Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry said Tuesday he would support a plan to deport nearly all undocumented immigrants from the U.S., telling supporters that if elected he would immediately order the deportation of any illegal immigrant detained in the U.S.

“My policy will be to detain and deport every illegal alien who is apprehended in this country,” said Mr. Perry. “And we’ll do it with an expedited hearing process so that millions of illegal aliens are not released into the general population with some hearing date down the road.”



Mr. Perry’s latest comment concerning immigration comes as the Texas governor has sought to criticize the immigration reform policies put forth by his Republican counterparts. Speaking earlier this week, Mr. Perry criticized former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, saying the Massachusetts Republican is “soft’ when it comes to matters concerning U.S. immigration policy.

Meanwhile, former House speaker Newt Gingrich continued to downplay concerns over his proposed immigration policy, which his rivals quickly denounced as “amnesty.” If an immigrant has been here for a quarter of a century, raising a family, paying taxes and obeying the law, Mr. Gingrich said, then the government should not expel him or her.

“I’m prepared to take the heat for saying, let’s be humane in enforcing the law without giving them citizenship, but by finding a way to create legality so that they are not separated from their families,” said Gingrich.

That said, with the endorsement of Arizona conservative Sheriff Joe Arpaio from Arizona, Mr. Perry seems to have overcome such criticism.

Speaking Tuesday, the Texas governor slammed the Obama administration’s immigration reform policy, saying it amounts to “catch-and-release.”

“I call this a horrific policy, but the Obama administration has a catch-and-release policy where nonviolent illegal aliens are released into the general public today. My policy will be to detain and to deport every illegal alien that we apprehend. That is how we stop that issue,” Mr. Perry said.

“We have to identify everybody that’s here, and there’s going to be an appropriate discussion in Congress on how to deal with an individual who has been here maybe for some long period of time,” he added. “Amnesty is not on the table period. There will be no amnesty in the United States. We’re a country of law and the idea that we’re going to tell people that somehow or another that that’s all forgiven is not going to happen. How we deal with them is a conversation. I don’t know if I know all the answers. I want to talk to the American people.”

Recent polls show Mr. Perry running in fourth or fifth place among Republicans nationally, and about sixth in the relatively moderate state of New Hampshire.



Read more: http://www.thestatecolumn.com/articl...#ixzz1f9rVcWKe


Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Perry. So, he signed the Texas DREAM Act, yet he makes these declarations. "You can get an education if you are an undocumented student, but just don't get caught because I will deport you!" That's what he's basically saying.

So, we're left with Newt on the right?

Gosh. I hope Obama gets re-elected and Democrats are able to win a substantial number of seats in the House.