‘Meet the Press’ transcript for June 24, 2007

MR. RUSSERT:  A woman comes from Mexico...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

MR. RUSSERT:  ...marries an American man...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

MR. RUSSERT:  ...has a baby.  Do you send her home?

MR. BUCHANAN:  No, of course not.  If she’s here—I mean, if she’s the wife

of an American citizen, the baby’s a citizen, the American’s a citizen and his

wife can stay.  Of course not.  But if she walks across the border, as many of

them do.  I think something like two thirds of the babies in Los Angeles born,

women come into the country, cross the border, they have a baby, the baby’s an

anchor baby, entitled to a lifetime of social welfare benefits and

citizenship.  That’s not what citizenship should mean in our country.@

REP. GUTIERREZ:  Let me, let me, let me just try to respond very, very quickly.  You know, the tone and the texture of the debate that Pat has brought here to MEET THE PRESS is really what is wrong with this debate.  We need to have a debate that doesn’t chastise people, that doesn’t criminalize people, that doesn’t cast a shadow over everyone.  The fact is, the vast majority—the vast, the overwhelming majority of immigrants who come here to this country come here to work hard...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  ...sweat, toil and make our country a better place.  And to cast aspersions on them...

MR. BUCHANAN:  I’m not casting...

REP. GUTIERREZ:  ...and to generalize them all—let me just finish, Pat.

MR. BUCHANAN:  Well, let me ask you a question.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  If I could just finish.

MR. BUCHANAN:  Sure.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  And to cast aspersions on them as though they were—is what is wrong with the texture and the tone of this debate.

MR. BUCHANAN:  All right.  OK.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  And let me just—let me try to respond to issues that you have raised.  The fact is that our economy is strong and vibrant.

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  Pat, 60 percent of our work force...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  ...is part of the baby boomer generation.

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

REP. GUTIERREZ:  In 20 years, 79 million Americans, the youngest of those 79 million Americans, 60 percent, will be 63 years of age.  They will need to be replaced in our work force if we’re to keep our work force...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Can I—can I tell you now where you’re wrong?

REP. GUTIERREZ:  ...vibrant and strong.

MR. BUCHANAN:  All right.  (Unintelligible)...

REP. GUTIERREZ:  I just want to—I just want to finish on the second issue that you brought up.

Mr. BUCHANAN:  All right.

RUSSERT:  Let me—stay on the employment issue.

MR. BUCHANAN:  OK, let’s do the employment issue.

MR. RUSSERT:  Let me—let me frame it with a Wall Street Journal editorial and offer this.

MR. BUCHANAN:  All right.

MR. RUSSERT:  And this is the Pew Hispanic Center did this research and provided these numbers.

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

MR. RUSSERT:  According to the Pew Hispanic Center, “illegal immigrants represents less than 5 percent of the U.S.  work force, yet they make up 24 percent of those working in farming occupations...”

MR. BUCHANAN:  Mm-hmm.

MR. RUSSERT:  “...17 percent in cleaning services, 14 percent of construction laborers and 12 percent of those in food preparation industries.  Many of these occupations are among those expected to grow the fastest in coming decades.”

If those numbers are accurate—and no one challenges them...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Right.  They are accurate.

MR. RUSSERT:  ...if you take those workers and ship them back to their native countries...

MR. BUCHANAN:  Uh-huh.

MR. RUSSERT:  ...what happens to our economy?

MR. BUCHANAN:  First, I don’t think you’d have to ship all the workers back.  But secondly, look, Tim.  Let’s take one of those figures.  Was construction 14 percent?

MR. RUSSERT:  Yes.

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