Donald Trump presidential campaign, 2016/Immigration
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The overview of the issue below was current as of the 2016 election.
Immigration was among the most complex and most debated issues of the 2016 presidential election. Sixty percent of registered voters reported that immigration was an important factor in how they voted in November and 20 percent of voters said they would only vote for a candidate who shared their views on immigration.[2]
See below what Donald Trump and the Republican Platform said about immigration.
| CANDIDATE SUMMARY | |
Trump on immigration
- In a speech on October 22, 2016, Trump said that, if elected, he would work with Congress to pass the “End Illegal Immigration Act,” which he said “[f]ully-funds the construction of a wall on our southern border with the full understanding that the country Mexico will be reimbursing the United States for the full cost of such wall.”[3]
- At a "commander-in-chief" forum on NBC News on September 7, 2016, Trump said he was open to allowing undocumented immigrations serving in the military to remain in the country. He said, "I think that when you serve in the armed forces, that’s a very special situation, and I could see myself working that out, absolutely.”[4]
- On August 31, 2016, Trump delivered a speech in Phoenix, Arizona, where he discussed immigration policy, saying, “For those here illegally today who are seeking legal status, they will have one route and one route only. To return home and apply for re-entry like everybody else under the rules of the new legal immigration system that I have outlined today.” In the speech, Trump laid out a ten point plan on immigration policy:[5]
- One: “We will build a great wall along the southern border. And Mexico will pay for the wall.”
- Two: “We are going to end catch and release. … Under my administration, anyone who illegally crosses the border will be detained until they are removed out of our country and back to the country from which they came.”
- Three: “Zero tolerance for criminal aliens. Zero. They don't come in here. They don't come in here. … We're going to triple the number of ICE deportation officers. … We're also going to hire 5,000 more Border Patrol agents.”
- Four: “Block funding for sanctuary cities. We block the funding. No more funds.”
- Five: “Cancel unconstitutional executive orders and enforce all immigration laws. We will immediately terminate President Obama's two illegal executive amnesties in which he defied federal law and the Constitution to give amnesty to approximately five million illegal immigrants, five million.”
- Six: “Suspend the issuance of visas to any place where adequate screening cannot occur.”
- Seven: “Ensure that other countries take their people back when they order them deported.”
- Eight: “We will finally complete the biometric entry-exit visa tracking system which we need desperately. … The politicians are all talk, no action, never happens. Never happens. … In my administration we will ensure that this system is in place.”
- Nine: “Turn off the jobs and benefits magnet. We will ensure that E-Verify is used to the fullest extent possible under existing law.”
- Ten: “Reform legal immigration to serve the best interests of America and its workers the forgotten people. Workers. We're going to take care of our workers.”
- In part two of a town hall event that aired on Fox News on August 24, 2016, Trump indicated an openness to altering his stance on illegal immigration. Responding to a question about whether he would allow undocumented immigrants who have not committed crimes to stay in the country, Trump said, “No citizenship. Let me go a step further -- they'll pay back-taxes, they have to pay taxes, there's no amnesty, as such, there's no amnesty, but we work with them. Now, everybody agrees we get the bad ones out. But when I go through and I meet thousands and thousands of people on this subject, and I've had very strong people come up to me, really great, great people come up to me, and they've said, ‘Mr. Trump, I love you, but to take a person who's been here for 15 or 20 years and throw them and their family out, it's so tough, Mr. Trump.' I have it all the time! It's a very, very hard thing."[6]
- At a town hall event in Austin, Texas, on August 23, 2016, Trump said that he was open to “a softening” on some of his immigration policies. “There certainly can be a softening because we're not looking to hurt people. We want people — we have some great people in this country. We are going to follow the laws of this country.” Trump added that he still plans to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, saying, “It's going to happen, 100 percent.”[7]
