2020 TX Senate race: on Immigration
MJ Hegar:
Consider abolishing ICE; prefer better leadership & policies
Hegar said she would "consider" abolishing ICE,
but that she would rather focus on having "the right leadership in place passing down the right policies."
Source: The Texan on 2020 Texas Senate race
Jun 8, 2020
MJ Hegar:
Asylum seekers should not be treated as criminals
We need to bring some common sense to the issue. That means starting with permanently ending child separation, ensuring asylum seekers are not treated as criminals and their claims are properly processed, securing the border with effective procedures
and technologies instead of wasting billions on an ineffective wall that would require robbing our military construction budget while seizing land from Texans, and building a path to citizenship for undocumented residents.
Source: 2020 Texas Senate campaign website MJforTexas.com
Jan 20, 2020
Sema Hernandez:
Remain in Mexico Policy unlawful in US and international law
I will introduce and/or co-sponsor legislation that will provide permanent resident status to all DACA and TPS registrants, as well as for their family members. The Remain in Mexico Policy (MPP), which currently is employed by Donald Trump and
ICE to deny or delay asylum to refugees, is unlawful under both US and international law. I will introduce legislation to remove the 50,000 annual cap on refugees which currently exists under the Refugee Act of 1980.
I will introduce legislation to abolish ICE and restore immigration enforcement to the Department of Justice. I further commit to repealing the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility
Act (IIRAIRA) of 1996, which is responsible for the incarceration and separation of many immigrant families, including long-time green card holders, asylum seekers and DACA recipients, many without due process.
Source: 2020 Texas Senate campaign website, Sema4Texas.com
Jan 12, 2020
Cristina Tzintzun Ramirez:
Legalize status of DREAMers, other hardworking immigrants
Cristina supports extending citizenship to DREAMers, who are Americans in every way except on paper. In addition to the DREAMers, we need to legalize the status of the millions of hardworking and honest immigrants that have been part of our communities
for years. We need an immigration system that allows future generations to come here safely and legally, that fills our labor needs, and that empowers all immigrants to live their full humanity as families and human beings.
Source: 2020 Texas Senate campaign website CristinaForTexas.com
Dec 19, 2019
Royce West:
Must address humanitarian crisis at the border
Our immigration system is broken. This presidential administration has thrown our immigration policies into total chaos -- to the point where we are violating international human rights laws.
Children do not belong in cages, families must stay together, and we must immediately address the humanitarian crisis going on at the border. Our border needs more resources, like judges who can expedite hearings for asylum seekers.
Source: 2020 Texas Senate campaign website RoyceWest.com
Dec 19, 2019
MJ Hegar:
Support DACA recipients, they represent the best of us
Hegar said when it comes to immigration there's a lot that needs to be done. She said she supports comprehensive immigration reform, fully funding immigration courts and supporting DACA recipients. "I believe that the people who are DACA recipients
represent the best of us," Hegar said. "We need to support DACA recipients and make sure they know the only country they've ever known is not going to be taken away from them."
Source: KXAN Austin NBC-TV on 2020 Texas Senate race
Nov 17, 2019
Royce West:
We've got to find a way to keep DREAMers in the country
When it comes to the border, West said Texas needs more judges with more resources so Texas can adjudicate the asylum claims. DACA went before the Supreme Court and West said a legislative solution may be the answer if the president is not going to do
anything by executive order. "Those kids that are involved in the DACA program are kids that have done everything that they need to do here in this country," West said. "And we've got to find a way to make certain that they stay in this country."
Source: KXAN-TV NBC on 2020 Texas Senate race
Nov 17, 2019
Cristina Tzintzun Ramirez:
Fight for the rights of immigrant families
Tzintzun Ramirez, who is of Hispanic and Irish descent, has spent most of her career in organizing, advocacy and activism.As a response to Trump's election in 2016, Tzintzun Ramirez started the advocacy group Jolt with a mission of growing the
Latino electorate in Texas. She said she has also fought for the rights of immigrant families and affordable college tuition.
Source: Dallas Morning News on 2020 Texas Senate race
Aug 12, 2019
Royce West:
Putting kids in cages makes "my blood boil"
Q: What about putting kids in cages?A: Every time I think about it my blood boils. My eyes get red. America? I think about the internment camps in World War II, where the Japanese were sent to internment camps. I think about the Nazis in terms of
the concentration camps. America? We can do better than that.
Q. Should the act of crossing the border be decriminalized?
A: At this point I believe it should not be, we should continue to make it a crime. But I'm open for a discussion.
Source: The Dallas Morning News on 2020 Texas Senate race
Jul 28, 2019
Page last updated: Oct 24, 2020