Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich doesn't seem to share the view of many of his fellow Republicans that Democrats are happy to see the flood of illegal immigrants crossing the border.
Urgent: Don't Underestimate Your Risk for Heart Disease. Free Online Test Now
"I doubt very much if Sen. Dianne Feinstein who authored that particular amendment to the bill that passed in 2008 meant for it to potentially next year have 140,000 people — legally — crossing the border under the law," Gingrich said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."
But Gingrich also said something must be done to curb the rise in illegal border crossers. The number of unaccompanied minors from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras crossing the border from Mexico has doubled since last year, with more than 52,000 caught since October.
Gingrich said that while Americans must confront the fact that there are lots of "deep personal stories" among the border crossers, it impossible for the country to absorb 165 million people. Most say they are fleeing violence in their home countries, but Gingrich said violence is a problem throughout the world.
"Sudanese — violence. Iraq — violence. Syria — violence. Much of west Africa — violence. Nigeria — violence," Gingrich said. "There's got to be some rule of law that says, we get to defend our own country, and we get to defend our border."
"We are [confronting] deep structural problems, whether it's the Veterans Administration, the Middle East, the border. And neither party has figured out a way to start offering really deep solutions. And shallow solutions just don't work."
Related Stories: