Jon Huntsman: Lower Levels Of Undocumented Immigration Show Obama Is A 'Failure'

Jon Huntsman went after his former boss, President Obama, tying his "failure" on the economy to lower levels of undocumented immigration. Essentially, he said the United States should be concerned when undocumented immigration is down, because it means that the economy is bad.

In terms of immigration, and illegal immigration, this president has so screwed up this economy, nobody is coming anymore. There is nothing to come for. There's not a problem today! Look at the numbers coming across. The numbers posted the other day -- lowest in four decades. So I say you know we have to secure the border, of course. We have to deal with the 11, 12 million people here. But let's not lose sight of the fact that legal immigration is an engine of growth for this country. Half of the Fortune 500 companies in this country today were founded by immigrants.

We have lost probably, well -- our market share of traveling tourism has gone from 7 percent to 12 percent because visa is screwed up in the nation. So you've got to look at the Department of Homeland Security. You've got to completely remake the way people are moving back and forth, our HB1 visa system, how we're dealing with the movement of people, how we're dealing with immigration. This is an economic development opportunity, and we are missing it.

Comments

[JLTorres]

03:32 PM on 12/18/2011

Let me get this straight. According to GOP world view the legal unemployed in this country are too lazy to look for jobs that the illegals know don't exist and therefore they don't even try to cross the border.

[BrokeInSoCal]

01:04 PM on 12/16/2011

The illegal day laborers still loiter and won't budge.

[jscratz]

09:29 AM on 12/16/2011

Just forced myself to watch the debate lowlights. My self- punishment therapy for the week.

[rubbercow]

11:22 AM on 12/16/2011

Wait, there were highlights!?

[JLTorres]

03:33 PM on 12/18/2011

You're better off flogging yourself, dude.

[jscratz]

04:03 PM on 12/18/2011

lol. But I did the same thing watching those id.iots.

[Dmpolis]

09:09 AM on 12/16/2011

Illegal from all over the world are not going back.They come on a visa and some do not go back they just move on .Mexicans are running from the brutal drug cartels and who can blame them, Now what can we do? Stop acting like some magic wand will make it go away and do what has to be done. Give these non- tax paying people photo ID green cards and a number so they must pay their fair share of tax. This underground economy goes untouched because of the prejudice against how they got here so we cut off our nose to spite our face. Unable to send them back they continue to work and not pay taxes. I heard of a woman who came on a visa from Europe and stays and works here who can make up to $1000 a week and not pay any tax on it because she does not exist in the system. If these people number 500,000 and don't pay tax ...do the math.Second those who now come for a job and do not have a photo ID green card are not eligible for work unless they have one which makes it easier for employers.

[cmr86]

09:31 AM on 12/16/2011

Blah blah blah

ramble ramble ramble

rah rah rah.

[RichTBikkies]

10:23 AM on 12/16/2011

Ah, yes, I can see YOU'RE intelligent and sane. Oh yes, there's nothing like a point-by-point demolition by logical reasoning of an argument you don't like.

A general remark on an unrelated matter: I have great sympathy for people who don't think because they can't, because it really does hurt their heads when they try it.

[Suresp77]

01:30 PM on 12/16/2011

precisely!!! the reason, however that nothing changes is because the present system is very convenient. Business gets cheap labor that they have to follow no laws with at all. Politicians get a reliable bogeyman to blame all our ills on, since people are getting more intolerant about blaming minorities in general and to an extent, the LGBT community. And they whip the ol' nativists up using this nonsense and making up lies about higher crime rates etc. to get them out to vote.

They tried this with Catholics, Irish, Polish, Chinese and each time, sheer need forced through to overcome that prejudice. We are at that point now- within 20 years our population of retirees will double: we will desperately need the younger taxpayers that these illegal immigrants represent, so change will happen, overnight.

[Karissa36]

09:02 AM on 12/16/2011

So wealthy and/or highly educated legal immigrants, who found Fortune 500 countries, will only come to the U.S. if lots of poor uneducated illegal immigrants are paying coyotes to help them trudge through the desert, and find jobs picking produce. Who knew?

[Suresp77]

01:37 PM on 12/16/2011

Karissa- wealthy and highly educated immigrants cannoty come here legally unless:
1. they are a blood relative or spouse of a citizen or green card holder
2. They are sponsorship by their company, which is happening less and less, due to expense and unless the individual is critical to a company's operations. Then they tie them down with a 5-7 yr contract with no wiggle room. If the co. treats the employee unfairly, he can't do a thing about it without risking his sponsorship.
3. diversity lottery- exactly how it sounds, yet also if one country has a lot of legal immigrants here already, say Mexico, then the chances of a Mexican getting on this lottery are extremely slim.

There is no self sponsorship, so engineers, it fold educated here in the US are forced to work illegally or leave.

[blueagle8u]

08:38 AM on 12/16/2011

WOW! Funny! And to me if there are LESS coming because of the Economy I say BRAVO! Stay the heck OUT!

[chapmanst]

08:33 AM on 12/16/2011

Oh my goddness what now? since we dont have a lot of immigrants who dont want to come here anymore (most likely because of the laws passed in the southern states) its obamas fault. these repubs will stop at nothing to discredit him. but I will say it again if you set a trap for somebody else you will fall into it yourself.
Obama 2012 Yeah!!!!!

[MyAhaMoment]

08:25 AM on 12/16/2011

Oh, I almost agreed with him for a minute that a poor ecomony would send immigrants packing, but I thought he was referring to illegal ones. Naw, he's just concerned about the legal investor type. So, it's Obama's fault that all of the policies that got put in place over the past three decades to encourage businesses to move overseas has actually worked, and that free-trade status with China has had no effect on our economy. And of course, Congress has had no dog in this fight, they've just sat passively by watching the President implement bad executive order after bad and laughing while they fail. Yeah, right, sure. I thought Huntsmen might have been a viable opponent for Obama, but I see he has decided to jump on the Obama-bashing bandwagon just to get some attention.

[dbishop76]

08:25 AM on 12/16/2011

This reminds me of these people blaming Obama for an unemployment crisis they say doesn't exist. Straw grasping is painful to watch.

[Left on Red]

08:24 AM on 12/16/2011

Well, so much for the theory that Huntsman was the cream of the crop.

[jscratz]

09:18 AM on 12/16/2011

I also thought Huntsman was one of the few smart ones in the GOTP circus.......... NOT !!!!!

[sarahfigueroa207]

08:23 AM on 12/16/2011

Wait!! Does that mean that when the economy does turn around and illegal immigration goes back up, it will be the fault of the sitting president for improving the economy?????

[new beginning]

01:43 PM on 12/19/2011

We'll never know as long as Obama continues to draw the salary.

[Rimser]

07:50 AM on 12/16/2011

Talking in circles.

[Dustee]

07:41 AM on 12/16/2011

Huntsman: I think I get it now, I've got to lie harder about the president then my competitors!

[MyAhaMoment]

08:26 AM on 12/16/2011

Exactly, and said with far less words than me.

[Wandaz]

07:41 AM on 12/16/2011

There goes another republican talking out of both sides of his mouth...and there goes the only shred of respect I had for any republican candidates.

[EbonBear]

07:36 AM on 12/16/2011

Huntsman proves that he's a Republican and so, willing to utter bare-faced lies whenever convienient.

[jack Winn]

09:42 AM on 12/16/2011

yeah, but you gotta admit, he is nowhere near as funny as most of them. Just watch Newt's video there.