Lucy Gellman Photo
Ted Cruz in New Hampshire Wednesday.
Henniker, N.H. — If elected president, Ted Cruz promised, he will reverse the policies of sanctuary cities and cut all federal funding of any that resist.
The Republican presidential candidate, fresh off a first-place finish in the Iowa Republican caucus, delivered that message to 300 students, faculty, and staff at a town hall-style gathering Wednesday at New England College in New Hampshire, which holds the nation’s first presidential primary next Tuesday.
He didn’t utter the words “New Haven.” But his message directly affected New Haven — which, by welcoming undocumented immigrants with official ID cards, publicly organizing against deportation raids, and instructing police not to inquire into people’s immigration status, has proudly joined the ranks of so-called “sanctuary cities.”
In between promises to restore America “to a shining city on a hill” through prayer and defeat ISIS by carpet bombing the Middle East, the Texas senator, who was born in Canada, wasted little time in calling out undocumented immigrants — and the sanctuary cities that welcome rather than hound them — as the largest reason for job loss, unemployment and federal overspending in the country.
If he is elected and city governments stunt his immigration raids, then he will bring those cities financially to their knees, Cruz promised..
“There are currently 360 jurisdictions that call themselves sanctuary cities,” he told the crowd as its members leaned forward, offering tsk tsks at every mention of the epithet “illegals.” “I will cut off federal dollars to all of them.”
“We have got to get serious about securing the borders and ending illegal immigration,” he added, calling the Obama administration particularly lenient on deportation and biometric tracking of those on temporary visas. “We’re gonna build a wall.”
Another Evangelical, home-school family in the family whose mom spoke out against immigrants. She declined to give her name.
If Cruz were elected and succeeded in the plan, New Haven would stand to lose $10.5 million a year for law enforcement alone, according to the city’s office of Management & Budget. That’s not including tens of millions more in public education, housing and transit aid.
Jalene Clark (in head covering) and family, with Cruz: “Authentic Americans” preferred.
“It’s almost hard to dignify a response,” mayoral spokesman Laurence Grotheer said after Cruz’s rally. “But it sounds pretty irresponsible to cut 360 cities loose like that.”
Cruz’s anti-immigrant message resonated with the New Hampshire crowd.
“I think he really does want to put Americans first. And I mean authentic Americans, not people who are here that snuck here, got in here, snuck in here, never left. Real American workers, real American families,” said Jalene Clark, a self-identified evangelical Christian who home-schools her five children. “We’re losing our jobs to people who are doing all kinds of activities. Some of them may be legal. Certainly some of those visas may be legal. But we’re losing our whole foundation in terms of our economy, and nobody is talking about it.”
Lucy Gellman and Thomas Breen are spending the week in New Hampshire with canvassers, campaign staffers and volunteers, and candidates. To listen to some of the voices from the Cruz town hall, click on or download the audio above. This is the sixth installment in a Soundcloud playlist of many political voices from the road.
Thomas Breen contributed reporting to this story.
If Sen Cruz's mother was a real American she wouldn't stoop to marrying a stinky canuck. Elect me president and I'll put MrCruz on the first bus back to Canada where he belongs.