- After Trump met with his newly formed Hispanic advisory council on August 20, 2016, there were some reports that Trump was open to a path to legalization. “He said people who are here is the toughest part of the immigration debate, that it must be something that respects border security but deals with this in a humane and efficient manner,” said Jacob Monty. Former Romney advisor Jose Fuentes, who also attended the meeting, said, “The idea is we’re not getting someone in front of the line, we’re doing it in a legal way, but he wants to hear ideas of how we deal with 11 million people that are here with no documents.” In an interview on Sunday, Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said it was “to be determined” whether Trump would continue to support forced deportation.[8][9]
- During an interview on Fox News on August 22, 2016, Trump was asked to clarify his position on addressing illegal immigration. “We have to be very firm. We have to be very, very strong when people come in illegally. We have a lot of people that want to come in through the legal process and it's not fair for them. And we're working with a lot of people in the Hispanic community to try and come up with an answer,” he said. When asked if he was flip-flopping from previous calls for deportation, he responded, “No, I'm not flip-flopping. We want to come up with one a really fair, but firm answer. That's — it has to be very firm. But we want to come up with something fair.”[10]
- In a pre-recorded interview with Fox News that aired later the same day, Trump backed deportation, at the least, for violent criminals. “We’re going to obey the existing laws. Now, the existing laws are very strong. The existing laws, the first thing we’re gonna do, if and when I win, is we’re gonna get rid of all of the bad ones. We’ve got gang members, we have killers, we have a lot of bad people that have to get out of this country.” He also said he would not use detention centers.[11]
- During an interview on with NBC host Chuck Todd on July 24, 2016, Trump discussed his plan to "immediately suspend immigration from any nation that has been compromised by terrorism until such time it's proven that vetting mechanisms have been put in place." He said, "People were so upset when I used the word Muslim. Oh, you can't use the word Muslim. Remember this. And I'm okay with that, because I'm talking territory instead of Muslim." Trump said he will release a list of places “from which he would want to cut off immigration.” Trump added, "We have nations and we'll come out -- I'm going to be coming out over the next few weeks with a number of the places. … there are specific problems in Germany and we have problems with France. … Here is what I want: Extreme vetting. Tough word. Extreme vetting... we're going to have tough standards."[12]
- Trump delivered a speech in New Hampshire on June 13, 2016, addressing national security concerns, Hillary Clinton’s response to terrorism, and the Orlando mass shooting. Trump presented immigration reform as a critical element of his anti-terrorism policy.
- On the Orlando shooter’s heritage, Trump said, “The killer, whose name I will not use, or ever say, was born to Afghan parents who immigrated to the United States. His father published support for the Afghan Taliban, a regime which murders those who don’t share its radical views. The father even said he was running for President of that country. The bottom line is that the only reason the killer was in America in the first place was because we allowed his family to come here.”
- During the same speech on June 13, 2016, Trump addressed suspending immigration from countries with histories of terrorism. He said, “I called for a ban after San Bernardino, and was met with great scorn and anger but now, many are saying I was right to do so – and although the pause is temporary, we must find out what is going on. The ban will be lifted when we as a nation are in a position to properly and perfectly screen those people coming into our country. The immigration laws of the United States give the President the power to suspend entry into the country of any class of persons that the President deems detrimental to the interests or security of the United States, as he deems appropriate. I will use this power to protect the American people. When I am elected, I will suspend immigration from areas of the world when there is a proven history of terrorism against the United States, Europe or our allies, until we understand how to end these threats.”[13]
- During a campaign event in Exeter, New Hampshire, on February 4, 2016, a woman from Southern California said to Trump, "I know the role that they [individuals who immigrated to the U.S. illegally] have in the California and national economy because they do work that no one else wants to do and for a lot less.” Trump responded, "Who told you to be here? Bernie? No, no, this is a Bernie plant. This is a Bernie plant. All right, OK, I understand your question." A second woman then yelled, “that immigrants were part of the backbone of the US,” according to Yahoo. Trump replied, "I don't think so, darling. I don't think so. I don't think so. No, I don't think so. They're not the backbone. … Let me just tell you something, you know what the backbone of our country [is]? People that came here and they came here legally. People that came to this country legally. And they worked their a-- off and they made the country great. That's the backbone.”[14]
