Based on his early days in office, President Joe Biden has signaled that immigration is the overarching issue for him.
He’s stopped all deportations of illegal immigrants caught in the country and introduced a comprehensive immigration overhaul that would allow more than 11 million illegal immigrants to remain in the country.
In short, Biden seeks a consequence-free pathway to citizenship for those already here and green-lighting the path for those who desire to come.
Republicans are denouncing these moves.
Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio recently noted, “America should always welcome immigrants who want to become Americans.” But offering a “blanket amnesty for people who are here unlawfully” isn’t one area where Republicans would cooperate with Biden.
But Breitbart News pointed out one group of people is not saying very much about Biden prying open America’s borders: the 28 Democrats who are now in Congress after defeating Republican foes by fewer than 25,000 votes.
“The amnesty,” Breitbart reported, “would ensure that anywhere between 11 to 22 million illegal aliens were legally allowed to start competing against Americans, mostly working and middle class, for U.S. jobs during a period of mass unemployment spurred by the Chinese coronavirus crisis.”
One of the Democrats on Breitbart’s list is Rep. Charlie Crist of St. Petersburg.
Crist was an early Biden supporter, endorsing Biden for the Democratic nomination back in September 2019.
Biden “has always put the American people above party lines and will continue to as president,” Crist said at the time, according to the Tampa Bay Times. “We need a president whose objective at the end of the day is to move the country forward for everyone through action, not empty promises.”
Crist, like the others, remained silent when Breitbart contacted them for a comment.
But wasn’t always so mum on illegal immigration.
Crist has been in several major offices in Florida – serving as a state senator, education secretary, attorney general, and governor – before winning a seat in Congress.
And for most of that time in public life, he was a Republican, In fact, Crist was once considered so tough on law-and-order issues that he was nicknamed “Chain Gang Charlie.”
On immigration, when he ran for a U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Bob Graham in 1998, Crist said, “I think that it’s important that we make sure that we close the door of illegal immigration so that we can keep open the door and the promise of legal immigration.”
“I understand how new blood and new energy and new ideas have made America a better place to live for all of us. And I think it’s important that we continue to provide the opportunity for that infusion of new ideas and new blood and a better tomorrow,” he added. “But we have to make sure that we protect our borders, and we have to make sure that we stop illegal immigration because we can’t afford it.”
In 2010, when he ran for the GOP nomination for the Senate against Marco Rubio, Crist argued illegal immigrants should have an “earned path” to citizenship and wait in line behind people following America’s process.
“The first thing we need to realize about immigration reform is to make sure that we seal the border,” he said at the time. “Everything else is an academic conversation unless and until we do that.”
“Second, we need to make sure that we’re enforcing the law. Laws on the books don’t mean anything if they’re not being enforced. And third, those who are already here shouldn’t be advantaged by the fact that they got here illegally. They should go to the back of the line, go through the regular process, what the law requires, in order to attain their citizenship.”
Crist flipped parties in 2012 to endorse President Barack Obama. But his former allies in the GOP weren’t ready to let him forget his roots.
When Crist unsuccessfully challenged Republican Gov. Rick Scott in 2014, the Republican Party released robocalls featuring Crist’s past comments in his own voice. One of them: “I oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants.”
When Crist arrived in Congress in 2017, he supported both Kate’s Law, a bill that would have toughened penalties for illegal immigrants caught re-entering the country, and was one of five Democrats who voted to fund President Donald Trump’s border wall – even though Crist maintained he opposed the wall.