Montana Congressional Candidate Says U.S. Should Resurrect 'Operation Wetback'

A real estate investor who is vying for a congressional seat in Montana says he has the solution to illegal immigration.

"It was called 'Operation Wetback' and that policy repatriated about 1.4 million illegal aliens that were in America from Mexico," KXLF TV’s website quoted Drew Turiano, who describes himself as a Christian Tea Party candidate, as saying. "He repatriated them along with their American-born children. President Eisenhower did that, it was called Operation Wetback. I think America needs another Operation Wetback.”

The congressional election takes place next year.

Turiano, the fifth Republican in the primary race to replace fellow GOP Rep. Steve Daines, who plans to run for the U.S. Senate, said the mass deportations of the Eisenhower era can be duplicated, though there are many more undocumented immigrants in the country now.

"What will it take to repatriate maybe 20 million, maybe 20,000 officials?" he said, according to KXLF. "It's not that difficult. It was done once in American history. It can be done again."

The United States actually is seeing a record number of deportations – nearly 2 million – since Obama has been president.

Turiano also opposes abortion and thinks that President Obama should be impeached.

In the GOP primary, Turiano would be facing state Sen. Matt Rosendale, former state Sen. Corey Stapleton, and former state Sen. Ryan Zinke.

Democrats John Lewis, the former state director for U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, Melinda Gopher, a paralegal and civil rights activist, and Independent Shawn White Wolf, a counselor with the Montana United Indian Association, have said they plan to run.

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