Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake (R) has consistently attacked her opponent, Representative Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), for his stance on illegal immigration and border security. In an exclusive interview with Cactus Politics, Lake made her harshest comments yet, denouncing Rep. Gallego as "more radical than [Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)]."
In May, Rep. Gallego voted against allowing illegal aliens to vote in Washington, DC, municipal elections, reversing course after voting in favor of it last year. Lake called this "so typical for this group of Democrats" in her recent talk with Cactus Politics.
"First of all, this is not the Democrat Party; this is a group of Marxists and socialists who have taken over the name 'Democrat' and are acting like they are Democrats only right as they go into the election," Lake echoed earlier comments to Just the News, No Noise calling Vice President Kamala Harris a 'communist' for her price control scheme.
Does Texas have a constitutional right to defy Supreme Court on protecting its border?
Lake further noted Rep. Gallego's voting record, saying an examination reveals him as "socialist."
"He is far progressive; he is an absolute radical liberal. He is more radical than the 'Squad.' He is more radical than AOC. We used to call him 'Arizona's AOC,' and now we were wrong on that because he is more radical than that," said Lake.
Lake gave several examples of the Arizona Congressman's open borders policies, such as denouncing the border wall first proposed by former President Donald Trump and voting against the SAVE Act, which would reinforce the illegality of non-citizens voting in American elections.
"He voted against the border wall. He called it 'dumb' and 'stupid.' He voted against any measures to secure the border and keep people from pouring across. He voted to give everybody who has poured across asylum. He voted against the SAVE Act, which would have stopped anybody here illegally that poured across during the Bidenvasion from voting. That means he wants people to vote illegally in this country," Lake cited.
An examination of Gallego's voting record, reveals a long list of "No" votes against bills that intend to secure the border or restrict illegal aliens' access to programs and amenities stretching back to 2011:
HB 2191 (2011): Punitive Damage Awards
SB 1406 (2011): Interstate Compact to Build a Border Fence
HR 240 (2015): Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act 2015
HR 3009 (2015): Enforce the Law for Sanctuary Cities Act
HR 2213 (2017): Anti-Border Corruption Reauthorization Act of 2017
HR 3004 (2017): Kate's Law
HR 3003 (2017): No Sanctuary for Criminals Act
HR 3697 (2017): Criminal Alien Gang Member Removal Act
HR 4670 (2018): Securing America's Future Act of 2018
HR 6136 (2018): Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018
HR 2 (2023): Secure the Border Act
HR 2494 (2023): POLICE Act of 2023
HR 5525 (2023): Continuing Appropriations and Border Security Enhancement Act
HR 5283 (2023): Protecting our Communities from Failure to Secure the Border Act
HR 3602 (2024): End the Border Catastrophe Act
"He wants to give the people who poured in; now I am hearing the estimates are 16 million under Biden's tenure and Kamala's tenure. He wants to give them all voting rights and work permits, put them up in housing, and give them policies and big grants that allow them to have a down payment on a house while veterans are starving and dying on the streets in his own district. This man is an open borders zealot and radical, and he is lying to the people of Arizona," Lake concluded.
Border Wall
Vice President Kamala Harris recently announcing her support for the very same Border Protection bill Gallego voted against, a measure that funding the construction of a borders security wall.
When asked about whether he supported reinstalling the “Remain in Mexico”, a Trump policy that Republicans often cite as being effective, Gallego was hesitant to credit the policy. He spoke about how the policy would make it "harder on Mexico."
"No. When you do this kind of stuff, its got to be comprehensive, right? There is no one shot deal that's going to take care of everything," said Gallego.
Gallego was quick to shut down the idea of a border wall being effective
The issue of illegal immigration is at the very top of the list of issues concerning voters.
