The 2016 Presidential Candidates on Official English

John Kasich is the only candidate to have cosponsored and voted in favor of an Official English bill in Congress. On March 25, 1999, in the 106th Congress, John Kasich signed on as one of 138 cosponsors to the Bill Emerson English Language Empowerment Act of 1999 (H.R. 123). Kasich was among the 166 cosponsors to the same ELEA bill (H.R. 123) in the 105th Congress. Most significantly, Kasich was one of 197 cosponsors of the same ELEA bill (H.R. 123) in 1996 that passed the House in the 104th Congress by a vote of 259 to 169, with 5 not voting. Kasich was among the 259 voting in favor of official English. The English Language Empowerment Act bills that Kasich cosponsored were the forerunners of today’s English Language Unity Act (H.R. 997) that would make English the official language of government, establish a uniform standard of English testing for newly-naturalized citizens, protect English in the workplace, and foster patriotic assimilation of newly naturalized citizens.

On the campaign trail, Ted Cruz advocates for the necessity of legal immigrants to learn English by utilizing the narrative of his father's emigration from Cuba and assimilation into American values, culture, and language. But Cruz has not issued a definitive statement regarding whether or not he supports making English the official language of the federal government. Cruz was elected to the Senate in 2012, but he has not yet availed himself of the opportunity to join on as a cosponsor to the English Language Unity Act (S.678) that was introduced by Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and cosponsored by Senators John Boozman (R-AR), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), David Perdue (R-GA), David Vitter (R-LA).

Donald Trump single-handedly brought the issue of English into the center of the 2016 presidential politics by criticizing Jeb Bush for using Spanish on the campaign trail. At a September press conference, Trump asserted in a very general way that English is America's language, and that it is necessary for assimilation and economic advancement. He underscored this view at the Reagan library Presidential debate in a back and forth with Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio. But Trump has yet to make a categorical statement that English should be the official language of the federal government.

Marco Rubio was elected to the Senate in 2010, but he has not yet availed himself of the opportunity to join on as a cosponsor to the English Language Unity Act (S.678) that was introduced by Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK). That said, next to Kasich, Rubio is the only other Presidential Candidate who has advocated for an Official English policy. In 2010, while campaigning for the Senate, Rubio took questions as part of a TV interview with HSPA and he defended Florida's Official English law--affirming his support for it in both English and Spanish. Moreover, Rubio's 2013 Gang of Eight immigration reform bill featured a pathway to permanent residency for approximately 11 million illegal aliens after 10 years and citizenship after 13 years--but without meaningful English requirements. To facilitate assimilation, Rubio attempted to introduce an amendment that would have required English testing, instead of an English class registration, for the illegal aliens. Rubio was not successful in his attempt to attach this amendment to the bill. Nevertheless, the final version of the bill that passed in the Senate had language requiring those with provisional legal status to learn English, and the media widely reported it. ProEnglish then did an analysis of the bill which proved that zero dollars were ever allocated for any kind of English testing requirement.

Ben Carson has not stated a position on the issue of making English the official language of the federal government.

Florida has had an official English law on the books since 1988, and there is no indication that Jeb Bush impeded its operation in anyway during his tenure as governor. As a presidential candidate, Jeb Bush has not called for making English the official language of government. At the GOP debate at the Reagan Library, Bush responded to Trump's criticism by defending his use of Spanish on the campaign trail. Bush claimed, in essence, that it would be disrespectful not to answer a question posed by a hypothetical high school student in Spanish with a reply in Spanish--even though the hypothetical student speaks English and embraces traditional American values.

New Jersey is one of 19 states that does not have an official English law, and there has been no movement toward making English official under Christie's tenure as governor. Chris Christie has not stated a position on whether or not he supports making English the official language of the federal government. After the dust up in 2015 between Trump and Bush over Bush's decision to use Spanish on the campaign trail, Christie made an ambiguous statement in a September interview on Face the Nation. Christie stated "I think, first off, all of us should speak English. Since – I think it'll help a lot in getting elected" but then added "anybody else who wants to do anything else, as far as I'm concerned it's up to them to decide what they want to do."

