said, the federal government should increase and enforce penalties on companies that hire such immigrants.
Watt said he supports a pathway to citizenship, particularly something similar to the DREAM Act, federal legislation for which he voted in 2010 and would provide a path to legal status to certain younger immigrants without serious criminal records. The DREAM Act later died in the Senate.
“If they have been in the United States and they have not had legal issues other than being here illegally … then I would create some sort of pathway to citizenship for these people,” Watt said. “Especially the younger people who came here – the so-called DREAMers – definitely ought to have a pathway to citizenship because they didn’t even come here of their own volition and … most of them have little contact with the native country in which they were born.”
Candidates differ on some key issues | JournalNow.com
