Internet erupts after California Dem on debate stage 'admits quiet part out loud' on immigration

By Fox News · Fox News

Former Rep. Katie Porter , a Democratic candidate in California’s crowded gubernatorial primary, is facing backlash after saying illegal immigrants are driving population growth in the state — a claim long advanced by Republicans. "The job of the California governor is to protect every single Californian," Porter said after being asked if she would work with federal authorities to deport illegal immigrants at Tuesday's California gubernatorial debate. "The sanctuary state policy is designed to make sure that our state resources, the taxpayer dollars, the public servants that we have, are focusing on doing their jobs — which is not cooperating with the federal immigration authorities." KATIE PORTER INTERVIEW GOES VIRAL AS JOURNALISTS MARVEL AT DEMOCRAT'S MELTDOWN "These are Californians, they contribute to our economy, they pay taxes, and they’re one of the only ways that our state has been growing in recent years," Porter said of illegal immigrants. Gunther Eagleman, a popular right-wing X account, accused Porter of saying "the quiet part out loud," by stating that illegal immigrants have mitigated population decline in California. Republicans, including President Donald Trump, have accused Democrats of resisting efforts to deport illegal immigrants because it could cost them seats in the House of Representatives. Illegal immigrants counted by the Census help determine the total number of House seats a given state is entitled to when the chamber is reapportioned every ten years. "So she's saying Cali has too many seats in the House?" another X user said in response to Porter’s comment. While Trump and others have attempted to add a citizenship question to the Census in an effort to remove non-citizens from calculations determining the number of House seats each state has, the Constitution does not mention citizenship status in relation to congressional apportionment. NEW POLL REVEALS MAJORITY OF CALIFORNIANS OPPOSE THIS KEY BENEFIT FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS "Californi…