Governor Romney supports amnesty for illegal aliens by default. This is accomplished by dismissing the enforcement of immigration laws and allowing illegal aliens to remain within the US indefinitely. He opposed the DREAM Act while Governor, and has been critical of immigration plans that allow for illegal aliens to remain within the US. However, when repeatedly asked if he would require illegal aliens to leave the country, Governor Romney refused to give an answer. He defines his immigration plan as securing the border, implementing an employer ID system, and not providing a pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens beyond the normal immigration routes.
In 2004, Governor Perry vetoed state legislation to enact a Massachusetts DREAM Act to allow illegal aliens to attend Massachusetts schools at in-state tuition rates. This veto halted enacted of the legislation.
In 2005, Governor Romney supported legislation to allow illegal aliens to obtain citizenship after registering, waiting six years, and then paying a fine. He called the course of action a reasonable plan.
In a 2007 interview, Governor Romney was asked about this position and stated that illegal aliens that had "committed crimes," or were on some sort of government assistance would have to return to their home country while the rest would register. Those remaining would not have to leave the country, but would be given no special path to citizenship. This stance was echoed in debates and interviews throughout the 2008 campaign.
Governor Romney began to produce ads claiming that he was the only candidate opposed to amnesty. However, when pressed in an ABC interview as to whether immigrants could remain in the country if they have not committed criminal actions in addition to violation of federal immigration laws, tax laws, or any other law relating to their illegal presence in the US, Governor Romney would only state that there would be no incentive for them to remain in the US. He also noted that a process already existed to allow people to enter the US and that no additional process was needed.
While being interviewed by the Lakeland Ledger, Governor Romney again stated that there was a lot of room for negotiation in relation to those illegal aliens already residing in the US. However, this belief began to harden as the election process continuing with Governor Romney eventually opposing the Z-visa portion of Senator McCain's immigration proposal. He stated that allowing illegal aliens to remain in the US and then receive citizenship was amnesty, which he opposed
Governor Romney continued to walk back his previous position on immigration by stating in a Meet the Press interview that calling the 2005 proposals reasonable was not tantamount to endorsing those plans. When asked, Governor Romney refused to state that illegal aliens would be required to abide by US laws and leave the country.
Veto of State DREAM Act
In 2004 Governor Perry vetoed a Massachusetts bill that would have granted in-state tuition to illegal aliens living in the US. Governor Perry's spokesman said the following about the veto.
In general, the governor wants to make it easier for students to afford college. At the same time, he doesn't feel we should make it easier for illegal aliens to violate federal immigration laws.
Boston Globe Interview
On November 30, 2005 Governor Romney was interviewed by the Boston Globe and expressed his support for legislation to grant illegal immigrants amnesty after they pay a fine.
GOV. ROMNEY: I think an amnesty program is what, which is all the illegal immigrants who are here are now citizens,
Unidentified Man: Mm-hmm.
GOV. ROMNEY: ...and a walk up and get your citizenship. What the president has proposed,
Man: Mm-hmm.
GOV. ROMNEY: ...and, and what Senator McCain and Cornyn have proposed, are, are quite different than that.
Man: Mm-hmm.
GOV. ROMNEY: They require people signing up for a, a, well, registering and receiving, if you will, a number, a registration number, then working here for six years and paying taxes...
Man: Mm-hmm.
GOV. ROMNEY: ...not taking benefits--health, Medicaid, food stamps, and so forth--not taking benefits, and then at the end of that period, registering to become a citizen or applying to become a citizen and paying a fee. And, and those are things that are being, being considered, and I, I think that that's--that those are reasonable proposals.
ABC News Interview
In February of 2007, Governor Romney was interviewed by ABC News George Stephanopoulis. When asked about immigration, Governor Romney noted that he indeed favored a path to citizenship.
Stephanopoulos: Any issue where you are more liberal?
Mitt Romney: Well, that's certainly one of them where my view, the "No Child Left Behind," testing of our kids gives us an opportunity to see which schools are making it and which schools aren't. I think that's very, very important.
And I know a lot of conservatives who disagree with me on that. On immigration, for instance, I think everybody who's not a legal resident of this country should have a card, an identification card. Some people don't like that idea.
On the area of stem cell research...
Stephanopoulos: But on immigration, let me stop you on immigration, because just a year ago, you were saying that illegal immigrants here in the United States should have a path toward citizenship.
Mitt Romney: Well, I don't recall that particular language. I didn't say they should be rounded up.
