NBC: "Meet the Press" - Transcript: Children's Immigration Crisis

Interview

DAVID GREGORY:
Appreciate it very much. I want to turn back to the issue of immigration, turn to the other side of the political aisle, now, for the view on that crisis. I'm joined by Republican Congressman Raul Labrador of Idaho. Congressman, welcome back.

REP. RAUL LABRADOR:
Thank you for having me on your show, and good morning.

DAVID GREGORY:
So you've heard from Secretary Jeh Johnson of Homeland Security, "You've got to do right by the children," he said. That's got to be a bottom-line ideal here for the United States government. Is that how you feel?

REP. RAUL LABRADOR:
I do not. You know, as I was listening to Secretary Johnson's interview, the first half of his interview, I kept thinking that you just need to change your slogan at the beginning of your show. Instead of, "If it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press," it should be, "If it's Sunday, it's another administration official making stuff up on Meet the Press."

DAVID GREGORY:
What is it that he made up?

REP. RAUL LABRADOR:
It's really shameful. He made up a lot different things. If you look at what he said, he said that the number one reason these children are coming to the United States is because of the violence in these Central American countries. The reality's that the violence has existed in these Central American countries for a long period of time. The level of poverty has existed in these Central American countries for a long period of time.

But it's over the last two years that you have seen an increase in the number of children coming to the United States. He's saying that he's going to be able to stem it, and it's not going to reach 90,000 or between 60 and 90,000 children. That's not going to happen.

The own administration estimates are that it's going to be about 60,000 to 90,000 this year, that it's going to increase to 150 to 200,000 next year. These are their own estimates. And now they come on national T.V. and they say that they're doing everything they can to stem the flow? But that their number one priority is actually to make sure that we do right by these children.

The thing this administration needs to do is immediately deport these families, these children. I know it sounds harsh. I know it sounds difficult. But they're creating a crisis at this time that is actually going to harm these children. These children, as your own reporting said, these children are going to come through the border, they're going to come from Central America. Many of them are being raped. Many of them are being harmed. This is an outrageous thing that is happening to these children. And we need to actually take a strong stance against what's happening and against these illegal cartels.

DAVID GREGORY:
But for those who are hearing you and saying, "But you do sound harsh," that, as a practical matter, deporting these individuals, many of them children, to get back to Central America, may not be realistic, nor is it in keeping with what it means to be America, and for a lot of American families who think if you're fleeing something that's so awful, we've got to find a way to deal with this in a more humanitarian way, just as we have 11 million or so illegal immigrants who are here now who have to be dealt with in a way other than just deporting them.

REP. RAUL LABRADOR:
You know, Americans are great people. I think they're willing to deal with the 11 million if we feel that there's going to be border security. Right now, the frustration you see in Murrieta, the frustration you see all throughout the United States is because they feel that this administration is doing nothing about border security. If we can feel safe in our homes, if we can feel safe in our homeland, if we can feel that we can actually-- are going to be able to stem the flow of illegal immigration, I think the American people are--

(OVERTALK)

DAVID GREGORY:
But let me just stop you for a second, Congressman. First of all, the frustration is not just with the administration, right? It is Congress. It is House Republicans who have locked immigration reform that came over from the Senate that you opposed. But it is also an issue of the law that is the law of the land was passed under the previous president that makes it a different way to treat those illegal migrants coming from Central America as opposed to Mexico. They have to be brought in and detained and put through these proceedings. That is the law that Congress passed.

REP. RAUL LABRADOR:
That's a good point. In 2008, the law was passed. And I think we need to change that law. We shouldn't be treating the children from Central America any different than we treat the children from Mexico and Canada. And I think that is something that I will join the administration is doing. I don't think we should be doing that.

But I think you need to realize that, in 2008, the law was changed. And in 2009, there wasn't a huge major change in the number of children that came to the United States. In 2010, there wasn't a huge change. And in 2011, there wasn't a huge change, either.

And as soon as the administration, in 2012, decided to do DACA, which is the Deferred Action Program, that's when the number of children started moving up. And that's because these criminal cartels in South and Central America decided to start advertising that there was a free pass.

I agree with Secretary Johnson that these children should not be allowed to stay. But even in his statements today, he wouldn't even answer your question, whether we were going to deport these children or not. The best, safest message that we can send to Central America, if you want to let Central American families know that they're not going to be able to-- they shouldn't be bringing their children to the United States, is by sending these children back in a humanitarian way. We can do it safely. We can do it efficiently.

DAVID GREGORY:
All right. Congressman, Labrador, as always, thank you very much for your views and for being here this morning.

REP. RAUL LABRADOR:
Thank you.

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