Romney Slams Giuliani On Immigration

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Thursday that Rudy Giuliani's policies as New York mayor helped open the nation's doors to illegal immigrants.

Romney claimed that, as mayor of the nation's most populous city for eight years, Giuliani created an environment that lured illegal workers by sheltering them. The message broadcast from Giuliani's City Hall, Romney said: "We will protect you here."

"He welcomed illegal aliens to the city," Romney told reporters after appearing before about 200 supporters at a hotel. "That sanctuary state of mind is one of the reasons we have so many illegal immigrants in our country today."

Giuliani's campaign didn't directly respond to the criticism, but said the former Massachusetts governor is trying to radically recast his record on immigration.

"Under Gov. Mitt Romney the number of illegal immigrants skyrocketed, while he recommended millions of dollars in state aid to numerous sanctuary cities and to companies employing illegal immigrants, not to mention the illegals working on his own lawn," Giuliani spokeswoman Maria Comella said in a statement.

Romney has been routinely raising illegal immigration in campaign appearances and advertisements to draw distinctions between himself and other contenders. The issue is particularly sensitive in Iowa's conservative western region, given the influx of immigrants coming to work in fields and factories in recent years.

In his remarks to supporters, who welcomed him with a standing ovation, Romney said the nation values legal immigration but must stop programs that reward or entice illegal workers to enter the U.S. He said it would be a mistake to grant driver's licenses to illegal workers, a day after Gov. Eliot Spitzer backed away from a plan to do that in New York.

Romney has also proposed bolstering border fence patrols and imposing tax penalties on employers who hire illegal aliens after creation of an employment eligibility card.