Stephanopoulos: I know. You said, "Those who are here paying taxes and not taking government benefits should begin a process towards application for citizenship," reported in the "Lowell Sun," March 30, 2006.
Mitt Romney: Well, what I said is that those people should go to the back of the line, that those people who are here illegally should not get any benefit by being here.
Those that have committed crimes should be taken out of the country. Those that are in our jails should be taken out of the country. Those who are on welfare, require government assistance, should leave the country.
Those of the 12 million or so that are here, first, I want to find out who they are, how many are there. I want them to register.
Stephanopoulos: But they should have some path to citizenship?
Mitt Romney: Everybody in the world has a path to citizenship. Everyone in the world can go to apply to the United States and apply for citizenship.
But those that are here illegally should not have any advantage over somebody who's in Bolivia today that wants to become a citizen.
Stephanopoulos: So they have to go back home first.
Mitt Romney: Well, they don't have any advantage by being in this country illegally in terms of applying for citizenship and should not.
South Carolina Debate
In May of 2007, Governor Romney participated in the South Carolina Debate. When asked about immigration, Governor Romney stated that his plan would require illegal immigrants to return home, after they start the process to become citizens.
MR. WALLACE: Governor Romney, you have also called Senator McCain's immigration plan amnesty. Are you prepared to say that sharing the stage with him tonight? And how do you explain your statement to the Lowell Sun last year in which you said, quote, "Those that are here paying taxes and not taking government benefits should begin a process toward application for citizenship as they would from their home country." Why isn't that amnesty as well, sir?
MR. ROMNEY: Well, my view is this. People should have no advantage by having come here illegally.
MR. WALLACE: But you're not telling them to go home, sir.
MR. ROMNEY: I am going to tell them to go home, but they start by beginning the process of applying for citizenship. But I do not believe -- or applying for permanent residency. They're not going to be barred from doing that, but they do not get any advantage by having come here illegally. That's the key part of what I objected to in McCain-Kennedy.
McCain-Kennedy, what it did is said that people who are here illegally get a special pathway. They're not like all the other immigrants in the world that want to come to this great country; they get a special pathway. That's what's wrong about it. If you're here illegally, you should not have a special pathway to become a permanent resident.
My view, you have to secure the border, number one, have an employment verification system, number two, and number three, say to those that are there illegally, get in line with everybody else; you're not going to have a special doorway, any particular advantage, by having come here illegally, to become a permanent resident.
And my fear is that McCain-Kennedy would do to immigration what McCain-Feingold has done to campaign finance and money in politics, and that's bad.
Lakeland Ledger Interview
On May 25, 2007 Governor Romney was interviewed by the Lakeland Ledger and asked about the status of the roughly 12 million illegal aliens residing in the US under a Romney administration. He replied that he felt that those already illegally present should not receive special treatment in obtaining permanent resident status, but should also not be prohibited from obtaining citizenship or permanent residence status.
Question: On the 12 million, would you have them, if they apply, would you have them leave the country to apply or apply here and then have them wait until those that follow the rules.
Governor Romney: I haven't laid out the specific provisions of where they apply. Do they go home? Do they stay? Are they allowed to stay for some period of time? There's a lot of negotiation that's gonna have to take place, a lot of give and take place on issues of that nature. For me, the central issue is that the people who are here illegally should be able to ... should not be prohibited from applying for permanent residency or citizenship, that should not be prohibited. But that they should not receive any special advantage in being granted that status relative to people that have applied legally. That should me should be the touchstone issue.
CNN New Hampshire Debate
On June 5, 2007 Governor Romney participated in the CNN Presidential debate in New Hampshire. When asked about the McCain immigration bill, he stated that he opposed it because it allowed those in the US illegally to remain within the US.
WOLF BLITZER: Thank you, Mayor.
I want to get to Senator McCain in a moment, but first, Governor Romney, Senator McCain has accused you of flip-flopping on this issue, in effect.
Yesterday in Miami, he said the following: "Pandering for votes on this issue while offering no solution to the problem amounts to doing nothing. And doing nothing is silent amnesty."
What do you say to Senator McCain?
ROMNEY: Well, he's my friend. He campaigned for me two times. I consider him a friend. I'm not going to make this a matter of personal politics. It's an issue that's way too important for that.
My view is that we should enforce our immigration laws.
And this bill, unfortunately, has at least one provision that's a real problem. It's the Z visa.
And what it allows is people who have come here illegally to stay here for the rest of their lives -- not necessarily as citizens; they have to wait 13 years to become citizens. That's not the point.