Hillary Clinton's statements and votes make it abundantly clear that she is categorically opposed to making English the official language. In 2007, Senator Clinton joined with Senators Obama, Kerry, and Reid to vote against an amendment to an immigration bill that would have made English the official language of government. In a 2008 Presidential debate with Obama, Clinton stated, "It is important that English remain our common unifying language because that brings our country together in a way that we have seen generations of immigrants coming to our shores be able to be part of the American experience and pursue the American dream. I have been adamantly against the efforts by some to make English the official language. That I do not believe is appropriate, and I have voted against it and spoken against it. I represent New York. We have 170 languages in NYC alone. I do not think we should be, in any way, discriminating against people who do not speak English, who use facilities like hospitals or have to go to court to enforce their rights. But English does remain an important part of the American experience." Clinton completely mischaracterized the official English movement which advocates for making English the official language of government, with exceptions for commonsense things like health emergencies and the courts.

Bernie Sanders has been opposing and mis-characterizing official English for nearly 20 years. In his 1997 book, An Outsider In The House, then Representative Sanders wrote "The "English Only" bill mandates that all official communication by the federal government be in English. This means that members of Congress from a heavily Hispanic or Polish district, for instance, would be prohibited from communicating with their constituents in Spanish or Polish. Election, tax, and other information needed by millions of citizens would be available only in English. President Clinton indicates that he will veto this legislation, and the bill will not go anywhere--not even to the Senate. But it passes (sic) in the House by a vote of 259 to 169. 8 Republicans, 160 Democrats, and I vote against the bill." In June of 2007, Sanders voted 'No' on a Senate bill that would have made English the official language of the federal government.

The Martin O'Malley 2016 campaign has not issued a statement on whether or not the former Maryland governor would support making English the official language of the federal government. As governor, however, O'Malley approved budgets that provided multi-millions to Casa de Maryland, a nonprofit that advocates for amnesty without English requirements and tax-payer funded benefits for the illegal immigrants in Maryland. In 2015, the County Council of Frederick, Maryland, held public meetings to discuss the potential repeal of its official English law. In full disclosure, ProEnglish actively supported the law and Casa de Maryland used its resources to actively oppose the law, which was repealed on a narrow 4-3 vote.

At the end of December 2015, Kasich announced that Jorge L. San Miguel would be the chair of his Puerto Rico team. Miguel is the Vice President of the Puerto Rico Republican Party, the party that vigorously advocates for statehood in opposition to Puerto Rico’s Democratic Party. Kasich, in praising Miguel, directly stated that he supports statehood after a referendum: “He [Miguel] brings a wealth of experience that will inform our efforts as we carry our message to Puerto Rican voters. I look forward to hearing his insights in order to move the ball forward on statehood for Puerto Rico, should the majority of Puerto Ricans choose this option, and resolve the status issue.” In advocating for statehood, Kasich did not advocate for making English the official language of the island. Earlier in the year, Kasich had been evasive on the issue of statehood, indicating only that he would need to look into spending reform before he would consider extending Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections to Puerto Rico’s central and municipal governments, and public corporations.

Ted Cruz has aggressively courted GOP delegates in Puerto Rico by means of surrogates. Cruz has not made a high-profile visit to the island, as have Clinton, Rubio, and Carson. Cruz has not issued any major statements for or against Puerto Rican statehood. He has not clarified what his stance on a referendum would be (pro-statehood, pro-commonwealth, or pro-independence). Most importantly, he has not indicated what the role of official English would be if Puerto Rico were to pass a referendum and Congress were to admit Puerto Rico to the Union as a state.

