Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said Friday that immigration reform is needed in part because immigrants are “more fertile” than native-born U.S. citizens and can help offset population declines.
Speaking at the Faith & Freedom Coalition’s “Road to Majority” conference in Washington, Bush said the country needs an influx of younger workers to replace aging ones set to retire in the coming years.
“We’re going to have fewer workers taking care of a larger number of people than the country has a social contract with, to be able to allow them to retire with dignity and purpose,” he said. “We cannot do that with the fertility rates that we have in our country.”
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That problem could be solved with immigrants, Bush said.
“Immigrants are more fertile and they love families and they have more intact families and they bring a younger population,” he said, adding that immigrants also create new businesses and are an “engine of economic prosperity.”
The oft-discussed 2016 presidential prospect said the Republican Party failed to win back the White House in November because the party’s brand is “perceived to be tarnished.”
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“We haven’t really offered a compelling alternative” to Obama’s policies, he said.
Bush also spoke about the importance of reclaiming the idea of “family”— and recognizing that some families are “non-traditional.”
“Let me remind you, families don’t look all the time like they used to, and that’s okay,” he said. “We have to be supportive of a single mom or dad, or the grandmother taking care of young children, the non-traditional family.”
Bush didn’t give any hints as to his future national ambitions, but did tell ABC News that his parents are split on whether he should seek the White House.
“I think we’ve got a split ballot amongst the Bush senior family. Pretty sure that’s the case,” a smiling Bush said in a “This Week” segment to air Sunday.
His mother, Barbara Bush, said earlier this year that the country has had “enough Bushes” in the White House.
Jeb: Immigrants are "more fertile"
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