The point is: Every illegal alien, almost every one, under this bill, gets to stay here. That's not fair to the millions and millions of people around the world that would love to come here, join with family members, bring skill and education that we need.
It's simply not fair to say those people get put ahead in the line of all the people who've been waiting legally to come to this country.
Town Hall
In September of 2007, Governor Romney spoke at a town hall about immigration. He stated that he opposed amnesty, that he supported an employer verification system, and that he supported an ID system for all aliens to determine whether or not they are able to work in the US.
New Hampshire Debate
In September of 2007 Governor Romney participated in a presidential debate in New Hampshire. He stated that he opposed sanctuary city policies and that the federal government should move to reduce funding to cities that enact such policies.
WALLACE: Thank you, Brit. Good evening, gentlemen. Let's talk about illegal immigration.
Governor Romney, in recent weeks you have gone after Mayor Giuliani for running what you say was a sanctuary city for illegals. But as governor of Massachusetts, you did nothing to stop Cambridge, Somerville (inaudible) all of which proclaimed themselves to be sanctuaries.
WALLACE: In fact, you didn't even catch the illegals who were mowing your front lawn. So the question is -- so the question is, why should we believe that you would be any tougher on illegal immigration than Mayor Giuliani?
ROMNEY: Well, Chris, first of all, with regards to front lawns, people don't go to their contractors and inspect their ID cards of employees.
Secondly, with regards to sanctuary cities, the governors aren't responsible for mayors who are not following the law. And, actually, in my case, as soon as I learned about a program in the department of ICE that we could have our state police authorized to enforce the law, I did just that so that in sanctuary cities in our state -- and nonsanctuary cities -- the law would be enforced.
But this is a place where Mayor Giuliani and I just simply disagree. I think we should reduce federal funding to cities that call themselves sanctuary cities.
ROMNEY: I think saying as he did, if you happen to be an undocumented alien, we want you in New York, we'll protect you in New York, I think that contributed to 3 million illegals in this country becoming 12 million illegals coming into this country.
And I also disagree on the issue of what I'll call amnesty. And that is, I just don't think you say to people who've come here illegally that if you work here, we're going to sign you up. That's the wrong answer. Amnesty is not the right answer for this problem.
...
HUME: Governor Romney, I'm seeing you were itching to get...
(APPLAUSE)
HUME: ... in on this. Let me just give you just a quick answer here.
ROMNEY: First of all, the Z visa that was offered in that Senate bill let everybody who's here illegally, other than criminals, stay here for the rest of their lives. And that may not be technically amnesty, but it is certainly amnesty in fact.
I was at the San Diego border and met with our border patrol agents. They told me that more than half of those that try and come across those fences are able to do so. They said there's no way to stop them at the border unless you close down the magnets.
And the magnets are sanctuary cities and having employers sign people up that have come here illegally to do work here. You have to end sanctuary cities. You have to cut back on federal funding to cities that continue to call themselves sanctuary cities and welcome people in, as New York has done.
ROMNEY: And you have to say to employers that hire people illegally, that's also going to be sanctioned. This is the way we're going to have to finally -- and the other key point is this, which is having amnesty and saying to individuals, as the mayor has said, if you come here and you're willing to work here and pay taxes, we'll sign you up. That's not the right message. We've got to enforce the law, welcoming legal immigration, but ending illegal immigration.
HUME: Thank you, Governor.
Glenn Beck Appearance
In November of 2007, Governor Romney appeared on the Glenn Beck program and discussed immigration. When asked, he stated that he would indeed allow the border fence to be built as described under law. He stated that the best way to stop the illegal immigration was to turn off the magnets of sanctuary cities, states, and employers. He stated that what we need is a method of allowing the employer to determine immigration status.
Meet the Press Appearance
In November of 2007, Governor Romney appeared on MSNBC's Meet the Press and was asked about immigration and his previous statements that he would support pathways to citizenship compared with his current statements that he opposes amnesty.
MR. RUSSERT: Immigration, an issue that is very important in this country and to the Republican primary voters. The Boston Globe interviewed you two years ago, and there's a tape of that conversation where you expressed support for the policies of George Bush and John McCain on immigration. Let's watch and listen.
(Audiotape of Boston Globe Interview)
MR. RUSSERT: Reasonable proposals.
GOV. ROMNEY: Hm.
