President Barack Obama has politicized the illegal-immigration issue and made it a campaign talking point, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla, said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Rubio, who opposes the DREAM Act, said the estimated 12 million immigrants who live in the United States without documentation are proof the system is broken.
“The DREAM Act is too broad,” he said. “I’ve said that repeatedly during my campaign. It doesn’t just help the kids. It ultimately, in a very short order, could lead to these kids bringing in multiple relatives.”
Rubio said legislation eventually will have to be brokered that combines compassion for those in the country illegally through no fault of their own with enforcement of U.S. immigration laws.
“The enormous, vast and overwhelming majority of Republicans are supporters of legal immigration, are compassionate to the plight of illegal immigrants but understand that America cannot be the only country in the world that doesn’t enforce its immigration laws,” he said. “Now, this issue has been politicized by the president.”
Rubio said the immigration legislation in Arizona — now under scrutiny by the Supreme Court — should not be a model for other states.
“I believe Arizona has a right to pass that bill,” he said. “I understand why they did it. But I don’t think it’s a national model, and I don’t think other states should follow suit. For example, I don’t want to see a law like that in Florida.”
On the topic of healthcare, Rubio said Obamacare — also in the hands of the Supreme Court — discourages job creation and business expansion and should be replaced by a network of private insurance pools.
“What I really would like to see for America is a vibrant private insurance market where individuals can buy insurance from companies that will sell it to them,” he said.
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