Presidential candidate and Congressman Tom Tancredo participated in the New Hampshire debate June 5, 2007 held by CNN. Tom Tancredo responds to a question on what the impact would be on the United States if the Senate Immigration Bill becomes law.
The video is below the transcript.
CNN
SPRADLING: Thanks, Wolf.
Congressman Tancredo, let's talk immigration.
TANCREDO: OK.
SPRADLING: You oppose the immigration reform compromise, calling it, quote, "the worst piece of legislation to come down the pike in a long time." Just this morning in Manchester, you vowed to oust any senator who supports the bill, including possibly New Hampshire's senior Senator Judd Gregg, who's undecided, and says to your comments that you are part of the know-nothing wing of the political spectrum.
In the meantime, the president says his plan is the last best chance for serious immigration reform.
He's criticized conservatives for being obstructionists.
With that tension at stake, if this becomes law, what are the consequences for the country?
TANCREDO: They are incredible, and they are disastrous.
And that is exactly why I have said what I've said, and that is why I have consistently tried to impress upon the American public the seriousness of this issue.
We're not just talking about the number of jobs that we may be losing or the number of kids that are in our schools and impacting our school system or the number of people that are abusing our hospital system and taking advantage of the welfare system in this country. We're not just talking about that.
We're talking about something that goes to the very heart of this nation: whether or not we will actually survive as a nation.
And here's what I mean by that.
What we're doing here in this immigration battle is testing our willingness to actually hold together as a nation or split apart into a lot of balkanized pieces.
We are testing our willingness to actually hold on to something called the English language, something that is the glue that is supposed to hold us together as a nation.
We are becoming a bilingual nation. And that is not good.
And that is the fearful part of this. The ramifications are much, much more significant than any that we've been discussing so far.
And so, yes, I have said dramatic things. And, yes, I am willing to do whatever is necessary to try to stop this piece of legislation. And that includes go after any Republican that votes for it, because the Republicans can stop this.
BLITZER: Thank you. Thank you, Congressman.
(APPLAUSE)
Cracking down on illegal immigration definitely got the most applause last night all around.
Tipped by: Lone Wolf
