Eric Johnson: Prison camps for illegal immigrants
Eric Johnson said Friday that he wanted to round up illegal immigrants in Georgia and he was willing to build prison camps to house them for deportation if elected governor
“If we have to set up a Guantanamo Bay of Georgia, I would do it," the Savannah Republican said at a debate among five of the seven Republican candidates for governor being taped at WSB TV.
The debate was hosted by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and PolitiFact Georgia, WSB TV and WSB Radio, and the League of Women Voters. It will air Saturday on WSB TV.
Johnson, a former state senator, far surpassed immigration positions taken by other Republican or Democratic candidates at their respective debates Friday.
At the Democratic debate taped earlier in the day, Roy Barnes, the front-runner among seven Democrats candidates, said he would sign an Arizona-type law to use state officials to crack down on illegal immigrants. But Barnes added that he was reluctant to use state dollars to pay the costs of incarcerating the illegal immigrants.
Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine, the front-runner in the race for the GOP nomination, said he wanted to sue the federal government to recover state money spent on the education, health care and prison costs of illegal immigrants.
“I’m tired of Georgia taxpayers paying for illegal aliens because the federal government has fallen down on the job,” said Oxendine of Gwinnett County. “I want to sue the federal government and get that money back for Georgia taxpayers.”
Ray McBerry of Henry County, who defines himself as a strict constitutionalist, said if he was elected governor he would work with local sheriffs to round up illegal immigrants and, if necessary, bus them to Washington and drop them off by the White House.
Other candidates took a more sober approach. Nathan Deal, a former congressman, said he would sign an Arizona-type law.
One member of the panel of questioners, Jim Galloway, a political columnist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, pressed Deal on how far he would go to "cleanse" the state of illegal immigrants.
"It is largely a federal issue," said Deal of Hall County. “We can be a responsible partner in that process."
State Sen. Jeff Chapman said he would be careful before committing the state to an expensive roundup of illegal immigrants. He said deporting them would be very costly, but he said passing an Arizona-type law might deter more illegal immigrants from coming to the Peach State. "Doing nothing is not acceptable," the Brunswick Republican said.
He and other candidates proposed cracking down on employers who hire illegal immigrants.
Two Republican candidates didn't show up for the debate. Otis Putnam, a native of Brunswick, and Karen Handel of Alpharetta, who now appears to be in second place behind Oxendine. The candidates attacked Handel for negative campaigning.
Meanwhile, it was clear that the debate was taking place in metro Atlanta, home to about half of the state's GOP voters. Four of the five candidates at the debate said they would support legislation that allowed local governments to approve Sunday alcohol sales, a piece of legislation that rural lawmakers have shot down for years.
Oxendine, Deal, Johnson and McBerry said they would not impose their own strong religious beliefs against Sunday sales of alcohol, saying it was an issue that was best left to locals. Only Chapman disagreed. "I would impose my personal views and veto that piece of legislation,” Chapman said.
The Democratic candidates’ debate will air at 10 a.m. Saturday on WSB TV, and the Republicans’ debate will follow at 11 a.m. John Pruitt of WSB TV was the moderator. In addition to Galloway, questioners were Condace Pressley from News Talk 750 and Lori Geary of WSB TV.
