Republican presidential candidate nominee Rick Santorum has gone on record as saying that individuals born in the United States to undocumented immigrants should not be automatically granted citizenship. Santorum made the comments in a speech he gave to Washington’s National Press Club regarding immigration policy yesterday.
US citizenship is automatically given to anyone born in the United States, regardless of the legal status of their parents. Santorum is following in the wake of other candidates, such as Jeb Bush and the controversial real estate magnet and billionaire Donald Trump, in suggesting that this arrangement needs to be brought to an end in the United States.
At the same time, Santorum vowed to force the government of Mexico to cooperate with the US when it comes to border crossing laws and says that if Mexico refused to comply, he would suspend border crossing cards. He also proposed the enforcement of a biometric tracking system for all immigrants coming into the United States on legal US visas, who could then be fined if they were to overstay. “I will end the practice of sanctuary cities by withholding federal funds from any city that refuses to cooperate with federal law,” he declared.
Santorum went on to say that he agrees with putting an end to the current immigration policy that has so far seen 30,000 undocumented immigrants with criminal convictions being released into the United States because their home countries refuse to have them back.
