Rand Paul Quotes

I supported this bill. I believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and who have lived here even though sometime back they may have entered illegally.

We're not going to deport 12 million people, so let's stop this fiction. Let's give them permanent status.

In order to create real, long-lasting reform, we must create a pathway to legal status for the millions of undocumented immigrants who have made lives for themselves and their families in the United States.

I happen to believe in immigration reform but I don't believe that that means that every person who has come into America should be able to stay.

Just because they broke the law doesn't mean they're condemned forever to a twilight status. So, I think that most Americans, if these people who have come illegally, as long as they pay back taxes, pay a fine, learn English and get behind everybody else, that's a key element of it. And most Americans now realize we can't have 11 million people sit in the twilight - the shadows of America, forever.

The policy is anyone who's here illegally is here illegally, does not have the right to be here. We'll decide whether it's in our interest to let them stay or not. Perhaps it is in our interest to let some of them stay.

America is a nation of immigrants. We have to have a functioning immigration system.

No one believed [the 1986 amnesty for illegal aliens] was tough enough on illegal immigration, and it didn't give enough flexibility on future legal immigration.

...you're never going to have a legal immigration system that works if you grant amnesty.

I want immigration reform to pass, I want people to be able to come out of the shadows.

Illegal immigrants in considerable numbers have become productive members of our society and are a basic part of our work force. Those who have established equities in the United States should be recognized and accorded legal status. At the same time, in so doing, we must not encourage illegal immigration.

We have to deal with the 11 million individuals who are here illegally. The bill that Senator [Marco] Rubio put forward, I think is a great place to start.

Let me tell you who the immigration system in America does not serve. It does not serve you the American people.

I really wish that we had passed a comprehensive immigration bill because that would've really helped our country.

Those who have come to the United States illegally should not be given amnesty or an easier path to citizenship over those already in line.

I think we should be pushing for amnesty and a path to citizenship for every undocumented person residing in the United States who has not committed a violent crime, with a special emphasis on keeping families together.

Every time anybody in Washington talks about legal status, amnesty, anything of that nature, it becomes a magnet that lures people in quickly into the United States.

We should have a path to legal status for the 12 million people that are here illegally. It means, come out from the shadows, pay a fine, earn legal status by working, by paying taxes, learning English. Not committing crimes and earn legal status where you're not cutting in front of the line for people that are patiently waiting outside.

There should be a path to earned legal status for those that are here. Not - not amnesty - earned legal status, which means you pay a fine and do many things over an extended period of time.

I am, you know, adamantly against illegal immigrants.

If someone comes here illegally, we owe them absolutely nothing.

The key here is to be fair to the 11 million [illegal immigrants], starting with the [2 million younger illegals] ‘Dreamers'....I’ve stopped letting 30 percent of the people who are mad about immigration determine how I behave. To those who feel like you should deport [younger illegals], boy, I couldn’t disagree with you more…. To the people who object to this, I don’t want you to vote for me because I cannot serve you well.

I do not support amnesty. I do not support driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants.

Any proposal that allows people who are here illegally to cut to the front of the line is amnesty.

Illegal aliens have broken our laws, and they shouldn't be rewarded with amnesty and immediate legalization.