Santorum Calls for Immigration Reform

Former presidential candidate Rick Santorum has joined the Republican chorus in favor of a looser stance on immigration.

“I think the fact that we send some of those people back and don’t give them the opportunity to participate here is wrong,” he told Politico Tuesday. “I think we need to look at a simple fact: we are not having enough children to replace ourselves. Our country is not growing in population simply by the people that are here.”

And without population growth, it’s very difficult to maintain economic growth, says Santorum who may run for president again in 2016.

The issue has personal meaning to him, as he’s the son of an immigrant, the former Pennsylvania senator says. “You can’t be hostile on the issue of immigration, which I am not. You have to understand the values of immigrants who come to this country, which I do from my own personal experience.”

The issue is to “create opportunities for those like my grandfather and my father, who went from laborer, to someone working in [an] office, to someone with a higher degree of education and moving on up,” Santorum said.

Many Republicans have become outspoken in support of immigration since President Barack Obama beat Mitt Romney 71 to 27 percent among Hispanics.

In a speech Tuesday, former President George W. Bush said, “Immigrants helped build the country we became, and immigrants can help build a dynamic tomorrow. Not only do immigrants help build our economy, they invigorate our soul”