Giuliani lays out immigration plan to Latino group

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) told members of the Latino Coalition on Tuesday that U.S. immigration policy demands a complex answer that should include tamper-proof ID cards for new immigrants, a border fence and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented workers.

“We have to look at illegal immigration from the point of view of what makes America more secure,” Giuliani said.

{mosads}He also advocated establishing a database of all immigrants, saying the U.S. needs a “system that identifies people and why they’re coming here.”

Having 12 million undocumented immigrants in the country “makes it easier for terrorists and drug-dealers to hide,” said Giuliani, who is the frontrunner for the GOP presidential nomination. According to the former mayor, lowering that number would make it easier to find terrorists.

Giuliani wants undocumented workers to come forward and claim citizenship “if they’re making an honest contribution.” He added that adherence to American ideals is what makes an American citizen, and that those who have come to the U.S. to make an honest living should be afforded official citizenship.

Giuliani stopped short of calling this “amnesty,” however.

“Of course we shouldn’t have amnesty,” the former mayor said. “People here legally should be at the front of the line.”

Undocumented immigrants who sign up for the pathway to citizenship should have to pay penalties and back taxes, and must demonstrate that they speak English, Giuliani said.

The group of Latino businessmen and -women applauded Giuliani’s speech, which stressed the hard-working egalitarianism of American citizenship and the efficacy of promoting business to curb unemployment.