MR. RUSSERT: The Lowell Sun, your home--one of your hometown, state home papers, said this. "Governor Mitt Romney expressed support for an immigration program that places large numbers of illegal residents on the path toward citizenship. "`I don't believe in rounding up 11 million people and forcing them at gunpoint from our country. With these 11 million people, let's have them registered, know who they are. Those who've been arrested or convicted of crimes shouldn't be here; those that are paying taxes and not taking government benefits should begin a process towards application for citizenship, as they would from their home country.'" This is George Bush and John McCain.
GOV. ROMNEY: Now let's, now let's look at those very carefully, OK, and you're, you're a careful reader. In the interview with The Boston Globe, I described all three programs that were out there, described what they were, acknowledged that they were not technically an amnesty program, but I indicated in that same interview that I had not formulated my own proposal and that I was endorsing none of those three programs. I did not support any of them. I called them reasonable. They are reasonable efforts to, to look at the problem. But I said I did not support--and I said specifically in that interview I have not formulated my own policy and have not determined which I would support. And, of course, the Cornyn proposal required all of the immigrants to go home. The McCain proposal required most of them to go home, but let some stay. And the Bush proposal I, frankly, don't recall in that much detail. But they had very different proposals. My own view is consistent with what you saw in the Lowell Sun, that those people who had come here illegally and are in this country--the 12 million or so that are here illegally--should be able to stay sign up for permanent residency or citizenship, but they should not be given a special pathway, a special guarantee that all of them get to say here for the rest of their lives merely by virtue of having come here illegally. And that, I think, is the great flaw in the final bill that came forward from the Senate.
MR. RUSSERT: But they shouldn't have to go home?
GOV. ROMNEY: Well, whether they go home--they should go home eventually. There's a set per--in my view they should be--they should have a set period during which period they, they sign up for application for permanent residency or, or for citizenship. But there's a set period where upon they should return home. And if they've been approved for citizenship or for a permanent residency, well, thy would be a different matter. But for the great majority, they'll be going home.
MR. RUSSERT: The children they had born here are U.S. citizens, so do the children stay here and the parents go home?
GOV. ROMNEY: Well, that's a choice, of course, the parents would, would make. But my view is that those 12 million who've come here illegally should be given the opportunity to sign up to stay here, but they should not be given any advantage in becoming a permanent resident or citizen by virtue of simply coming here illegally. And likewise, if they've brought a child to this country or they've had a child in this country, that's, that's wonderful that they're growing their families, but that doesn't mean that they all get to stay here indefinitely. We're fundamentally a nation of laws. And let me underscore something here that I think's awfully important, because this immigration debate can sound anti-immigrant to a lot of people. It's not intended to be that by myself or, I believe, by the vast majority of others that talk about it. We value legal immigration. We welcome people coming here with different cultures and skill and education, but we are a nation of laws. And our freedoms and our liberty are associated with following the law. We have to secure our border, we have to make sure there's an employment verification system to identify who's here legally and who's not. And then for the 12 million who've come here, welcome them to get in line with everybody else, but no special pathway.
MR. RUSSERT: Your views have been complicated by your own situation. This was The Boston Globe back in December of '06. "As Governor Mitt Romney explores a presidential bid, he has grown outspoken in his criticism of illegal immigration. But, for a decade, the governor has used a landscaping company that relies heavily on workers like these, illegal Guatemalan immigrants, to maintain the ground surrounding his pink Colonial house." That was a year ago. A year later, The Boston Globe came back and the same company and illegal immigrants doing the same work. Did you report that company to authorities saying--a year ago--saying they're using illegal immigrants?
GOV. ROMNEY: Oh, it was, it was on the front page of The Boston Globe; a reporting was not necessary. But I have to clear up the most egregious error in that article. It said my house is pink. I would not have a pink house, I assure you. In an effort to--let me, let me describe the circumstance. And that is the very issue I just mentioned, which is we need an employment verification system in this country. I hire a landscaper to take care of my leaves and, and mow the lawn, and, and the landscaping company hires people to work for them. We're certainly not going to have an America where a homeowner is expected or even thought of going out and saying, "Gosh, I see some workers here who have an accent. I want them to bring papers so I can inspect them." As a matter of fact, I think that's against the law in this country. And so, in this case, the, the landscaper, or the contractor has a responsibility to ensure that their workers are legal.
So after the first story came out, I met with the--excuse me, my son met with the landscaper and sat down with him and said, "Look, you're a good person, and you're a friend, and--but we can't possibly have someone working at my dad's house that's not a legal alien, and so you have to be absolutely certain anybody working here is legal." And he assured us that he, he would do just that. And he failed in that effort. He, according to the paper, he tried, he got documents, apparently, from all the people who, who he had work at our property. Apparently one or two of them had falsified their documents. That's the very reason why we so desperately need in this country an employment verification system, so that an employer who's hiring people can know who's here legally or illegally. If we don't have that, what it's going to say to an employer is, you better not hire someone that has any accent because if you do, it's possible they've counterfeited their documents and you're going to get whacked and the people you work for are going to get whacked.
