Romney took a tough position on immigration during the Republican primary, saying he would veto the Democratic version of the Dream Act and decrying any proposed “amnesty” when Newt Gingrich suggested he would allow illegal immigrants who’ve been in the country longer than 25 years a chance to become citizens. On Monday, though, his remarks were markedly less strident, as he promised to lay out “a whole series of policies” relating to immigration in the coming months.
“Obviously, our first priority is to secure the border,” Romney said, offering a preview. “And yet we also have very substantial visa programs in this country. I’ve spoken about the need to have a visa system that’s right-sized for the needs of our employment community. And so how we adjust our visa program to make it fit the needs of our country is something I’ll be speaking about down the road.”
Both Romney and Rubio expressed their support for laws that require voters to show identification when casting a ballot – a measure meant to cut down on fraudulent voting. Rubio asked a crowd of several hundred gathered to see the two men speak how anyone could question the idea, pointing to a recent experience he had buying an exercise bike.
“You know what the cashier asked me for, when I went to pay? My ID,” the freshman senator told the crowd. It was the same thing getting on an airplane, he said. “So what’s the big deal?”
It was Rubio's first time campaigning with Romney this election cycle. But the senator from Florida is acting like a national candidate even when he’s not standing next to the near-certain GOP nominee. He is helping raise money for Republican candidates across the country, including an appeal Monday through his political action committee, Reclaim America, on behalf of Ohio Senate candidate Josh Mandel. And he is scheduled to give a foreign policy address on Wednesday at the Brookings Institution.
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