Beto O'Rourke: 'If immigration is a problem, it's the best possible problem'

(Image credit: Carlo Allegri / Reuters)

published 14 March 2019

Immigration might be a problem, but it's a good one to have, 2020 Democrat Beto O'Rourke said on Thursday.

O'Rourke in his 2020 announcement video mentioned immigration as one of the issues of his campaign, saying that "all of us, wherever you live, can acknowledge that if immigration is a problem, it's the best possible problem for this country to have." The extremely positive take on the issue diverges somewhat from other Democratic candidates, who have said they would seek "smart border security" and "reject" a border wall, but haven't gone quite so far as to open themselves up to the risk that critics will claim they believe illegal immigration is a good thing.

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In the lead-up to his campaign launch, O'Rourke has been somewhat vague about the specifics of his immigration plan; when asked in a Washington Post interview in January what should be done about visa overstays, for example, O'Rourke said, "I don't know," offering one possibility while saying that this is "something that we should be debating." He has, however, made clear that he does not support President Trump's border wall, and he has said he would take down existing barriers in El Paso. Brendan Morrow

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.

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