Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton said recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program should not be punished for breaking immigration laws, but thinks their parents should be held accountable.
“Their parents are here illegally. Their parents, remember are the ones who made the choice to come here illegally with their minor children. They created the problem in the first place,” Cotton, a Republican, said Tuesday on “Fox & Friends.” “The entire rationale for this program according to Barack Obama is that children ought not pay for the sins of their parents. But surely parents can pay for the sins of the parents.”
“Ultimately, if you made the decision to come to this country illegally then you do face that risk,” he added.
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Cotton also said chain migration must be stopped and the southern border has to be secure before DACA recipients can be dealt with. He believes the act of legalizing young illegal immigrants will only encourage more illegal immigration and could overwhelm the entire system.
“To do that we have to be responsible about it. It’s going to encourage more illegal immigration. We know that. So we have to secure our southern border. Our bill provides the money and the legal authority to do so,” Cotton said. “And it would create a whole new pool of legal immigrants, who could legalize their families to include the parents who created problem in the first place. That’s why we have end the practice of extended family chain migration. That’s a very popular proposal. Two thirds of the American people want it. Two thirds of the American people are right.”
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