Texas Sen. Ted Cruz on Wednesday criticized the way the press covers illegal immigration during the GOP presidential debate in Milwaukee, and said the stories would likely be different if the issue of illegal immigration directly effected the press.
“The Democrats are laughing because if Republicans join Democrats as the party of amnesty, we will lose. I understand when mainstream media covers immigration it doesn’t often see it as an economic issue, but I can tell you for millions of Americans at home watching this, it is a very personal economic issue,” Cruz said.
Related Story: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/article/2575923
“And I will say the politics of it would be very, very different if a bunch of lawyers or bankers were crossing the Rio Grande. Or if a bunch of people with journalism degrees were coming over and driving down the wages in the press, then we would see stories about the economic calamity that is befalling our nation,” he added.
Cruz also used his answer as a rebuttal to those who criticize immigration hawks as wrongheaded bigots.
“I will say for those of us who believe people ought to come to this country legally and we should enforce the law, we’re tired of being told it’s anti-immigrant, it’s offensive,” Cruz argued. “I am the son of an immigrant who came legally from Cuba to seek the American Dream. And we can embrace legal immigration while believing in the rule of law.”
“And I would note, try going illegally to another country, try going to China or Japan, try going to Mexico, see what they do. Every sovereign nation secures its borders and it’s not compassionate to say we’re not going to enforce the laws and we’re going to drive down the wages for millions of hard working men and women,” he said.
Cruz, who ranks third in the Washington Examiner‘s GOP presidential power rankings, will rely on such animating issues to motivate the party’s base supporters to stand in his corner as the early nominating contests near.
