AP
August 12, 2015
Republican
presidential candidate John Kasich defended millions of immigrants in
the U.S. illegally as "people who are contributing significantly" to the
nation, taking
on a divisive issue Wednesday as he promised to redefine conservatism
during his latest New Hampshire appearance.
Kasich,
a second-term Ohio governor, addressed immigration among other delicate
political issues before a crowd of more than 200 packed into a small
VFW hall, his second
public stop in a two-day swing through the first-in-the-nation primary
state. Kasich remains one of the lesser-known 17 Republican White House
hopefuls, yet a strong debate performance in his home state last week
has produced fresh signs of momentum.
Introducing
himself to many New Hampshire voters for the first time this week, he
offered a pragmatic approach to national politics likely to antagonize
some of his party's
more conservative voters.
He
quickly dismissed a questioner during an afternoon town hall-style
meeting who suggested immigrants in the country illegally are a burden
on the system.
"A
lot of these people who are here are some of the hardest-working,
God-fearing, family-oriented people you can ever meet," Kasich said to a
smattering of polite applause.
Speaking
later to reporters, he said he would complete the wall along the
U.S.-Mexican border and would deport anyone who enters the country
illegally once it's finished.
He favors a pathway to legal status for such immigrants already in the
country, and would not rule out a pathway to U.S. citizenship as part of
an immigration reform package.
"It's
not practical to move, or I don't even think desirable, to try to shift
12 million people out of this country," Kasich said. "These are people
who are contributing
significantly."
In
tone and policy, Kasich's remarks on immigration are in line with those
of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, a popular target for tea party
activists who question his conservative
credentials. While primary voting won't begin for another six months,
Kasich's early rise represents a direct threat to Bush's chances in New
Hampshire, a state both men see as critical to their early state
strategy.
The
Ohio governor's comments stand in stark contrast to billionaire
businessman Donald Trump, who described Mexican immigrants as "rapists"
and "criminals" as he entered
the Republican presidential contest earlier in the summer.
At
Kasich's side for much of the day was former state attorney general Tom
Rath, once a prominent supporter of Bush's brother, former President
George W. Bush, who formally
endorsed Kasich this week.
"I
have enormous respect for the Bush family and for (Jeb Bush)
personally," Rath said. "This is really not about Jeb Bush in any way.
This is about John Kasich."
As
he often does, Kasich devoted a significant portion of his remarks to
those living "in the shadows" of society. He promised to help the
mentally ill and drug addicts
who end up in prisons and the working poor who don't have health care.
"I
don't know how the Republican Party ever got itself put in the trick
bag by somehow saying that if we care about people who are down and out,
and we want to give them
a chance to succeed, then somehow that's not conservative," Kasich
said. "I think conservatism is about giving everybody a chance —
demanding personal responsibility — but allowing people to pursue their
God-given purpose is conservative."
He
continued: "Hopefully in the course of all this, I'll begin to change
some of the thinking about what it means to be a conservative."
The Ohio governor is scheduled to visit South Carolina, Iowa and New Hampshire again in the coming weeks.
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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