Marco Rubio: Belief that Hispanic community is pro-illegal immigration not true

Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a 2016 Republican presidential candidate, said Wednesday the belief that the Hispanic community in the United States supports illegal immigration is “just not true.”

“You know, this belief that the Hispanic community is in favor of illegal immigration is false — it’s just not true,” Mr. Rubio said on NBC’s “Today” program. “Hispanic communities are deeply impacted by illegal immigration, and there are millions of Hispanics in this country who have either come legally or who have relatives that are waiting to come legally.”

The issue came up at Tuesday’s GOP presidential debate in Milwaukee, with Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush saying a court ruling this week blocking one of President Obama’s deportation amnesties puts pressure on Republicans to come up with their own plan on providing illegal immigrants legal status.

Mr. Bush said during the debate that people within the campaign of former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the 2016 Democratic presidential front-runner, were doing high-fives over the internal GOP fight on the issue. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas responded by saying: “The Democrats are laughing because if Republicans join Democrats as the party of amnesty, we will lose.”

Mr. Rubio said Wednesday he thinks all Americans want to see the country’s immigration system work better.

“[We] want to be realistic but responsible about what you do with people that are already here illegally,” he said. “But you have to bring illegal immigration under control. We are a sovereign country. We are entitled to control who comes here, how they come here, and when they come here.”

Mr. Rubio was part of a “Gang of Eight” senators who worked on a comprehensive 2013 bill that passed the Senate that provided an eventual pathway to citizenship for most illegal immigrants in the country, but he has since advocated for a piecemeal approach and a focus on border security first.