What happened to the Republican Party I knew?

This is not a settled issue in the Republican Party, and when they set their platform at the Convention, I expect it to be a contested plank. What to do with illegal residents currently in the United States divides many.
Personally, I think denying government benefits would solve the problem on the supply end.

I do weep for the Republican party, as my three favorite presidents of all time were Republicans: Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. I place the beginning of the fall of the Republican party somewhere between Nixon's and Reagan's administration. Whether it be their courting of the Evangelical Right, the starting of the war on drugs, or the introduction of trickle-down economics. The point is, somewhere along the line the Republican party ceased being for small and limited government. They got into peoples personal lives, started being for excessive military spending, and overall got away from their more libertarian roots.

Thankfully, libertarian is becoming more popular, in fact the Libertarian party might even eventually become a major party, drawing from both libertarian republicans and libertarian democrats as more and more people become fed up with the status quo.

"Reagan's Amnesty" was a compromise. The Republicans wanted the secure borders. The Democrats wanted more voters on their roles. They compromised. The Democrats got their voters, but the Republicans didn't get their secure borders. That's the nature of compromise. You surrender your principles and get nothing in return.

Look at the Missouri Compromise. The Abolitionists wanted to halt the spread of slavery. The Democrats wanted to expand their "peculiar institution". They compromised and slavery continued. Only when the Abolitionists formed the Republican Party and stood by their principles was slavery ended, but the Democrats hung onto their "peculiar institution" without the chains. First with the Jim Crow laws, then with Johnson's Great Society. Thus blacks remain enslaved to this day. That too is the nature of compromise.

Now it seems that the GOP has become so accustomed to abandoning their principles they have joined the Democrats. Neither party has any principles. They have only ambition to take and keep power.

Who allowed this? We the People. We even encourage it. Who can change it? We the People. No one else.

I will propose a better question.

Why is illegal immigration the number one priority for republicans?

There are more pressing issues than illegal immigration.

Here's the rest of the story. The Republicans then wanted to fix the illegal immigration issue once and for all. They made a deal with the Democrat Congress to grant a measure of amnesty and start with a clean state. The Democrats in return enacted new laws restricting illegal immigrants from getting employment and such within this country. This was to serve as a deterrent from coming into the US in the first place. The Democrats since have not lived up to these laws and there are hundreds of cities which allow for government services as well as employment. All of these services encourage more illegal immigrants to flow into this country and take their chances. No wall will fix that by the way. So essentially we were fooled once by the Democrat Party, why should we be suckered into another mass amnesty without ensuring conditions or control of the border?

Republicans have adamantly stated their goal is to solve the illegal immigrant flow into this country and improve the legal immigration process, authorized numbers, and requirements to become a citizen. You tell me... Does it serve this nation better to have control of their borders, allowing only those who want to be productive and loyal members of this country? Do you realize we could free up a lot of government spending by eliminating "free" government services to illegal immigrants? Should illegal immigrants be allowed to vote and have a part in electing candidates and making laws? It's getting out of control and we need to get our hands around the problem. Otherwise, the next question you might have is "What happened to the prosperous, innovative, and powerful United States you once knew?"

Today the Democrats want to capitalize on garnering the illegal immigrant vote, should they ever be granted amnesty again. The GOP is not against giving them a means to be in this country legally, nor do have anything against the legal immigrants desiring to come to and/or already in this country. We want the rule of law to be adhered to and to ensure we admit those who want to be here to promote our national interests. Tell me what is wrong with those objectives? Why can't the Democrats have this same goal?

The Republican Party is a victim of Citizens United and gerrymandered districts! Current the will of the people is taking a back seat to powerful interests within the party!!! Sad

And back then it was the Democrats talking about mass deportation.

Damn Good Question, I was a Reagan Compassionate Conservative long before I was a Far Left Liberal. When they ditched the Compassion, I ditched the Party!

They have become self righteous whiners. They need some cheese and crackers, to go with their whine. They don't like Trump because he exposes them for what they are. Child like adults.

That's because the extreme right-wing has taken control of the Republican Party.