MR. RUSSERT: Would you then be in favor of a mandatory prison term for any employer who hired an illegal immigrant?
GOV. ROMNEY: Of course not.
MR. RUSSERT: Why not?
GOV. ROMNEY: Well, a mandatory prison term? No. But here's what I would do. I'd say once you've put in place an employment verification system--and that's a big phrase to describe something pretty simple. I'd say to anybody who's coming here legally, they get a card with their name, biometric information, a number and their work status, and you--once you have those cards in place--that the only ones that can get them are people that are here legally--you then say to employers, "If you want to hire someone that's not a US citizen with a valid Social Security number, you ask for the card. You then verify it on the computer, and you can hire them if it's a valid card if they have a card. If they don't have a card and you hire them anyway, then you're going to be subject to the same kind of sanctions you get for not paying your taxes. And that's typically fines, very substantial fines, they get larger and larger. But a first offense employer hiring someone who's not legal, putting them in jail, I, I doubt that's...
MR. RUSSERT: But if you wanted to end illegal immigration, if you...
GOV. ROMNEY: I'm sure capital punishment would come down hard as well, but I'm not, I'm not suggesting that kind of penalty. But I do believe that, that sanctioning employers with substantial fines--and potentially worse if, if they were egregious, continuous offenders could be called for. But what employers tell me, and I, and I talk to a lot of people in small business, they say, "It is almost impossible for us to know who's here legally and illegally." In fact, there's a federal law--you'll find this interesting--a federal law prohibits an employer from, quote, "discriminating against a document that's given to them by someone applying for work." So if they look at something that looks like it's a forgery, they're not allowed to discriminate against that document. This puts them in a real catch-22, typical government work. And what we have to do instead is say, "We're going to allow you, as employers, to finally have access to an employment verification system that says who's here legally and who's here illegally. If you hire an illegal, now we're going to whack you hard with fines and penalties," and potentially even worse if they're repeat offenders.
South Carolina Debate
On January 12, 2008 Governor Romney participated in the 2008 Presidential debate. When asked about immigration, Governor Romney stated that he did not believe that people here illegally should receive preferential treatment towards gaining citizenship.
All of us on this stage agree ... I believe ... I don't know about Ron Paul, but I think that everybody else agrees ... I just haven't heard your position, I don't mean to be critical ... that we secure the border, that we have the fence, and that have enough border patrol agents to secure the border, and that we have an employment verification system of some kind. But the place of difference between us is what to do with the 12 million people who are here illegally. We all agree that anyone that has committed a crime should be sent home. But I believe that the others who come here illegally should stand in line with everyone else who wants to come to this country and should not be given a special pathway or a special privilege to be able to stay in this country. And that means that those who are here illegally here today would be looked at person by person, be given a specific time period by which they arrange their affairs ... they stay here during that time period and when that time period is over they go home, and they get in line with everyone else. There are millions of people around the world who want to come here. We're gonna do this in a humane and generous way, and we're not gonna say to people who have come here illegally "you have a special pathway, a special privilege to become a permanent resident or citizen." Get in line everybody else.
California Debate
On January 30, 2008 Governor Romney participated in the Presidential debate in California. He describe during that debate his policy on having immigrants return home.
MR. VANDEHEI: Governor Romney, I interviewed you in New Hampshire a couple of weeks ago. We talked a little bit about illegal immigration. You've taken a very hard stance against illegal immigration.
You said at the time that you felt that there's -- for a lot of illegal immigrants who are there, under your plan, we could deport many of them within 90 days. How could that happen? How could we do it that quickly?
MR. ROMNEY: I think you may be confusing me with somebody else, but perhaps not. Let me tell you what my plan is.
MR. VANDEHEI: (Inaudible) -- at the time -- I'll even just give you the quote if you'd like.
MR. ROMNEY: Okay.
MR. VANDEHEI: You said that many of those could be deported immediately, but that would allow slower deportation process for those with families in deeper roots. When we asked how quickly, you said -- you thought was -- with as quickly as 90 days.
