Congressman demands arrest, deportation of illegal immigrants at State of the Union
An Arizona Republican is urging the arrest and deportation of any "illegal aliens" who attend the State of the Union Tuesday night, as many Democrats plan to bring "Dreamers" as their guests.
"Of all the places where the Rule of Law needs to be enforced, it should be in the hallowed halls of Congress. Any illegal aliens attempting to go through security, under any pretext of invitation or otherwise, should be arrested and deported," Gosar said in a statement posted to his Twitter account.
On Tuesday, Gosar said he contacted the U.S. Capitol Police and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, asking them to consider checking the ID of everyone attending President Trump's speech at the Capitol. Gosar also requested that they arrest anyone using fraudulent Social Security numbers or ID to pass through security checkpoints.
“Of all the places where the Rule of Law needs to be enforced, it should be in the hallowed halls of Congress. Any illegal aliens attempting to go through security, under any pretext of invitation or otherwise, should be arrested and deported," said Congressman Gosar.
— Rep. Paul Gosar, DDS (@RepGosar) January 30, 2018
Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Arizona, who is pushing for a solution for "Dreamers," responded to Gosar's tweet by saying, "This is why we can't have nice things."
This is why we can’t have nice things... https://t.co/2vLHDFvFgq
— Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) January 30, 2018
Gosar fired back to insult Flake, who isn't running for reelection.
This is why you got forced out of office. https://t.co/XWNdJUoEhC
— Rep. Paul Gosar, DDS (@RepGosar) January 30, 2018
AshLee Strong, spokesperson for Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, said he doesn't share Gosar's opinion.
"The speaker clearly does not agree," she said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has proposed a pathway to citizenship for up to 1.8 million young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, along with additional border security and restrictions on legal immigration. But that proposal isn't sitting well with all Republicans.
Gosar has long been one of the most vocal Republicans against any further provisions for anyone who came to the U.S. illegally, whatever the circumstances. "No amnesty — period," reads the Jan. 12 pinned tweet on Gosar's Twitter account.
No amnesty—period. pic.twitter.com/wFzMFeIMo5
— Rep. Paul Gosar, DDS (@RepGosar) January 12, 2018
A number of Democrats, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., are planning to bring young immigrants brought to the U.S. by their parents Tuesday night.
Time is quickly running out for Congress to come up with a solution for recipients of the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals provision, which Mr. Trump announced in September he would be ending. Those protections end March 5.
CBS News' Rebecca Kaplan contributed to this report.