Donald Trump has remained conspicuously silent on the issue of Puerto Rican statehood. His campaign has not issued a statement regarding a referendum on the options of commonwealth status, outright independence, or statehood, and Trump has not weighed in on the issues of offering Puerto Rico Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections for its ailing government divisions, municipal governments, and public corporations. Trump has made no mention of making Official English a pre-condition of any potential application for a vote from Congress on Puerto Rican statehood.

Marco Rubio traveled to Puerto Rico in 2015 at the same time as Hillary Clinton. Rubio, like Clinton, advocated for statehood, contingent upon the passage of a referendum. Rubio took the additional step of calling for a two option ballot, either for statehood or against. Rubio avoided saying what percentage of the vote would constitute legitimacy in affirming statehood, although he did indicate that it would need to be higher than 50% plus one. Rubio has not called for Puerto Rico to make English its primary official language as a condition of statehood. Regarding Puerto Rico's debt, Rubio differs from Clinton in that he opposes extending Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections to the Puerto Rican central and local governments and public corporations until there has been significant spending reform.

Ben Carson came out in full support of statehood for Puerto Rico. Carson did not clarify whether statehood would be contingent upon holding a referendum, and did not stipulate that official English would be a pre-condition of admission to the Union. At a campaign event, Carson stated,"In a Carson administration, I will leave no stone unturned in my efforts to secure this important step in Puerto Rico's history -- establishing Estado 51."

Before entering the race, Jeb Bush traveled to Puerto Rico in April 2015 and stumped for Puerto Rican Statehood, contingent on passage of a referendum and a vote in Congress. Bush did not specify that making English the official language would need to be a condition of Congressional action on any potential vote for Puerto Rican statehood. After entering the race, Bush visited Puerto Rico in July of 2015 and called for debt re-structuring and Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection of the central and local governments in Puerto Rico.

Chris Christie's campaign has not issued a statement on the question of Puerto Rican statehood and the role of official English. Christie has made no campaign trips to the island.

Hillary Clinton supports Puerto Rican statehood, provided that a referendum in favor of statehood passes. Her campaign website issue statement ends by claiming "That question (the question of Puerto Rico's ultimate future) needs to be resolved in accordance with the expressed will of our fellow citizens, the people of Puerto Rico." Clinton gives no indication whether this would be a simple majority of voters or just a strong plurality. There is no clarification as to what the structure of the ballot would look like in terms of being a two option (statehood or not) or three option (statehood, commonwealth, independence). Moreover, Clinton gives no indication that Congress should mandate official English when voting on potential statehood. On her visit to the island in September of 2015, Clinton indicated her general support for statehood, and advocated for immediate Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections for the central and local governments and public corporations. Clinton also advocates increasing the Medicaid, Medicare, and Medicare Advantage funding rates. In Puerto Rico she stated, "I do not believe you can fix your economy through austerity alone." These policies obviously add up to a mis-guided attempt to solve Puerto Rico's sovereign debt crisis through more tax-payer funded programs from the United States and a Keynesian tax and spend policy on the island.

Bernie Sanders has remained silent on the question of Puerto Rican statehood and his campaign has not issued a statement on the necessity of a referendum as a pre-condition of Congress taking a vote on admission to the Union. Sanders traveled to the island in September of 2015 and blamed Wall Street for Puerto Rico's central and municipal government debt: "The lenders are not going to get 100% of their dollars back. They're going to have to take a haircut -- probably a pretty significant haircut." Sanders advocated the same policies as Clinton advocated for immediate Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections for the central and local governments and public corporations, as well as increasing the Medicaid, Medicare, and Medicare Advantage funding rates.

O'Malley visited Puerto Rico in August of 2015 and advocated for extending Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections to the Puerto Rican central and local governments and public corporations. He supported expanding Medicaid, Medicare, and Medicare Advantage reimbursement rates to match those in the US. During his visit, O'Malley made no statement regarding a possible referendum on statehood and whether, if passed, he would advocate for statehood. Thus he took no stance on whether Official English should be a pre-condition in the bill for any Congressional vote on admission to statehood.

