Jeb Bush: When I said 'anchor babies,' I meant Asians, not Latinos


Former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fla.) clarified his recent use of the term "anchor babies," one many consider a racial slur, during a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border Monday. He deflected criticism that he's been calling for a crackdown on Latino immigration by shifting the focus to Asian immigrants' birthright citizenship.
"What I was talking about was the specific case of fraud being committed, where there's organized efforts," he said. "And frankly it's more related to Asian people, coming into our country, having children."
Bush was likely referring to cases of reported Chinese "birth tourism." The presidential hopeful also called out Hillary Clinton's campaign and others who have taken issue with his use of "anchor babies."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"This is all how politics plays," he said. "And by the way, I think we need to take a step back and chill out a little bit as it relates to the political correctness that somehow you have to be scolded every time you say something."
Watch his comments below. Julie Kliegman
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
-
Book reviews: 'The Mission: The CIA in the 21st Century' by Tim Weiner and 'The Aviator and the Showman: Amelia Earhart, George Putnam, and the Marriage That Made an American Icon' by Laurie Gwen Shapiro
feature
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in Gaza
Speed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
Sydney Sweeney's 'great jeans': why American Eagle ad is so controversial
Talking Point Series of adverts featuring American actress Sydney Sweeney cause storm around race and eugenics
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in Gaza
Speed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
ICE builds detention camps and ramps up arrests
Feature The Trump administration's deportation efforts continue
-
Trump executive order targets homeless
Speed Read It will now be easier for states and cities to remove homeless people from the streets
-
Columbia pays $200M to settle with White House
Speed Read The Trump administration accused the school of failing to protect its Jewish students amid pro-Palestinian protests
-
Florida judge and DOJ make Epstein trouble for Trump
Speed Read The Trump administration's request to release grand jury transcripts from the Epstein investigation was denied
-
Trump attacks Obama as Epstein furor mounts
Speed Read The Trump administration accused the Obama administration of 'treasonous' behavior during the 2016 election
-
Deportations: The growing backlash
Feature New poll numbers show declining support for Trump's deportation crackdown
-
Trump administration releases MLK files
Speed Read Newly released documents on the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did not hold any new revelations, King historians said