Fox News Channel "Your World" - Transcript

Interview

Fox News Channel "Your World" - Transcript

MR. CAVUTO: Another development on Capitol Hill where just a few hours from now my next guest is going to take on every state handing out licenses to illegals. There are eight of them.

Republican Congressman Peter King of New York, welcome. So Congressman, New York down, seven to go?

REP. KING: Yeah. You know, Governor Spitzer, I'm glad he made his retreat, I'm glad he got this behind him. It was wrong from the start. I heard your previous guest. I think he was entirely wrong. The fact is the country has spoken. We want to have border security first. We have to put an end to illegal immigration. And Governor Spitzer's plan, while well-intended, was in totally the wrong direction. And the legislation I'll be introducing within the next few hours -- and already just in the first day we have over 140 original co-sponsors -- will very simply prohibit any state from giving drivers licenses to illegal immigrants.

MR. CAVUTO: All right. Now, the states come back at you, Congress, and the federal government more generally and say you're not helping matters any, because you still don't have a coherent policy period on immigration and what are we to do.

REP. KING: You know, the people who say that, their idea of a coherent plan is to give amnesty or legalization to the 12 million illegal immigrants who are here. There is a coherent plan. Now, there wasn't one for too many years. But the coherent plan right now is to have more Border Patrol agents, to have more detention facilities, to go after more employers who hire illegal immigrants and to secure the borders. That is the policy of strict enforcement, and that's what has to be done, that is being done, and we are seeing some progress in that area.

MR. CAVUTO: But you know, Congressman, what I worry about? In these eight states now, the genie's kind of out of the bottle, and the genie's not even legal. So now you've got potentially tens of thousands of folks running around with licenses who shouldn't have them. So let's say you succeed at stopping this. The reality is that they've already left the barn, right, and illegally at that.

REP. KING: No, you're right. I mean, there's a real problem out there. That's why I'm trying to move this as quickly as I can. That's why illegal immigration is such a major issue. And that's why this last summer we were able to defeat and knock back this attempt to legalize the 12 million who are here, because that would just encourage more to come just as when you give drivers licenses, especially in a large state like New York. It encourages more illegal immigrants to come in because it provides almost like a tone of hospitality to them. But no, if you're saying that there's a dangerous situation out there right now, absolutely. My legislation, when it's passed, will go a significant way toward stopping that. But we still have to go after those who have them now, and we have to make it clear, you know, the clock has run out on illegal immigration.

MR. CAVUTO: All right, Congressman, great seeing you again. Thank you.

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