He had to assume the last part, because you never know with these people.
Advertisement
Trump ends with a scathing critique of Mexico, claiming that it has “taken advantage” of the United States for years through “gangs, drug traffickers and cartels” responsible for “the extraordinary daily cost of this criminal activity”. But that turns out not to be the case.
Trump’s position on whether or not to deport an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants has been unclear in recent days.
“Trump is giving an extremely broad definition of this section of the Patriot Act and what it allows, and it’d surely be litigated”, said Stuart Anderson, executive director of the National Foundation for American Policy, a nonpartisan think tank in Virginia. It’s a big, manly, turgid hardening, I tell you! One difference? Hillary Clinton says she’ll extend President Obama’s softer policies. RNC Chair Reince Priebus said on Meet the Press that the confusion would soon be cleared up, because “now he’s reflecting on it and his position is going to be known”. His campaign argues no, not really, knowing that it was the primary reason he was able to edge out so many other contenders for the Republican nomination.
Donald Trump Jr. also said his father’s immigration agenda would be implemented gradually. “We’re going to build a wall, we’re going to secure our borders… there will be a physical wall”.
When asked if he could accommodate law-abiding illegal immigrants who have raised a family in the USA and who have contributed to society, Trump said, “There could certainly be a softening, because we’re not looking to hurt people”. However, coy remarks about a potential path to citizenship that Trump staffers have leaked to Hispanic leaders suggests otherwise, and a whole lot of conservatives are furious about this potential shift.
On ABC News’ This Week on Sunday, guest host Martha Raddatz asked Christie about the Giuliani’s comments regarding him being the main man concerning shifting Trump away from his hardline stance on immigration. Of course, voters don’t know anything about what Trump pays in taxes, or whether he’s in debt to the IRS himself. Moreover, the safest course for him politically may be to continue to obfuscate on immigration policy to avoid antagonize either side of the debate.
“The environment was certainly a major issue that opponents of the wall brought up”, said Cassie Williams, spokesperson for Federation for American Immigration Reform, which favors reduced immigration. Sixty-five percent of Republicans said the undocumented are as honest and hard-working as American citizens.
The playbook outlined in Trump’s memo echoes suggestions that have always been made by Sen. In a recent town hall with Sean Hannity, Trump said that he is open to “softening” on immigration.
Yes: They were criminals by virtue of being undocumented – and so could many more millions of undocumented immigrants who are otherwise innocent of any crime.
Here’s how the math works.
“Criminal”, answered the governor, who is also Trump’s transition planning chief.
Trump called for a “deportation force” to “humanely” rid the country people here illegally, explaining that he would come up with something similar to President Eisenhower’s “Operation Wetback”, in which 1.5 million people were rounded up and bused, trucked or otherwise transported across the border.
The crowd in Arizona was excited throughout the speech, but bolstering his base isn’t what Trump’s problem is right now.
Advertisement
But there’s no certainty that Trump will provide any more clarity on Wednesday – or that this plan will be the last one he offers.