- Reuters reported on December 22, 2015, that several liberal and Latino activist organizations are using Donald Trump’s rhetoric on immigration to register Latino voters. Trump’s campaign chairman in New Hampshire, Fred Doucette, rejected the idea, saying, “The ones that are upset are the ones that are illegal quite frankly.” Alfonso Aguilar of the conservative American Principles Project said, however, that “Donald Trump is a political gift to the Democratic political machine.”[15]
- At the fifth GOP primary debate on December 15, 2015, Trump discussed his position on immigration: “I have a very hardline position, we have a country or we don't have a country. People that have come into our country illegally, they have to go. They have to come back into through a legal process. I want a strong border. I do want a wall. Walls do work, you just have to speak to the folks in Israel. Walls work if they're properly constructed. I know how to build, believe me, I know how to build. I feel a very, very strong bind, and really I'm bound to this country, we either have a border or we don't. People can come into the country, we welcome people to come but they have to come in legally.”[16]
- At the fifth GOP primary debate on December 15, 2015, Trump discussed protecting America’s borders: “We are not talking about isolation. We're talking about security. We're not talking about religion. We're talking about security. Our country is out of control. People are pouring across the southern border. I will build a wall. It will be a great wall. People will not come in unless they come in legally. Drugs will not pour through that wall. As far as other people like in the migration, where they're going, tens of thousands of people having cell phones with ISIS flags on them? I don't think so, Wolf. They're not coming to this country. And if I'm president and if Obama has brought some to this country, they are leaving. They're going. They're gone.”[17]
- During an interview on MSNBC’s Morning Joe on November 11, 2015, Trump discussed his plan to deport those in the U.S. without documentation. He said, "You're going to have a deportation force, and you're going to do it humanely. You have millions of people that are waiting in line to come into this country and they're waiting to come in legally."[18]
- Trump said on October 29, 2015, in an interview with Breitbart that he requested Walt Disney rehire approximately 250 U.S. employees it replaced with foreigners holding H1-B visas. "I am calling on Rubio to immediately rescind his sponsorship of the [H-1B] bill and apologize to every Floridian for endorsing it,” Trump added.[19]
- At a Trump campaign rally on October 23, 2015, a Latino immigration activist was forced to the ground and kicked as others chanted, “USA! USA!” Trump acknowledged the removal of several protesters during his speech at the rally, saying, “You can get 'em out, but don't hurt 'em." Later, he added, "See the first group, I was nice: 'Oh, take your time.’ The second group, I was pretty nice. The third group, I'll be pretty more violent. And the fourth group, I'll say, 'Get the hell out of here!'"[20]
- During an interview on Fox News, October 18, 2015, Trump said that his immigration policy would have prevented the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He said, “I am extremely, extremely tough on illegal immigration. I am extremely tough on people coming into this country. I believe that if I were running things, I doubt that those people would have been in the country. ...I’m not blaming George Bush. But I don’t want Jeb to say 'my brother kept us safe.'”[21]
- In September 2015, Trump said it would take 18 months to 2 years to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants with “really good management.”[22]
- Trump announced the details of his immigration platform on August 16, 2015. To pay for a border wall, Trump said he would “impound all remittance payments derived from illegal wages; increase fees on all temporary visas issued to Mexican CEOs and diplomats (and if necessary cancel them); increase fees on all border crossing cards – of which we issue about 1 million to Mexican nationals each year (a major source of visa overstays); increase fees on all NAFTA worker visas from Mexico (another major source of overstays); and increase fees at ports of entry to the United States from Mexico.” Trump also intended to triple the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, institute nationwide E-Verify, process the "mandatory return of all criminal aliens," detain undocumented immigrants and only release them to their country of origin, defund sanctuary cities, enhance penalties for overstaying a visa, end birthright citizenship, require companies to hire American workers first and apply stricter standards for refugee status.[23]
