Republican rep.: Young immigrants 'had a say' in crossing border

A Republican representative from Texas says that he opposes President Barack Obama's policy of halting deportations for some young undocumented immigrants because 16-year-old kids "have a say" in whether or not they cross the border with their family.

"Well, you are also talking about people that came over 16 years of age," Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-TX) told CNN's Soledad O'Brien on Monday. "At that point you had a say in it, and that looks more like amnesty. But you are looking at 12 and under people, it certainly looks -- I can understand that."

"You think a 16-year-old whose parents are coming across the border has a say in whether or not they are going to stay behind in their country?" O'Brien wondered.

"They're certainly in a position to have a conversation with their parents about it," Farenthold insisted. "Believe me, my 16-year-old daughter has given me input on everything -- pretty much everything the family wants to do."

Mediaite's Andrew Kirell noted that there was a big difference between the 16-year-old daughter of a wealthy congressman expressing her opinion and 16-year-old immigrants who have little choice but to follow their families across the border.

"Yes, the daughter of the 39th richest man in Congress, worth $8.57 million, is exactly like the children of the impoverished immigrants who decide to cross the border illegally," Kirell snarked. "Their situations are perfectly comparable, right?"

"After all, saying 'Daddy, I think we should go to Punta Cana next Christmas vaction' is exactly like saying “I think I should stay back here while you guys cross the border illegally.'"

It's not clear if Farenthold's daughter had a say in 2010 when he posed in pajamas with scantily clad women for We the People magazine.

Watch this video from CNN's Starting Point, broadcast June 18, 2012.