[Blackwell:] Well, the killings of two women allegedly at the hands of undocumented immigrants over the last month have now given more prominence to the issue of immigration, elevated the issue. The most recent woman who we just talked about was Margaret Kostelnik. And the case that started the conversation was that Kate Steinle killed by undocumented immigrant Juan Francisco Lopez Sanchez in San Francisco. Now Donald Trump highlighted that and he's continued to make it an even larger part potentially of the first GOP debate we'll see this Thursday. Listen to what Trump told our Max Foster this week.
[Donald Trump , Presidential Candidate:] I will build a wall and Mexico is going to pay for it and they'll be happy to pay for it because Mexico is making so much money from the United States that that's going to be peanuts. And all these other characters say they won't pay, they won't pay because they don't know the first thing about how to negotiate. Trust me, Mexico will pay for it.
[Blackwell:] Joining us now to talk about this, Democratic strategist Maria Cardona and Republican strategist Lisa Boothe. Lisa, I wonder if and I'd like to hear what you think about this if the other candidates will engage Donald Trump in a serious back and forth over immigration or if they will try to speak past him on this considering all the backlash he's received about his comments in his launch speech.
[Lisa Boothe, Republican Strategist:] Well, I hope they engage because this is an important issue. But I think it is important to differentiate between immigration and illegal immigration. Look, America, we allow one million people to come here per year legally, which is more than any other country. That's a great thing because we are a nation of immigrants. But we are also a nation of laws. So it's important to look at the louder point of illegal immigration and these deaths in Ohio and California really put that to the forefront. And look, if you look at sanctuary cities in the first nine months of last year, sanctuary cities denied 9,000 requests from ICE to detain illegal immigrants in local police custody. 62 percent of those individuals were either previously charged or convicted of a crime. So I think we do need to look at the aspect of illegal immigration in this country.
[Blackwell:] Maria, Secretary Clinton said that there seems to be a full and equal path to full and equal citizenship. Governor Chris Christie said just yesterday that it's pandering and, quote, "a path to citizenship is garbage". He was at this pizzeria when he said that.
[Maria Cardona, Cnn Political Commentator:] Well, I hope he continues to say those things, Victor. Because we have seen that the issue of immigration has been nothing but quicksand for Republican candidates in the past two presidential elections. And it will continue to be that because they will sink if they start talking about immigration the way that Chris Christie is. The fact of the matter is that the majority of Americans understand that immigration is a huge problem in this country. They also understand that the way to fix it is by passing a comprehensive immigration reform legislation that includes tough border security as well as a pathway to citizenship for those undocumented the millions of undocumented immigrants who have done nothing but support their families in this country, contributed to the economy in this country and contributed to the fabric of what our country is, which is a country of immigrants.
[Blackwell:] How big of a deal is this? Because this recent CNN poll shows that the issue voters care most about is the economy. Immigration policy here falls in third place. Lisa first and then Maria you finish up. How big of a deal is the discussion over immigration this cycle?
[Boothe:] Well, look, even Hispanics in this country care about jobs. Everyone cares about jobs. That's at the forefront of everyone's mind. So that's obviously the most important issue heading into the 2016 elections. But look, I think the difference between what Maria just said is differentiating between immigration, illegal immigration. Immigration is a great thing. We are a nation of immigrants. But we are also a nation of laws and what we have seen with these recent deaths in Ohio and California is the breakdown of our nation's laws, the breakdown in communications between local and federal authorities. And I think we need to take a real hard look at the laws and those broken aspects of the laws before we discuss comprehensive immigration. And look, if you look at the comprehensive immigration bill last year, that would do nothing to address the illegality at the border. That's the big problem here.
[Blackwell:] All right, Maria finish it up. 30 seconds.
[Carodna:] So two things, first of all the immigrant population is much less likely or the undocumented immigrant population much less likely to commit a crime in this country than Americans are. So let's just put to rest the idiocies that Donald Trump has put out there. And Republicans would do well not to repeat those claims and to focus on a real solution because if now, you're going to see them sink yet again the way that John McCain did, they way that Mitt Romney did after they turned their backs on a real solution which includes comprehensive immigration reform.
[Blackwell:] Maria Cardona, Lisa Boothe always good to have both of you. Thanks.
[Boothe:] Thanks so much.
[Cardona:] Thank you Victor.
[Paul:] Well, women coaching men. It's rare in men professional sports but that may be changing, Coy Wire.
[Coy Wire, Cnn Sports:] Outstanding, commanding, demanding women have made a huge splash in the men's sports world this summer. One of those women, Nancy Lieberman, became just the second female coach in NBA history. She joins us live after the break.