MR. ROMNEY: Yeah, my plan is this, which is, for those that have come here illegally and are here illegally today, no amnesty. Now how do people return home? Under the ideal setting, at least in my view, you say to those that have just come in recently, we're going to send you back home immediately; we're not going to let you stay here, you just go back home. For those that have been here, let's say, five years and have kids in school, you allow kids to complete the school year, you allow people to make their arrangements and allow them to return back home. Those that have been here a long time with kids that have responsibilities here and so forth you let stay enough time to organize their affairs and go home.
But the key is this: These individuals are free to get in line with everyone else that wants to become a permanent resident or citizen, but no special pathway; no special deal that says because you're here illegally you get to stay here for the rest of your life. And that's what I've found to be so offensive with the Z Visa, which was in the McCain-Kennedy bill. It said to all illegal aliens, unless you're a criminal, you're all allowed to stay here for $3,000 for the rest of your life. And that's a mistake.
In my view, let us have this fixed period of time, 90 days for some, depending on their circumstances, others longer, to the end of the school year, even longer, potentially, do it in a humane and compassionate way; but say to those that have come here illegally, you must return home, you must get in line with everybody else that wants to come here. There are millions throughout the world who want to come to this country legally. It's a wonderful privilege. But those that have come here illegally should not be given a better deal.
I was just at the swearing-in of some 700 citizens just a day or two ago in Tampa, Florida, and it was a thrilling thing to see these folks coming out, shaking their hands. People who come here legally are a great source of vitality and strength for our country, but illegal immigration, that's got to end.
Iowa Debate
In August of 2011, Governor Romney participated in the Republican debate in Ames, Iowa. He was asked about immigration for skilled laborers and comments made in 2008.
FERRECHIO: OK. Governor Romney, turning to you, in 2008, you said you favored allowing American companies to hire more skilled foreign workers. With the unemployment rate now at 9.1 percent, do you still think that employers need to import more foreign labor?
ROMNEY: Well, of course not. We're not looking to bring people in and -- in jobs that can be done by Americans. But at the same time, we want to make sure that America is a home and welcome to the best and brightest in the world.
If someone comes here and gets a PhD in -- in physics, that's the person I'd like to staple a green card to their -- to their diploma, rather than saying to them to go home.
Instead, we let people come across our border illegally or stay here and overstay their visa. They get to stay in the country. I want the best and brightest to be metered into the country based upon the needs of our employment sector and create jobs by bringing technology and innovation that comes from people around the world.
Look, we -- we are a nation of immigrants. We love legal immigration. But for legal immigration to work, we have to secure the border, and we also have to crack down on employers that hire people who are here illegally.
I like legal immigration. I'd have the number of visas that we give to people here that come here legally, determined in part by the needs of our employment community. But we have to secure our border and crack down on those that bring folks here and hire here illegally.
Reagan Debate
In September of 2011, Governor Romney participated in the Republican debate at the Reagan debate. He talks about turning off the magnet that attracts people here.
DIAZ-BALART: Governor, specifically, do you agree or disagree with some of the issues that the governor of Texas says, as far as what you would consider enough to be able to declare the border safe?
ROMNEY: Well, first, we ought to have a fence. Secondly...
DIAZ-BALART: The whole fence, 2,600 miles?
ROMNEY: Yes. We got to -- we got to have a fence, or the technologically approved system to make sure that we know who's coming into the country, number one.
Number two, we ought to have enough agents to secure that fence and to make sure that people are coming over are caught.
But the third thing, and I learned this when I was with border patrol agents in San Diego, and they said, look, they can always get a ladder to go over the fence. And people will always run to the country. The reason they come in such great numbers is because we've left the magnet on.
And I said, what do you mean, the magnet? And they said, when employers are willing to hire people who are here illegally, that's a magnet, and it draws them in. And we went in and talked about sanctuary cities, giving tuition breaks to the kids of illegal aliens, employers that, employers that knowingly hire people who are here illegally. Those things also have to be stopped.
If we want to secure the border, we have to make sure we have a fence, technologically, determining where people are, enough agents to oversee it, and turn off that magnet. We can't talk about amnesty, we cannot give amnesty to those who have come here illegally.
We've got 4.7 million people waiting in line legally. Let those people come in first, and those that are here illegally, they shouldn't have a special deal.
TEA Party Debate
In September of 2011, Governor Romney participated in the TEA party Presidential debate. He was asked about his views on immigration and spoke about ending sanctuary city policies and enforcing the law.
BLITZER: All right. Governor Romney, do you have a problem with either what Governor Huntsman did in Utah or Governor Perry did in Texas?
