Sen. Marco Rubio is firing back at fellow Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, calling him a supporter of amnesty for illegal immigrants.
“First of all, Donald was a supporter of amnesty and of the DREAM Act, and he changed those positions on those issues just to run for president.” Rubio said on Fox News this morning.
Trump has taken a tough stance on stopping illegal immigration vowing to build a wall on the southern border of the United States.
Rubio’s comments are certain to enrage critics of his effort in the Senate to pass the “Gang of Eight” immigration reform bill, teaming with Democrats to offer amnesty for illegal immigrants.
Since announcing a run for president, Rubio has abandoned those efforts, saying he’d focus more on securing the border with strategic walls and fencing instead of amnesty.
“The only way to move forward on immigration is enforcing our immigration laws,” he said during the interview on Fox, calling for e-verify, enter/exit tracking systems, and strategic walls and fencing on the borders.
During the interview, Rubio explained that Obama’s executive actions on immigration and the crisis on the border last summer contributed to a new political environment that made it impossible to pass comprehensive reform.
“We’re not going to be able to pass a comprehensive approach to the immigration problem, the votes don’t exist, we tried that two years ago,” he said.