The comments sparked outrage among some South Carolina conservatives, a key voting bloc in the Palmetto State. "I think they're going to have a good, healthy debate — and should have a healthy debate in South Carolina amongst officials at the state level," he told reporters after a speech Saturday night in Washington. (Audio break) -- single illegal immigrant that New York City could find that either committed a crime or was suspected of a crime. Mike Huckabee, businessman Donald Trump and Sens. Q Governor Huckabee, as governor in Arkansas, you gave illegal aliens a discount for college in Arkansas by allowing them to pay lower in-state tuition rates. Late Friday, Bush told a Tampa Republican fundraiser that "It breaks my heart that somebody, a racist, would do the things he did" in Charleston. Former Florida governor Jeb Bush said in a statement that "My position on how to address the Confederate flag is clear. SEN. MCCAIN: I do not. "I think out of deference, before we have that discussion, we should allow the families of the loved ones to bury their dead." The senator said in a statement Saturday that "There can be no doubt" that the shooting was racially motivated. "At an appropriate time, we will move forward to have a discussion on a variety of fronts about what will make us stronger as a nation and what solutions need to be found to achieve that goal. Many instead expressed personal dislike for the flag, but suggested it was up to the people of South Carolina to decide. I came down on the side oflife every single instance as governor of Massachusetts. Texas might have different rules than Ohio. But, he added: "I also understand those who want to remember the sacrifices of their ancestors and the traditions of their states, not the racial oppression, but the historical traditions and I think often this issue is used as a wedge to try to divide people." The man charged with the crimes, Dylann Storm Roof, held the Confederate flag in a photograph on a website and displayed the flags of defeated white-supremacist governments in Africa on his Facebook page. "Following a period of mourning there will rightly be a discussion among leaders in the state about how South Carolina should move forward, and I'm confident they will do the right thing," Bush said. But ultimately, I think, these decisions should be made on a state-by-state basis. But Bush's statement didn't explicitly call on South Carolina to do the same: "This is obviously a very sensitive time in South Carolina and our prayers are with the families, the AME church community and the entire state. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said the last thing the people of South Carolina need is "people from outside of the state coming in and dictating how they should resolve it," Cruz said in a statement provided to The Associated Press. Asked about Romney's comments after her speech, she told reporters "personally I agree with him but I believe it's up to the people of South Carolina." Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton has yet to address the issue this week, but in 2007 called for the flag's removal, in part because the nation should unite under one banner while at war. But by the same token, we can't do what the Democrats do. As he watched media coverage from South Carolina, he said he was struck by how many "family and friends were already talking about forgiveness." The former Massachusetts governor joins President Barack Obama and civil rights leaders in calling for the flag to come down as the nation grapples with Wednesday's murders. A White House spokesman said Friday that Obama continues to believe the flag belongs in a museum. A spokesman for Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he had no comment. GOP potential presidential candidate Wisconsin Gov. Does this flag right here represent the symbol of racism, the symbol of political ideology, the symbol of Southern heritage, or is it something completely different? ___ 
 
 Follow Steve Peoples on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/sppeoples 
 
 ___ 
 
 This story has been corrected to show that the controversy is over the Confederate battle flag, not the Confederate Stars and Bars. — Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) June 20, 2015 
 
 Romney first weighed in on the flag as a Republican presidential candidate in 2007, when he said "That's not a flag I recognize." South Carolina was the last state to fly the Confederate battle flag from its Capitol dome. But now, please join me in continuing to pray for the victims, for the citizens of Charleston, of my home state, and of our nation." "That flag, frankly, is divisive, and it shouldn't be shown," he said during a debate sponsored by CNN. Perry said during the interview with Newsmax that he would be open to taking down the flag in South Carolina, saying "maybe there's a good conversation that needs to be had." I'm in Lake Worth, Florida. “Both those who see a history of racial oppression and a history of slavery, which is the original sin of our nation, and we fought a bloody civil war to expunge that sin," he said while campaigning in Iowa.  
 
 Mitt Romney, photographed in Davenport, Iowa, on Oct. 29, 2012. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of four Republican senators running for president, told CNN he's open to revisiting the decision to use the flag, but it "is a part of who we are." His comments Saturday came amid the struggle by several candidates to articulate whether or not the flag should remain in place -- and whether the motives of the church shooter were racist. Scott Walker declined to offer his position. On Friday, former Texas governor Rick Perry referred to the shooting as an "accident" -- with campaign aides quickly saying that he meant "incident."
– Mitt Romney has long been vocal about his distaste for the Confederate flag flying on South Carolina Capitol grounds, saying in a 2007 presidential debate, "That's not a flag I recognize. That flag, frankly, is divisive, and it shouldn't be shown." He refueled that fire Saturday when he tweeted in response to the Charleston church shootings, writing, "Take down the #ConfederateFlag at the SC Capitol. To many, it is a symbol of racial hatred. Remove it now to honor #Charleston victims." Other Republican POTUS contenders are now offering their own take, per the AP and the Washington Post.: South Carolina's own Sen. Lindsey Graham insists the flag "is a part of who we are" and that we shouldn't be blaming what happened in Charleston on it: "We're not going to give this a guy an excuse … . It's him … not the flag." Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush says via a statement, "In Florida we acted, moving the flag from the state grounds to a museum where it belonged," but "following a period of mourning there will rightly be a discussion among leaders in the state about how South Carolina should move forward, and I'm confident they will do the right thing." One person who wants to table the discussion: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who says, "I fully expect the leaders of South Carolina to debate this, but the conversation should wait until after the families have had a chance to bury and mourn their loved ones." Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is trying to see both sides, saying he understands "those who see a history of racial oppression and a history of slavery" embedded in the flag, but that he also gets "those who want to remember the sacrifices of their ancestors and the traditions of their states, not the racial oppression." Sen. Marco Rubio, businesswoman Carly Fiorina, and expected presidential candidate Ohio Gov. John Kasich are taking a non-interventionist approach (though Fiorina and Kasich say they agree personally with taking the flag down), stating it's up to the people of South Carolina to decide what to do—not "outsiders," as Rubio puts it. Still silent on the matter: Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, ex-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Sen. Rand Paul, and the latest GOP contender, a surprisingly quiet Donald Trump.