Republican Senate candidate Deb Fischer on Thursday positioned herself as a hard-liner on illegal immigration, pointing to her record in the Legislature as evidence.
Calling for stricter border control and workplace enforcement, the Valentine state senator said she would oppose any efforts to provide amnesty for immigrants who are in the country illegally.
"Illegal immigration is a threat to national security and the career politicians in Washington need to stop kicking the can down the road and enforce our laws," Fischer said.
The two-term state senator said she would "oppose any attempt to reward illegal actions" by immigrants who may have entered the country illegally or remain in the United States without legal status.
"In the Nebraska Unicameral, I've fought against the establishment's attempts to reward illegal immigration," she said.
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Fischer noted that she opposed legislation that provides resident college tuition rates for the children of illegal immigrants who are settled in Nebraska and supported a bill that would have required people to show photo IDs when they vote.
Although she didn't mention it in a news release, Fischer also opposed legislation this week that would fund prenatal care through Medicaid for mothers who might be here illegally.Â
An estimated 12 million illegal immigrants live in the United States, Fischer said.
In the Senate, she said, she would vote to increase the number of border agents and enforcement agents, implement a mandatory E-Verify system for employers to use in determining whether employees or applicants are in the United States legally and enact stricter penalties for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.