No retreat: Bush stands by his rhetoric on illegal immigration

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STAMFORD — In the dog house of hard liners in his party who oppose amnesty for undocumented immigrants, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush doubled down Thursday night on his recent remark that those who stay in the country illegally are doing so out of an “act of love.”

“The simple fact is, there is no conflict between enforcing our laws, believing in the rule of law and having some sensitivity to the immigrant experience, which is part of who we are as a country,” Bush told nearly 800 Republicans at the Prescott Bush Awards Dinner at the Hilton Stamford Hotel.

Bush’s keynote address at the Connecticut GOP’s marquee fundraiser — named after his late grandfather — was his first public appearance since made the “act of love” comment during a town hall event at the Bush Presidential Library last weekend.

Since then, Bush, who is testing the waters for a presidential run in 2016, has caught considerable flack from conservatives. Karl Rove characterized Bush’s remarks as “inartful.”

“This past weekend, I made some statements about immigration reform [that] generated a little more news than I anticipated,” Bush said. “It is not an American value to allow people to stay in the shadows.”

Neil Vigdor