Kasich’s overall campaign narrative often includes stories of his legal immigrant relatives, most notably his grandmother who knew no English and lived a hard-scrabble life, who assimilated and were born up by their faith as they made continuous sacrifices in order to achieve the American dream for the next generation. Kasich goes beyond merely opposing multiculturalism by upholding the universal principles of his Christian faith. He is willing to call terrorism and Jihadism “evil,” and not merely different but morally equivalent expressions of culture. Kasich’s campaign platform states, “The November 13, 2015 attacks on Paris illuminated the enormous chasm between the worldview of civilized people and the worldview of the terrorists who committed these acts of terror. There is no negotiating with this kind of darkness—we must overcome it. Unless we get serious about defeating the evil we witnessed in Paris, we leave the door open to similar attacks in our own cities. … Bullets may win battles, but ideas win wars. It is not enough to defeat terrorists and stand-down regional bullies. We must reassert our Western values of democracy, human rights, and individual freedom if we hope to secure the long-term stability of America and preserve our way of life.”

When he ran for Senate in 2012, Ted Cruz declined the offer of his opponent to do a debate in Spanish on the grounds that: "Most Texans speak English ... [My opponent] wants to do a debate in a language where the vast majority of primary voters don't understand it, because he doesn't want them to hear about his record." On the stump in 2016 and in debates, Ted Cruz repeatedly tells the story of his father's resistance against the Batista regime in Cuba, his immigration from Cuba to America, and his continuning struggle against Cuban communism. By means of this narrative, Cruz repeatedly emphasizes the tenets of American exceptionalism and the unique roles of political liberty, individual rights, freedom of religion, and free enterprise. Cruz's overall campaign narrative thus supports the process of assimilation of legal immigrants and shuns multicultural relativism.

Donald Trump has explicitly advocated that learning English is necessary for assimilation and to fully utilize economic opportunity. Trump's view on multiculturalism can be gleaned from his views of political correctness. Trump has steadfastly denounced the anti-free speech strictures of political correctness. Trump has specifically criticized political correctness when opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants and in arguing for a pause in granting refugee status to countries linked to ISIS or other terrorist groups until proper security measures can be ensured. Trump's campaign narrative of American greatness focuses on the rule of law, legal immigration, border security, and homeland security, while promoting assimilation of legal immigrants and economic opportunity for all who play by the rules. On balance, Trump's policies treat all law-abiding Americans equally and oppose special treatment based on identity politics and multiculturalism.

Marco Rubio's stump speeches generally tout the virtues of American Exceptionalism by stressing the political liberty, individual rights, and free market opportunities afforded to his parents that still remain unavailable to those living under the boot of Cuban communism. Rubio did link assimilation to official English policy in his amendment to the Gang of Eight immigration reform bill by mandating that one requirement of the 10 year pathway to legalization for 11 million illegal immigrants would be to pass an English proficiency test, and not just to be enrolled in an English class. Concerning the English requirement, Rubio stated, "I just truly believe that as part of any successful immigration reform, you have to have assimilation. And one of the quickest ways for people to assimilate into our culture and into our society is to speak the unifying language of our country which is English..."

At the Values Voter Summit, Ben Carson defended America as a force for good in the world against those on the Left who see it as a force for evil, and advocated for assimilation of legal immigrants into the mainstream of American culture. Carson recently stated that "Political Correctness is ruining our Country." Indeed, Carson took what is probably the boldest stance against political correctness of any candidate in the 2016 cycle. Carson inartfully stated on Meet The Press that he would not advocate electing a Muslim as President. He then clarified his position in an interview with The Hill by stating he did not intend that all Muslims should be banned from running, but only that he would not support a Muslim for President unless he "publicly rejected all the tenets of Sharia and lived a life consistent with that." Presumably, this entails the view that the Constitution alone is the supreme law of the land.

