Rubio: Trump's Plan to Deport Millions of Illegals Impossible

Some illegal immigrants will need to be deported, GOP candidate Marco Rubio agreed on Thursday, but he does not believe, like fellow candidate Donald Trump, that it is possible to round up and deport 11 million people.

"I think both sides here have points to make that are valid," the Florida Republican senator, a son of Cuban immigrants, told Fox News' "America's Newsroom" program. "We have to deport some people. If you're not going to enforce your laws, what's the point of having laws? People who are criminals or overstay visas will be deported."

But he still does not believe that people who have been in the United States for several years, have not broken the law, and can pass background checks can be rounded up and forced out of the country.

"I'm talking about reality," said Rubio. "People will have to be deported. But we've also have to deem realistically that we have 12 to 13 million people."

Further, there are things that will be done before people can be sent back, he said.

"You have to prove to people you are actually enforcing the law, and illegal immigration is under control," Rubio said.  "And you have to reform the legal immigration system to make it merit-based and not family based."

Rubio also on the show discussed his tax plan, which came under fire on Tuesday from Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul during the GOP debate.

"I'm asking that people be allowed to keep more of their own money to raise their children," Rubio said. "If you invest that money in a piece of new equipment for your business you get to write it off."

Rubio also spoke about Russian President Vladimir Putin, who he called a "gangster" during the recent debate, a comment Trump said he did not agree was correct.

"Putin knows he's a gangster," Rubio said. "He smiled when he was asked about it and he said how could he be a gangster, he's from the KGB?"

Further, the Florida Republican senator said, Putin "runs his country like an organized crime figure, and he's not a partner of ours in a global endeavor. He's a person with very different views and very different goals than ours."

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