In Spanish-language interview, Jeb Bush commits to immigration reform
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush sat down for his first Spanish-language interview as a 2016 candidate on Monday, committing to make comprehensive immigration reform a reality if elected president.
"I do make that commitment, and I know we can do it," Bush said in Spanish to Telemundo's José Díaz-Balart, in an interview conducted in Orlando, Florida.
Bush has said he supports a comprehensive immigration reform plan that includes a creating a pathway to legal status -- but not citizenship -- for undocumented immigrants currently in the country.
His position stands in contrast to some other Republican 2016 candidates who have put more focus on securing the U.S.-Mexico border. Donald Trump, for instance, has talked at length about the negative consequences of illegal immigration, calling Mexican immigrants who come across the border illegally "rapists."
In his interview with Telemundo, Bush said he was "hurt hearing somebody speaking in such a vulgar fashion."
Trump's rhetoric, he said, "makes the solving of this problem much more difficult. When we have politicians talking like that, we cannot progress."
Bush, whose wife Columba is Mexican, also spoke about his own family's Hispanic heritage.
"We eat Mexican food at home, our children are Hispanic, and yes, the Hispanic influence is important," he said.