SPRINGFIELD, IL – As March 17th nears and early voting commences, primary contestants are notching up efforts to gain voters' attention – and the Republicans vying to challenge US Senator Dick Durbin in November are among them.
Sangamon County Republican Dr. Tom Tarter is blasting Republican former Lake County sheriff Mark Curran over his history of taking a soft stance on the immigration issue.
"Never Trumper Mark Curran has a long history of straying from the Republican platform and the president, especially on issues of immigration, one of President Trump’s key agenda items," the Tarter campaign said in a press release Tuesday.
The campaign outlined Curran's history:
- In 2013, Curran was an outward supporter of the same immigration plan as Dick Durbin, calling for amnesty for illegal immigrants who have illegally crossed the border. He took an even more liberal position than President Obama and was “upset” at Obama for being too conservative on the issue when Obama was deporting those who crossed the border illegally.
- In 2015, while participating in an illegal immigration protest in Chicago, Curran called Trump “blind” because of his immigration stance before leading the audience in a prayer to save Trump “from the fires of hell.”
- In 2016, after President Trump was elected, Curran spoke to a crowd of over 100 people at Cristo Rey St. Martin College Prep. At that event Curran said he would be, “taking a stand against ICE” and stood in solidarity with illegal immigrants.
- In 2017, Curran supported the liberal policy called the Illinois TRUST Act which prevents illegal immigrants from being arrested and severely limits the ability of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to effectively do their jobs. This is the exact type of legislation that President Trump railed against during his recent State of the Union address.
“Supporters of President Trump have a clear choice in this election. Mark Curran has a long record as being extremely liberal on immigration and opposing our president. I am the only conservative Republican in the race to defeat Dick Durbin. I am also the only candidate that can be trusted to stand with President Trump and build the southern border wall.”
Curran insists he support the president and his efforts to build the wall.
He said in the Daily Herald's questionnaire:
I was a proponent of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill of 2013. I supported the bill because it gave us the necessary border security and addressed the undocumented population. The bill passed the Senate 62-38 and died in the House. The reality of legislation is that it will never be perfect and neither side will ever get everything they want.
We are living in a divided country. Border Security is more important today than it was in 2013. We face the danger of potential terrorists coming into America as well as dangerous substance like fentanyl and heroin that have destroyed so many American lives. We must secure our borders.
… I support a wall, drones, increased funding for Border Patrol as well as Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Other candidates in the IL GOP US Senate primary on March 17th are Peggy Hubbard, Dr. Robert Marshall and Casey Chlebek.
