GOP Gubernatorial Candidate’s Immigration Stance Raises Eyebrows In Deep Blue State

California Republican gubernatorial candidate and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco has said he supports creating a “path to citizenship” for illegal immigrants living currently in the United States, a stance that has drawn scrutiny from conservative voters in a crowded GOP primary.

During a November interview with Pastura California that recently resurfaced, Bianco laid out his plan for allowing illegal immigrants to remain in the country.

“My family immigrated here from Italy and they came here for jobs, that’s what things were here for. You came here [for] a job, you said that America is the greatest country in the world and I wanna be an American and you bust your behind to make sure that you provide for your family. That’s what it was then,” Bianco said during the interview.

“The people that are coming here now, especially illegally, are coming here for free stuff, and then we are the ones that are paying for that. So the immigration system has to be fixed. We have to have a secure border.”

Bianco also said he believes the border “is secure right now,” though he argued the country faces a major problem with visa overstays and illegal immigrants already in the United States.

“But we have to address it, we have to make it right, whether they came across illegally into the country, legally or not, is irrelevant because we allowed it to happen. So now we just have to fix it. Secure our borders, don’t let that happen again, and now we have to give a path to citizenship to the ones that are here. We have to create a way for them to become U.S. citizens and … make their families great. If they truly did come here to make their lives and their families’ lives better, we have to get to a position where we allow that to happen.”

Bianco added that if illegal immigrants are caught breaking laws “and committing crimes, they gotta go back.”

“As the governor of California, we will fight for a path to citizenship,” he said, adding, “We have to start working for the people that are here trying to make California great and we have to make their lives easier.”

When asked about his resurfaced remarks, Bianco told Breitbart on Thursday that he’s “been very clear” on immigration and that “both sides of the political aisle” have used his comments “to benefit them.”

“Immigration is being made into a political tool, and California residents are the pawns,” Bianco said.

But it’s not the first time Bianco has appeared to favor illegal immigrants.

Last April, Bianco told podcast host Britt Mayer that he did not want his deputies cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), arguing that doing so could deter illegal immigrant crime victims from reporting offenses.

“I don’t want my line deputies, my patrol deputies, absolutely cannot be cooperating with the federal government in immigration reform because the people that we go to help are calling for our help,” Bianco said. “They are being victimized. And if they are afraid to report crime because they’re afraid to be deported themselves for being a victim.”

“If a woman is raped and she will not report that to law enforcement because she believes she is going to be deported, then we are failing as an absolute country because we should be only caring about who victimized that poor girl or woman or man, and how can we make sure we get that criminal off the streets and behind bars, and if they’re illegal, they need to be deported immediately,” Bianco said.

Bianco also reiterated that the United States “absolutely must have a path to citizenship for people that are here.”

In a statement to Breitbart, Bianco said he believes “every person who is in jail for victimizing Californians should be deported” and that “sheriffs operating jails should be cooperating with the federal government.”

“The sanctuary policies prevent that from happening and force the release of criminals back into our neighborhoods,” Bianco said. “Sanctuary policies place sheriffs at risk of criminal prosecution and removal from office because of ridiculous sanctuary state laws. The vast majority of residents, including immigrants, want that to end.”

The gubernatorial hopeful also said that “the threat of deportation cannot be used by criminals to prevent the reporting of crime.”

“A child being molested under threat of deportation should not be afraid of turning toward a deputy for protection,” Bianco said. “With all that said, sanctuary state policies need to be repealed. They harm our communities. As California governor, I will gladly work with other governors to pressure Congress to fix a broken immigration system.”