ROMNEY: yeah with both, actually. The question began by saying how do we attract Latino voters. And the answer is by telling them what they know in their heart, which is they or their ancestors did not come here for a handout. If they came here for a handout, they'd be voting for Democrats. They came here for opportunity and freedom. And that's what we represent. And that's why we'll win collecting support from Latinos across the country.
With regards to illegal immigration, of course we build a fence and of course we do not give instate tuition credits to people who come here illegally. That only attracts people to come here and take advantage of America's great beneficence.
And with regards to giving driver's licenses to people that are here illegally, that creates a patina of legal status. There are sanctuary cities in some parts of the country.
One of the things I did in my state was to say, look, I'm going to get my state police authorized to be able to enforce immigration laws and make sure those people who we arrest are put in jail, to find out they're here illegally, we're going to get them out of here.
We have to recognize that this is the party that believes in supporting the law. We're going to enforce the law. We're the party of opportunity, we're also the party of legal law abiding citizens. And that's something we're going to attract people of all backgrounds.
Western Debate
In October of 2011, Governor Romney participated in the Western Debate in Las Vegas. He states his opposition to amnesty and to the DREAM Act, He also responds to questions about illegal aliens working on his lawn several years ago.
COOPER: Governor Romney?
ROMNEY: Rick, I don't think I've ever hired an illegal in my life. And so I'm afraid -- I'm looking forward to finding your facts on that, because that just doesn't --
PERRY: Well, I'll tell you what the facts are.
ROMNEY: Rick, again -- Rick, I'm speaking.
PERRY: You had the -- your newspaper -- the newspaper --
ROMNEY: I'm speaking. I'm speaking. I'm speaking.
(CROSSTALK)
ROMNEY: You get 30 seconds. This is the way the rules work here, is that I get 60 seconds and then you get 30 second to respond. Right?
Anderson?
PERRY: And they want to hear you say that you knew you had illegals working at your --
ROMNEY: Would you please wait? Are you just going to keep talking?
PERRY: Yes, sir.
ROMNEY: Would you let me finish with what I have to say?
(BOOING)
ROMNEY: Look, Rick --
COOPER: I thought Republicans follow the rules.
ROMNEY: This has been a tough couple of debates for Rick, and I understand that. And so you're going to get testy.
(APPLAUSE)
ROMNEY: But let's let -- I'll tell you what, let me take my time, and then you can take your time. All right?
PERRY: Great. Have at it.
ROMNEY: All right.
My time is this, which is I have in my state -- when I was governor, I took the action of empowering our state police to enforce immigration laws. When you were governor, you said, I don't want to build a fence. You put in place a magnet.
You talked about magnets. You put in place a magnet to draw illegals into the state, which was giving $100,000 of tuition credit to illegals that come into this country, and then you have states -- the big states of illegal immigrants are California and Florida. Over the last 10 years, they've had no increase in illegal immigration.
Texas has had 60 percent increase in illegal immigrants in Texas. If there's someone who has a record as governor with regards to illegal immigration that doesn't stand up to muster, it's you, not me.
(APPLAUSE)
COOPER: Governor Perry, you have 30 seconds.
PERRY: You stood here in front of the American people and did not tell the truth that you had illegals working on your property. And the newspaper came to you and brought it to your attention, and you still, a year later, had those individuals working for you.
The idea that you can sit here and talk about any of us having an immigration issue is beyond me. I've got a strong policy. I've always been against amnesty. You, on the other hand, were for amnesty.
COOPER: I've got 30 seconds, then we've got move on to another immigration question.
ROMNEY: OK.
You wrote an op-ed in the newspaper saying you were open to amnesty. That's number one.
Number two, we hired a lawn company to mow our lawn, and they had illegal immigrants that were working there. And when that was pointed out to us, we let them go. And we went to them and said --
PERRY: A year later?
ROMNEY: You have a problem with allowing someone to finish speaking. And I suggest that if you want to become president of the United States, you have got to let both people speak. So first, let me speak.
(APPLAUSE)
ROMNEY: So we went to the company and we said, look, you can't have any illegals working on our property. I'm running for office, for Pete's sake, I can't have illegals. It turns out that once question, they hired someone who had falsified their documents, had documents, and therefore we fired them. And let me tell you, it is hard in this country as an individual homeowner to know if people who are contractors working at your home, if they have hired people that are illegal. If I'm president, we'll put in an E-Verify system, which you have opposed --
COOPER: Out of time.
ROMNEY: -- to make sure that we can find out who's here illegally and not, and crack down on people who come here illegally.
...
