Cardinal George: GOP in 'Impossible Bind' on Immigration

Chicago - Cardinal Francis George is calling it immoral to deport illegal immigrants who've lived in the U.S. a long time, especially when doing so divides families.

The Archbishop of Chicago criticized President Obama's record number of deportations and ripped the rhetoric of some Republicans, such as presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who promise to punish illegal immigrants even more aggressively.

“I think they've got themselves into an impossible bind on immigration,” the cardinal said of the GOP.

“I think again, on immigration, you pay attention to the poorest who are right in front of you. And what we've got is 11 million people who are integrated into the fabric of our lives. Get rid of the criminals. And figure out some way -- not an amnesty -- but penalty and all the rest, to respect the lives of those people. It's not just the Republicans. This administration's deported more people than anybody else before them. The rhetoric is better on the Democratic side, but the practice is terrible.”

The cardinal suggested the moral dimension to deportation is obvious to those who watch it up close.

“Go down Friday morning to the detention center at 7 o'clock and watch the fathers be deported. Talk to the mothers and the children. You know, we see them. These are people in our parishes. They're there one Sunday. They're gone the next,” George said.

Without specifically referencing the DREAM Act or other proposals that would ease the plight of those brought illegally to the US as children, George said, “We should find some way to take care of the people who've been with us ever since they were very, very young.”

George pointed to passages in the Bible, including, "The principle is we're all made in God's image and likeness, starting with Genesis. So, you start with respect. And we're still human, no matter what legal status is. Laws are not absolute."

He said it's appropriate for America to protect its borders. But he opposed large-scale deportation.

"There are other ways to punish people, and to respect the fact that their families are here," he said.

The cardinal's entire interview is now online at MyFoxChicago.com. It will be broadcast at 8:30 Christmas morning on Fox Chicago Sunday.