The Republican Senate nominee in New Hampshire, Scott Brown, believes that the immigration bill crafted by the Gang of Eight that was passed by the Senate in 2013 would lead to a further influx of undocumented immigrants surging across the US border. Bloomberg Politics reports that Brown made the comments during a debate on Monday night.
“No, I would not have supported that bill, because it still did not address the one thing that is very important,” Brown declared. “Whatever we do on these very important issues, I can’t provide and continue to provide incentives rewarding that illegality by EBT cards, preferential housing. I did not believe the mechanisms in there were strong enough to address that very real issue, and I also believe that it dealt with the amnesty issue a little bit too leniently.”
Brown is challenging the incumbent Democrat senator, Jeanne Shaheen, who has reaffirmed her support for the bill, which she voted for last year. Brown’s opposition put Senator Marco Rubio in a difficult spot, given that he arrived in New Hampshire the following day to campaign for and endorse Brown but was part of the original legislation.
Since the immigration bill was passed, however, Rubio has tried to distance himself from it. He has attempted to undermine the chance of the House of Representatives passing the bill, or something similar, by opposing the possibility of the two chambers working together on legislation.