On a campaign stop in Iowa in September of 2015, Jeb Bush condemend multiculturalism and promoted assimialtion. In response to a reporter's question, Bush stated "We should not have a multicultural society." Bush explained, "America is so much better than every other country because of the values that people share -- it defines our national identity. Not race or ethnicity, not where you come from." Bush added, "When you create pockets of isolation -- and in some cases the assimilation process is retarded because it's slowed down -- it's wrong. It limits peoples' aspirations." Bush argued that assimilation is necessary for education and economic advancement, and mentioned that English is necessary for utilizing economic opportunity. However, Bush did not argue for making English the official language of government. Bush has never specified a plan for testing the English proficiency of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants he would put on the pathway to citizenship--even though those who immigrate legally are required to demonstrate English proficiency before achieving naturalized status.

Chris Christie is not known for soaring rhetoric of American Exceptionalism, but rather for his direct approach to problem-solving and steadfast refusal to submit to the canons of political correctness. In late 2015, Christie defied political correctness by advocating for a halt to the Obama administration's admission of Syrian refugees on the grounds that FBI Director James Comey could not guarantee that they could be fully vetted. In a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations, Christie stated "I will tell you, if something does happen, where American lives are lost, the American public should be relentlessly unforgiving to those who are responsible for doing the politically correct thing and not listening to the people who knew more than they did."

Hillary Clinton's 2006 book is entitled It Takes A Village. This folksy title conceals the progressive demand for a colossal administrative state, and cloaks it in the lingo of multiculturalism. But the slogan seems to have largely disappeared from Clinton's lexicon after her defeat in 2008 at the hands of Obama, whose rhetoric of hope and change more effectively advanced the statism inherent in the progressive left's multiculturalist ideology. The Hillary Clinton of 2016 is more pragmatic in her approach than the Hillary Clinton of 2006. In July 2015, Clinton and her rival candidates O'Malley and Sanders were attacked by the progressive left Black Lives Matter protesters because they had said 'All Lives Matter.' Unlike O'Malley, Clinton did not apologize to the protesters. Instead, she backed down to their political correctness and asserted that there is a nationwide epidemic of "systemic racism" in police departments and the criminal justice system. This incident shows Hillary Clinton kao tao to multiculturalism's primary weapon of political correctness.

Bernie Sanders is a registered Independent who caucuses with the Democrats in the Senate. He openly avows that he is a socialist, but on the campaign trail, he has explained that this means he advocates for social democracy on the European models of France and Germany. This leads to his policies of free health care and college education for all by raising taxes on corporations and individuals, as well as heavy-handed government regulation. The goal of European social democracy and Sanders's socialism is to replace the American tradition of justice, understood as the equality of all citizens before the law, with a radically egalitarian notion of justice, understood as equality of outcome ensured by social programs and wealth re-distribution. To his credit, Sanders does not cloak this ambition in the the standard leftist rhetoric of multiculturalism, identity politics, ethnicity, or gender. Sanders is an unabashed practitioner of class warfare rhetoric who is open about his full embrace of European socialism. It follows that the only kind of assimilation Sanders cares about is his desire to assimilate the free market and the economic freedom of individuals into an ever-expanding administrative state in which government runs via unaccountable bureaucrats instead of the duly elected representatives chosen by the people.

At the progressive left NetRoots convention in July 2015, Martin O'Malley was booed by protesters from the Black Live Matter movement for his earlier statement that "black lives matter, all lives matter, white lives matter." O'Malley later backed down to this political correctness by saying that his statement was "insensitive." This incident shows that O'Malley has a strong proclivity for the progressive multiculturalist view that the law should treat different groups differently, instead of abiding by the traditional American value of treating all citizens as equal before the law. When asked by reporters to respond to this incident, Jeb Bush responded with an appropriate mix of gravity and levity. Bush maintained that O'Malley did not need to apologize for saying 'all lives matter' and quipped "I mean, we're so uptight and so politically correct now you apologize for saying lives matter?" Bush added "Life is precious, it's a gift from God. I frankly think it's one of the most important values we have."