Email, Chris Evans, communications director, Beto O’Rourke campaign, Oct. 24, 2018

12:47 a.m.

The president's blatantly false accusation was based in the politics of fear and division rather than in facts. Beto did not vote to shield MS-13 gang members from deportation. He believes in holding MS-13 members accountable to their crimes and enforcing current immigration law that makes them deportable.

You mention H.R. 3697 but voting against this bill did not provide any shielding mechanism, or amnesty for MS-13 or any other gang members, since current law already makes immigrants who commit crimes related to gang activity deportable. You'll notice that the companion legislation couldn't even garner more than one co-sponsor in the entire United States Senate.

Beto believes in ensuring MS-13 members are held responsible for their crimes under our justice system and he believes in enforcing our current immigration law. But he opposes bills that would directly violate our domestic and international asylum laws such as those that protect gang violence victims, minors fleeing gang violence, and refugees. Violating these domestic and international asylum laws is how we end up with policies of family separation that take little kids from their parents, which Senator Cruz defended multiple times.

Thanks,

Chris