CNN political race coverage: on Immigration


Al Gore: Citizenship for 1.2M cleared backlog, but sacrificed quality

One of Gore’s attempts to improve government produced such confusion that thousands of people became citizens without adequate background checks, the Justice Dept. says in a new report, and “compromised the integrity” of the INS process. [But] the report said there is no evidence that the 1996 election motivated the crash program.

Under the crash “Citizenship USA” program, a part of Gore’s government reinvention effort, about 1.2 million people were given citizenship from Oct. 1995 to Sept. 1996, [with the intent of] eliminating a massive backlog of nearly 500,000 citizenship cases at INS. The waiting period for citizenship had been as much as three years.

The investigators found that the crash program put quantity over quality. The INS had processed applicants so quickly that in many cases citizenship was granted before the INS received criminal background checks from the FBI. But the report said there was no way to determine how many unqualified individuals gained citizenship.

Source: CNN.com coverage Aug 1, 2000

Al Sharpton: Current immigration law is discriminatory

I think if you look at the language discrimination, if you look at the fact some people have voted against even the language training in schools if you look at how immigration laws have been used against Hispanics in the Mexican border, I’ve been there.
Source: CNN coverage: Inside Politics Jan 21, 2003

Arnold Schwarzenegger: No driver’s licenses to illegal aliens

Schwarzenegger said he does not support giving driver’s licenses to illegal aliens, but he said the issue of offering them other services is not so clear. “That is an issue with the federal government because the governor has nothing, [not] really much power over those things,” Schwarzenegger said.
Source: CNN.com coverage Aug 28, 2003

Beto O`Rourke: Military service as pathway to citizenship for immigrants

He is proposing allowing military service to be a pathway to citizenship for immigrants, according to the plan.
Source: CNN coverage of 2020 Democratic primary Jun 24, 2019

Donald Trump: OpEd: businesses & Republicans condemn anti-Mexico terms

Trump released a statement restating the controversial comments he made almost three weeks ago when he announced he was running for president: "What can be simpler or more accurately stated? The Mexican Government is forcing their most unwanted people into the United States. They are, in many cases, criminals, drug dealers, rapists, etc.," Trump's statement said. Trump's comments have resulted in the termination of a number of his business relationships, but it wasn't until the past week that fellow Republican candidates began to forcefully condemn his comments.

Former Gov. George Pataki (R-NY) laid out what he calls are "practical" policy solutions for the issue of securing the southern U.S. border, as well as what to do with the millions of illegal immigrants already living in the country. Trump "has tapped into a chord of people who do not want to see millions of people come here illegally, but that does not justify demonizing an entire group of people," said Pataki. .

Source: CNN.com 2015 coverage of 2016 presidential hopefuls Jul 6, 2015

Ezola Foster: Restrict immigration; support CA Prop. 187

Foster, an African-American, is an advocate of restricting immigration, writing that immigrants threaten black workers' jobs. She campaigned for California's Proposition 187, which would have banned illegal immigrants from receiving public services, and has urged that the military be deployed along the Mexican border to stop illegal immigration.
Source: CNN.com coverage Aug 11, 2000

George Pataki: Practical policy: legal residency after 200 hours of service

Donald Trump released a statement restating the controversial comments he made almost three weeks ago when he announced he was running for president: "What can be simpler or more accurately stated? The Mexican Government is forcing their most unwanted people into the United States. They are, in many cases, criminals, drug dealers, rapists, etc.," Trump's statement said. Trump's comments have resulted in the termination of a number of his business relationships, but it wasn't until the past week that fellow Republican candidates began to forcefully condemn his comments.

George Pataki laid out what he calls are "practical" policy solutions for the issue of securing the southern U.S. border, as well as what to do with the millions of illegal immigrants already living in the country. Pataki's immigration proposals include allowing illegal immigrants to obtain the status of legal resident if they come forward publicly, have no criminal history, and commit to 200 hours of community service.

Source: CNN.com 2015 coverage of 2016 presidential hopefuls Jul 6, 2015

  • The above quotations are from CNN political race coverage.
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Immigration.
  • Click here for other issues (main summary page).
  • Click here for more quotes by Barack Obama on Immigration.
  • Click here for more quotes by Donald Trump on Immigration.
2024 Presidential contenders on Immigration:
  Candidates for President & Vice-President:
V.P.Kamala Harris (D-CA)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.(I-CA)
Chase Oliver(L-GA)
Dr.Jill Stein(D-MA)
Former Pres.Donald Trump(R-FL)
Sen.J.D.Vance(R-OH)
Gov.Tim Walz(D-MN)
Dr.Cornel West(I-NJ)

2024 presidential primary contenders:
Pres.Joe_Biden(D-DE)
N.D.Gov.Doug Burgum(R)
N.J.Gov.Chris_Christie(R)
Fla.Gov.Ron_DeSantis(R)
S.C.Gov.Nikki_Haley(R)
Ark.Gov.Asa_Hutchinson(R)
Former V.P.Mike Pence(R-IN)
U.S.Rep.Dean_Phillips(D-MN)
Vivek_Ramaswamy(R-OH)
S.C.Sen.Tim_Scott(R)
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Page last updated: Oct 26, 2024