Hillary Clinton was less than definitive
Hillary Clinton’s fumble on immigration along wth Bernie Sanders’ stance puts both on par with the Latino electorate as Sanders gets a new first look. This is why debates are so important.
Here is the text / transcript.
Jorge Ramos: Can you promise tonight that you won’t deport children, children who are already here?
Hillary Clinton: I will not deport children. I would not deport children. I do not want to deport family members either, Jorge. I want to, as I said, prioritize who would be deported: violent criminals, people planning terrorist attacks, anybody who threatens us. That’s a relatively small universe.
Jorge Ramos: OK. So I want to be very specific. So you are telling us tonight that if you become president you won’t deport children who are already here?
Hillary Clinton: I will not.
Jorge Ramos: And that you won’t deport immigrants who don’t have a criminal record?
Hillary Clinton: That’s what I’m telling you. Now I don’t want — because I’m not contradicting what I told you in the interview. Asylum is a particular legal process. I’d like to see it changed. I’d like to see us give more support to people who come fleeing the terrible violence that they do. But under our law, we have a process we have to go through which is different.
Jorge Ramos: So you will stop those deportations.
Hillary Clinton: I would stop…
Jorge Ramos: The deportations for children…
Hillary Clinton: Yes.
Jorge Ramos: … and those who don’t have a criminal record.
Hillary Clinton: Of the people, the undocumented people living in our country, I do not want to see them deported. I want to see them on a path to citizenship. That is exactly what I will do.
Jorge Ramos: Senator Sanders, would you — can you promise us tonight that you won’t deport children?
Bernie Sanders: Let me just say this. I don’t think that the secretary fully answered your question, and I think the proof may be in the pudding. Honduras and that region of the world may be the most violent region in our hemisphere. Gang lords, vicious people torturing people, doing horrible things to families. Children fled that part of the world to try, try, try, try, maybe, to meet up with their family members in this country, taking a route that was horrific, trying to start a new life. Secretary Clinton did not support those children coming into this country. I did. Now I happen to agree with President Obama on many, many issues. I think he has done a great job as president of the United States. He is wrong on this issue of deportation. I disagree with him on that.
Bernie Sanders: So to answer your question, no, I will not deport children from the United States of America.
Jorge Ramos: And can you promise not to deport immigrants who don’t have a criminal record?
Bernie Sanders: I can make that promise.