Immigration hardliner Rep. Steve King offered his take Wednesday on President Trump's recent decision regarding DACA. No surprise, King showed zero empathy for DACA recipients, even those who came to the U.S. when they were children.
“They came here to live in the shadows and we’re not denying them that opportunity to live in the shadows,” King told NBC News when asked about what options immigrants would have after the DACA program expired.
“They should make up their own mind, but they also need to be exposed to the enforcement of the law,” King added.
The Iowa congressman has a history of sharing his controversial beliefs on immigration and race. On cable news in July, for example, King openly questioned what contributions nonwhites have made in modern society. He later defended Trump's claim that undocumented immigrants illegally casted votes against him in the election. He has described himself as a "champion for Western civilization" — a not-so-subtle reference to white nationalism.
On Wednesday, King advocated for the removal of immigrants who are currently protected under DACA.
“If they’re encountered by law enforcement officials, the law requires that they’d be placed in removal proceedings,” King said. “That’s the law and if you’re going to waive the application of the law, to groups of people, it is amnesty. And amnesty in America, with regard to immigration, is a reward for immigration lawbreakers and is a pardon for immigration lawbreakers coupled with their reward of the objective of their crime.”
King suggested that the solution to the "DACA dilemma" was to secure the southern border so that America would no longer have to deal with an undocumented population.
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