What’s Bad Politics in 2012 Will Only Be Worse Politics in 2016
Washington, DC – Tomorrow, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) travels to Sioux City, Iowa to speak at a fundraiser for Rep. Steve King (R). The following is a statement from Lynn Tramonte, Deputy Director of America’s Voice:
“This is Governor Christie’s first mistake of the 2016 campaign. Instead of taking a page from Jeb Bush’s upcoming book, he’s following the Romney strategy: double down on extremism early on, and box yourself in for the general election.
“Steve King is one of the loudest and lewdest voices on immigration in the Republican Party—and a big reason why the GOP is doing so poorly with Latinos. This is a man who compared immigrants to dogs and cattle, and suggested that we use an electrified fence to wall off the country. This is a man who denigrated diversity, and defended Todd Akin’s attacks on women. King’s big mouth has put his congressional seat in jeopardy, despite a sizable Republican registration advantage, and even the National Republican Congressional Committee is getting worried.
“The sad fact is that Gov. Christie should know better than to embrace anti-immigration policies and politicians. In fact, most Iowa Republican caucus-goers actually hold more sensible views on immigration reform than Steve King.
“If Christie does become a presidential contender in 2016 or beyond, he’s going to want to burn all those photos with Rep. King. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.”
Selected Immigration Quotes from Chris Christie (Pre-Steve King Associations):
- On April 27, 2008, then U.S. Attorney in New Jersey, Chris Christie said at a church forum, “being in this country without proper documentation is not a crime…The whole phrase of ‘illegal immigrant’ connotes that the person, by just being here, is committing a crime…Don’t let people make you believe that that’s a crime that the U.S. attorney’s office should be doing something about.”
- Governor Christie told ABC’s “This Week” on July 24, 2010 that “The president and the Congress have to step up to the plate, they have to secure our borders, and they have to put forward a commonsense path to citizenship for people…States are going to struggle all over the country with this problem [until President Obama and Congress craft an immigration reform measure], and so is federal law enforcement, who doesn’t have the resources to do it effectively.”
America’s Voice — Harnessing the power of American voices and American values to win common sense immigration reform.
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