Ahead of his Nevada event today, Marco Rubio is trying to have it both ways on immigration reform—the latest evidence of the utter insincerity of the Republican Party’s outreach to the Latino community. In recent remarks, Rubio simultaneously claims to support a pathway to citizenship while placing absurd, Trump-like roadblocks in the path of immigrant families:

“The first thing you have to do is stop illegal immigration, then, second, modernize our legal immigration system, and then, third, you can have a debate about how to even legalize people to begin with. And then ultimately in 10 or 12 years you can have a broader debate how has this worked out and should we allow some to get green cards and eventually citizenship. I personally am open to that. A lot of people are not. And we’ll see how that plays out over the next 10 or 12 years.” – Marco Rubio [Fox News, 9/22/15]

Let’s unpack that. If you’re into decades-long, Kafka-esque, bureaucratic nightmares, Marco Rubio’s immigration plan probably sounds pretty good. But if you believe that an immigration plan should respect the basic humanity and dignity of undocumented immigrants—and if you believe policy should be made to create solutions rather than new problems—Rubio’s plan is a dishonest, insulting mess. For the man who once helped write the Senate’s comprehensive immigration reform bill, Rubio’s utter abandonment of his past principles demeans the intelligence of Latino voters and others who are passionate about the issue of immigration reform.

THE RUBIO IMMIGRATION “PLAN”

Marco Rubio claimed to support a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants once illegal immigration is “under control” …

Marco Rubio said he supported a path to citizenship, but illegal immigration first “must be under control.” “We wanted to know where he stands on immigration after distancing himself from the reform bill he helped get passed in the Senate. He said he switched to opposing the bill after President Barack Obama’s executive orders on enforcement, which Rubio said encouraged adults and children to head for the U.S.-Mexico border. Rubio said he still supports major features of that bill, including giving undocumented immigrants who meet certain qualifications the opportunity to ultimately attain citizenship. But he said illegal immigration ‘must be under control’ before he will support reform legislation.” [Des Moines Register, 4/27/15]

… But Marco Rubio supported border security technology that likely could not be implemented for several years…

Marco Rubio voted in favor of an amendment to comprehensive immigration reform that would have “added a hard trigger on border security” as a prerequisite to establishing a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. “The Senate voted to scrap an amendment from the Senate’s No. 2 Republican on Thursday that would have added a hard trigger on border security as a requirement to undocumented immigrants’ pathway to citizenship. The amendment to the Gang of Eight’s bipartisan immigration bill from Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) was narrowly tabled 54-43, on a mostly party-line vote. A ‘yea’ vote was to table the amendment. The Gang of Eight mostly stayed together — with the exception of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who voted against killing the Cornyn provision. The other three Gang Republicans, Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Jeff Flake of Arizona and John McCain of Arizona, voted to table the Cornyn amendment, as did Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).” [Politico, 6/20/13; Senate roll call vote 159, 6/20/13]

• The amendment would have required a 90 percent border apprehension rate and a biometric entry-exit system to be in place before undocumented immigrants could gain green-card status. “The minority whip’s amendment would have required a 90 percent border apprehension rate, increased surveillance, a biometric exit system and national E-Verify system as prerequisites for newly documented immigrants to gain green-card status.” [Politico, 6/20/13]

• Bipartisan Policy Center: Deployment of biometric entry-exit would “likely need to proceed in stages, including technological assessments (currently underway), extensive piloting (planned for 2015), and a gradual rollout.” “Logistics, not raw technological capability, appear to be the largest barrier to biometric data collection for exiting travelers at air, sea, and land pedestrian crossings. […] The state of current progress and options for deployment suggests that an approach based on immediate and inflexible deadlines may not succeed. A deployment strategy that maximized the chances of success would likely need to proceed in stages, including technological assessments (currently underway), extensive piloting (planned for 2015), and a gradual rollout wherein early experiences inform national deployment. This sort of deployment process could maximize the likelihood that the system functions as intended and achieves its goals.” [Bipartisan Policy Center, 5/6/14]

… and then suggested that undocumented immigrants would have to wait at least 10 to 12 years for a “broader debate” about whether “some of them” could apply for green cards…

Marco Rubio said he supported having a path to citizenship debate only “10 or 12 years” after securing the border and modernizing the immigration system. “Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio has effectively ruled out granting legal status to undocumented immigrants if he makes it to the White House, even for a second term. Pressed by conservative host Sean Hannity during a Monday night interview on Fox News, the Florida senator said he’s open to a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, but only a decade or more after passage of bills to secure the border and modernize the legal immigration system. ‘I don’t think it’s a decision you have to make on the front end. The first two things you have to do is stop illegal immigration, then second you have to modernize our legal immigration system, and then third you can have a debate about how to even legalize people to begin with,’ Rubio said. ‘And then ultimately in 10 or 12 years you could have a broader debate about how has this worked out and should we allow some of them to apply for green cards and eventually citizenship.’” [Bloomberg, 9/22/15]

Marco Rubio said that undocumented immigrants “should not be allowed to apply for a green card for at least 10 years” so it would “not be cheaper or faster to become a citizen by having come here illegally.” “And what I have argued is, if you have violated our laws, you should not be allowed to apply for a green card for at least 10 years. And then, when you apply for a green card, you should have to do it through the normal, regular process, not through a special process created for you. So it could take a long time for someone to ultimately apply for citizenship. But I think that’s a fair way to do it. It should not be cheaper or faster to become a citizen by having come here illegally.” [CNN’s State of the Union, 7/19/15]

… and then hold that green card for 3 to 5 years before being allowed to apply for citizenship.

Marco Rubio: “Before you can ever be a citizen, you have to be a permanent resident. That means a green card. And you have to be in that status for three to five years.” “TAPPER: “That’s still your position, though, a path to citizenship once those other things have been taken care of? RUBIO: Yes. Well, what I said is, if all we can get is a work permit, it is better than what we have now. There are some that do not support that. But you have to understand what a path to citizenship is. I don’t think that’s ever carefully explained. Before you can ever be a citizen, you have to be a permanent resident. That means a green card. And you have to be in that status for three to five years.” [CNN’s State of the Union, 7/19/15]