President Barack Obama’s selective enforcement of many laws, including his unilateral delays of portions of Obamacare, damaged his credibility in the eyes of Republicans who may have otherwise been willing to work with him on immigration reform, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said.
On this weekend’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday,” Rubio seem to back away from any optimism he has for getting immigration reform passed with Barack Obama as president..
“[N]umber one, immigration reform is something the country needs,” Rubio said. “I don’t think anyone would disagree that we have a broken legal system. We do not have mechanisms in place to effectively enforce our immigration laws. These issues have to be dressed. What Congressman [Raul] Labrador is addressing is something that I hear from opponents of our efforts all the time, and I think that’s a valid point and that is this: You have a government and a White House that consistently ignored the law and how to apply it.”
“Look at the health care law,” he continued. “The law is on the books. They decide which parts of it to apply and which parts not to apply. They issue their own waivers without any congressional oversight. And what they say is, you’re going to pass a legalization law and some enforcement. What’s not to say that this White House won’t come back and cancel the enforcement aspects of it? And that’s what he means by lack of trust, and quite frankly, it’s difficult to find a good answer to that. I think they make a very legitimate point. But certainly, the president has undermined this effort. Absolutely — the president has undermined these efforts.”
Rubio’s position reflects that of Labrador and Reps. John Carter and Sam Johnson, who have also backed away from the push for an immigration overhaul.