ROMNEY: Let's step back. I think it's important for us as Republicans on this stage to say something which hasn't been said. And that is I think every single person here loves legal immigration. We respect people who come here legally.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
ROMNEY: And the reason we're so animated about stopping illegal immigration is there are 4.5 million people who want to come here who are in line legally, we want that to happen in an orderly and legal process.
And in terms of how to secure the border, it's really not that hard. You have a fence, you have enough Border Patrol agents to oversee the fence, and you turn off the magnets. And that's employers that hire people who they know are here illegally.
That's why you have an E-Verify system so they can know that. And, number two, you turn off the magnets like tuition breaks or other breaks that draw people into this country illegally. It is not that hard. We have to have the political will to get the job done.
And, Governor Perry, you say you have got the experience. It's a bit like saying that, you know, the college coach that has lost 40 games in a row has the experience to go to the NFL.
But the truth is, California -- I'll say it again, California and Florida have both had no increase in illegal immigration and yours is up 60 percent...
CNN National Security Debate
On November 22, 2011 Governor Romney participated in the national security debate on CNN. He calls for ending the magnets in immigration such as the allowing illegal aliens to stay in the US and the DREAM Act.
BLITZER: Let's broaden it out.
Governor Romney, where do you stand? Are you with the speaker, that some of those illegal immigrants -- I think -- he didn't say all -- some of them, if they have roots, they belong to a church, for example, should be allowed to stay in this country?
ROMNEY: Look, amnesty is a magnet. What when we have had in the past, programs that have said that if people who come here illegally are going to get to stay illegally for the rest of their life, that's going to only encourage more people to come here illegally.
The right course for our immigration system is to say we welcome people who want to come here legally. We're going to have a system that makes that easier and more transparent. But to make sure we're able to bring in the best and brightest -- and, by the way, I agree with the speaker in terms of -- I'd staple a green card to the diploma of anybody who's got a degree of math, science, a Masters degree, Ph.D.
We want those brains in our country. But in order to bring people in legally we've got to stop illegal immigration. That means turning off the magnets of amnesty, in-state tuition for illegal aliens, employers that knowingly hire people that have come here illegally.
We welcome legal immigration. This is a party, this is a party that loves legal immigration. But we have to stop illegal immigration for all the reasons the questioner raised, which is, it is bringing in people who in some cases can be terrorists, in other cases they become burdens on our society.
And we have to finally have immigration laws that protect our border, secure the border, turn off the magnets, and make sure we have people come to this country legally to build our economy.
BLITZER: Just to precise, and I'll give Speaker Gingrich a chance to respond. Are you saying that what he's proposing, giving amnesty in effect, or allowing some of these illegal immigrants to stay, is a magnet that would entice others to come to this country illegally?
ROMNEY: There's no question. But to say that we're going to say to the people who have come here illegally that now you're all going to get to stay or some large number are going to get to stay and become permanent residents of the United States, that will only encourage more people to do the same thing.
People respond to incentives. And if you can become a permanent resident of the United States by coming here illegally, you'll do so. What I want to do is bring people into this country legally, particularly those that have education and skill that allows us to compete globally.
..
ROMNEY: Yes, I don't disagree with what Governor Perry indicated. Certainly we have to secure the border. And we talk about people who have been here 25 years, that is the extreme exception...
BLITZER: You would let them stay.
ROMNEY: ... not the rule.
BLITZER: You would let them stay?
ROMNEY: I'm not going to start drawing lines here about who gets to stay and who get to go. The principle is that we are not going to have an amnesty system that says that people who come here illegally get to stay for the rest of their life in this country legally.
The answer is we're going to have a system that gives people who come legally a card that identifies them as coming here legally. Employers are going to be expected to inspect that card, see if they're here legally. On that basis we're going to be able to bring you to this country.
The number of people that we need to power our industries, whether that's agriculture or high tech, we welcome people in here with visa programs. We have a whole series of legal programs. But the idea of focusing a Republican debate on amnesty and who we're going to give it to, is a huge mistake.
Secure our border, protect legal immigration, and return to a system that follows the law.
Huckabee Forum
In December of 2011, Governor Romney participated in a forum hosted by Mike Huckabee. He states in that forum that he opposes the DREAM Act, licenses of illegal aliens, and the ability of the state to help with immigration if the federal government refuses to do so.
2008 Campaign Ads
When Governor Romney ran for President in 2008, he ran ads stating that he opposed drivers licenses for illegal aliens, would cut funds for sanctuary cities, and enforce border security.
