Mitt Romney on Immigration: Turn Up the Heat, No Mercy

In 1958, George Wallace claimed that he was “outn—–ed” in the  Alabama’s Democratic gubernatorial primary and promised that it would never happen again.  In 1962, Wallace was elected governor of Alabama on a pro-segregation ticket and, in 1968, ran as the American Independent Party candidate for President.

Today, it appears that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will not be “outimmigranted.”  As we have reported over the summer, Romney has stepped up his immigration enforcement rhetoric in the last few months. CNN now reports that Romney today attacked cities with what he calls “sanctuary” policies for illegal immigrants — including rival Rudy Giuliani’s NYC — with a new radio ad set to air in crucial campaign states Iowa and New Hampshire. “Immigration laws don’t work if they’re ignored,” the ad’s announcer states. “That’s the problem with cities like Newark, San Francisco and New York City that adopt sanctuary policies. Sanctuary cities become magnets that encourage illegal immigration and undermine secure borders.” “Legal immigration is great,” Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, himself says in the ad. “But illegal immigration, that we’ve got to end. And amnesty is not the way to do it.” He also advocates in the ad cutting back on federal funds to cities that adopt sanctuary policies.

KJ