Related story: Romney says he’d avoid widespread immigrant sweep
Expanded coverage: Transcript of the interview
As Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney slips dramatically behind former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in the polls, he has criticized Gingrich for proposing a path to legalization for the millions of immigrants now living illegally in the United States.
But Romney told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday that he, too, would resist shipping illegals back to their home countries. But unlike Gingrich, Romney said, he would not propose his solution until the borders are secured.
“I don’t think that there is a call for rounding people up and taking them out of the country, Romney told the Examiner’s editorial board. “I don’t think that that’s the process that’s necessary to maintain our system.”
Romney said he has devised a plan for how to handle illegal immigrants already in the United States, and has consulted with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who supports providing a path to citizenship for some illegals.
But Romney won’t reveal his plan until the nation’s border security is revamped.
“Every piece of advice I’ve received from people who talk about this topic say get the first job done first,” Romney told the Examiner, referring to the effort to secure the border. “Because if you talk about the other jobs, you get highly confused with whether you are going to create incentives for people to come here illegally to take advantage of whatever program you might describe.”
Conservatives have criticized Gingrich for proposing a plan to allow some illegal immigrants to remain in the United States legally. But it appears to have done nothing to damage his poll numbers and he holds a double-digit lead over Romney in most of the crucial early voting states.
