NEWARK, N.J. - A top Republican official in New Jersey told Fox News Digital that Democrats are putting greater focus on illegal immigrants as opposed to American citizens following Friday's Delaney Hall incident.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested during a protest last week in front of Delaney Hall, a privately operated Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility, while Democratic Reps. Bonnie Coleman Watson, Robert Menendez Jr. and LaMonica McIver were visiting the detention center. Tensions rose significantly, which ultimately led to Baraka's arrest, and now U.S. Attorney Alina Habba is investigating the incident. Baraka is slated to appear in court on Thursday for his trespassing charge.
"I think it's a very sad event, what happened, you know, the fact that Democrat Congress members, when Washington is in disarray, as well as the mayor of a city like Newark, which is nationally recognized for high crime, for violence, for so many things, that they would take time out of their days, out of their taxpayer-funded salaries, to come here and visit illegal immigrants when they should be focused on American citizens," New Jersey Republican State Committee Executive Director Kennith Gonzalez told Fox News Digital.
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"It's very sad, but it is great for the Republican Party. Simply because the majority of voters here in New Jersey understand that the Democrat Party is not America first, is not New Jersey first, and we have an election this November," he added.
Immigration and border security was one of the top motivating issues for voters last November, and polling indicated support for deportation of illegal immigrants both before the election and into Trump's presidency.
"Last year, we saw President Trump come so close to victory here in New Jersey because the Hispanic community despised Joe Biden's border policies and his illegal immigration shenanigans, and they voted for President Trump because the Hispanic community, ourselves, wanted stronger borders. We wanted, you know, safer communities," he said.
Trump won nearly 46% of the vote in New Jersey in November despite it not being traditionally considered a swing state.
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However, he said he would not be surprised if Baraka is the Democratic nominee for governor this November, given his recent arrest, which Democrats have said was the result of instigation from authorities, but federal officials maintain that he was not following the law. Meanwhile, Baraka has held firm in his stance.
"When the congressman came to the gate and was like, 'Mayor, they said they're going to arrest you.' That was a David moment," Baraka said Tuesday. "I could have gotten in the car and ran. I could have said, 'I'm getting out of here, maybe they'll arrest me at work or at home or whatever.' But I froze. I froze - not even actively or deliberately - my body froze. My body - my body froze, like, 'This is it, you're supposed to be here. Whatever they going to do, they going to do it.'"
Gonzalez said the "theatrics" may play well with primary voters, but it will likely not be appealing to a broader electorate.
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"I wouldn't be surprised if they vote for him in the Democratic primary, and Ras Baraka is the candidate this November. But when it comes to the majority of New Jerseyans, including the Hispanic community, we understand. Illegal immigrants who have committed crimes in these United States do not deserve to be here," Gonzalez continued.
"Mayor Ras Baraka is a candidate for governor, and although it looks now that he's going to win the Democrat primary based on these liberal radical policies, the voters in November aren't going to buy him," he said.
Fox News' Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
