George W. Bush Tells Congress To ‘Put Aside Harsh Rhetoric About Immigration’

In an interview Sunday morning, former President George W. Bush said Congress ought to “set a tone that is more respectful” of immigrants and to end such “harsh rhetoric about immigration.”

“I do want to say to Congress, please put aside all of the harsh rhetoric about immigration, please put aside trying to score political points on either side. I hope I can help set a tone that is more respectful about the immigrant, which may lead to reform of the system,” Bush said to CBS on Sunday.

The former President’s interview came days after he published an op-ed in the Washington Post calling for bipartisanship on immigration reform. Bush is also writing a book called One of Many, One, which focuses on paintings of immigrants. “It is part of, hopefully, creating a better understanding about the role of immigrants in our society,” Bush said on his new project. “Mine is just a small voice in what I hope is a chorus of people saying, ‘let’s see if we can’t solve the problem.'”

Bush also said that he is urging Republicans to support measures that would give undocumented immigrants a path to citizenship if they pass background checks and can pay taxes. When asked if he would lobby Republicans if President Joe Biden proposed a similar bill and he said, “I am right now … Whether my own party listens to me or not is another question.”