Rubio said he “absolutely” stood by his support of the bill, which was passed after he left the statehouse.

“It was very narrowly tailored to high-performing students who found themselves in a situation where they were brought here by their parents when they were 5, didn’t even speak another language except English and therefore couldn’t attend college because they were being charged like they were from out of state,” Rubio said.

The decision to provide in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants became an issue for then-Texas Gov. Rick Perry during the 2012 Republican presidential primary.

Rubio defended his stance, saying “we didn’t legalize anybody. That’s the issue here.”