In announcing run, Santorum delivers toughest message of any Republican on immigration

By: American Decency Staff

In his June 6, 2011 speech declaring his first run for the presidency, former Sen. Rick Santorum didn't mention immigration. On Wednesday, announcing a second race and seeking to win the support of displaced and discouraged American workers, Santorum laid out the toughest position on immigration of any candidate in the large 2016 GOP field.

Speaking at a manufacturing firm in Cabot, Pennsylvania, Santorum described the economic troubles his home state has experienced for decades. "In the late 70s, like many of you, we saw the economic devastation here in southwestern Pennsylvania and across this country, particularly in the area of manufacturing, as a result of the excesses and indifference of big labor, big government, and yes, big business," Santorum said. "We lost 100,000 jobs in what seemed to be overnight. That has to, and did, leave a mark on all of us."

Part of the problem, Santorum said, has been the arrival of millions of unskilled immigrants — legal and illegal — in the United States. "American workers deserve a shot at [good] jobs," Santorum said. "Over the last 20 years, we have brought into this country, legally and illegally, 35 million mostly unskilled workers. And the result, over that same period of time, workers' wages and family incomes have flatlined."

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