Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R) said Sunday that he supports some principles behind the DREAM Act.
“Some of the concepts are clearly attractive,” Barbour said on CBS’ Face The Nation. “The fact that people come and serve in the military certainly ought to give them some status in the United States, whether it’s that they have the right to stay and to work and long as they pay taxes, as long as they don’t break the law. Maybe there should be a different path to citizenship.”
The ex-RNC chairman and adviser to the Karl Rove-affiliated Super PAC “American Crossroads” made the remarks as Republicans are working to court Hispanic voters in the 2012 election. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) is working on an alternative to the Democrats’ version that would include legal status for some undocumented people raised in the U.S., but without the promise of citizenship.
Barbour criticized Democrats for bringing up the DREAM Act during the 2010 lame duck session — when Republicans blocked it — and said Hispanic votes are “in play” for the election.
