Marco Rubio: Arizona Immigration Law 'Not Ideal' But 'Constitutional'

Before the Supreme Court of the United States gutted much of the Arizona immigration law on Monday, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., weighed in on the issue on an appearance on Fox and Friends on Fox News.

I think Arizona-type laws are not the ideal, Rubio said. But we have to understand why states like Arizona did it and if we really dont like Arizona laws then the federal government should do its job. If the federal government had been doing its job and spending money defending the border, an electronic verification system, these sorts of things, I dont think you would have Arizona-type laws across the country and I dont think theyre the ideal way to handle this issue. I have never believed in state immigration policies but I understand why a state like Arizona has it and I do believe its constitutional.

Rubio also went to bat for the immigration policies of former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate.

Well, I think hes been very forward leaning and I really am very happy with the way Mitt Romney has been expressing himself on this issue and all the issues really, Rubio said. But on this issue in particular, I think he has been the most compelling voice in favor of legal immigration that weve seen in quite some time.