- According to Reuters, Trump's companies applied for temporary visas for at least 1,100 foreign workers between 2000 and 2015.[24]
- On July 26, 2015, Trump said his immigration plan would begin with deporting "the bad ones." Trump explained, “I'm gonna get rid of the bad ones fast, and I'm gonna send them back. We're not going to be putting them in prisons here and pay for them for the next 40 years.”[25]
- During a trip to the Mexican border on July 23, 2015, which Trump claimed put him in “great danger,” he reiterated his support for a wall along the border “in certain sections.”[26]
- During his presidential bid announcement speech on June 16, 2015, Trump stated immigrants from Mexico are "people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." Trump added, "I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I’ll build them very inexpensively, I will build a great, great wall on our southern border. And I will have Mexico pay for that wall."[27]
- Trump said providing a path to citizenship would be politically disadvantageous for Republicans at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference. He explained, "You can be out front, you can be the spearhead, you can do whatever you want to do, but every one of those 11 million people will be voting Democratic. It's just the way it works and you have to be very, very careful because you could say that to a certain extent, the odds aren't looking so great right now for Republicans, that you're on a suicide mission. You're just not going to get those votes."[28]
- In 2011, Trump rejected the idea that children born in the United States to a mother residing there without legal permission should gain American citizenship under the Constitution. Trump said, "The clear purpose of the Fourteenth Amendment, ratified in 1868, three years after the end of the Civil War, was to guarantee full citizenship rights to now emancipated former slaves. It was not intended to guarantee untrammeled immigration to the United States."[29]
- In 2000, Trump noted in his book, The America We Deserve, that legal immigration should be made more challenging. Trump wrote, "The majority of legal immigrants can often make significant contributions to our society because they have special skills and because they add to our nation’s cultural diversity. They come with the best of intentions. But legal immigrants do not and should not enter easily. It’s a long, costly, draining, and often frustrating experience-by design. I say to legal immigrants: Welcome and good luck."[30]
DACA/ DAPA
- After the United States Supreme Court blocked President Obama from implementing his Immigration Accountability Executive Actions on June 23, 2016, Donald Trump tweeted: "SC has kept us safe from exec amnesty--for now. But Hillary has pledged to expand it, taking jobs from Hispanic & African-American workers."[31] He also issued the following statement: "Today's 4-4 Supreme Court ruling has blocked one of the most unconstitutional actions ever undertaken by a President. The executive amnesty from President Obama wiped away the immigration rules written by Congress, giving work permits and entitlement benefits to people illegally in the country. This split decision also makes clear what is at stake in November. The election, and the Supreme Court appointments that come with it will decide whether or not we have a border and, hence, a country. Clinton has pledged to expand Obama's executive amnesty, hurting poor African-American and Hispanic workers by giving away their jobs and federal resources to illegal immigrant labor – while making us all less safe. It is time to protect our country and Make America Safe Again and Great Again for everyone."[32]
- In August 2015, Trump said that he would rescind President Obama's Immigration Accountability Executive Actions, which proposed extending DACA and creating DAPA. During an interview with Chuck Todd, host of NBC's "Meet the Press," Trump said, "We have to make a whole new set of standards. And when people come in, they have to come in..." Todd then interrupted Trump, asking, "You're going to split up families. You're going to deport children." Trump replied, "Chuck — no, no. No, we're going to keep the families together. We have to keep the families together." Todd then asked, "But you're going to kick them out?" Trump replied, "They have to go." Todd then asked, "What if they have no place to go?" Trump said, "We will work with them. They have to go. Chuck, we either have a country or we don't have a country. Either we have a country or not."[33]
| The 2016 Republican Party Platform on immigration | |||
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Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Donald + Trump + Immigration
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Donald Trump Enters 2016 Presidential Race," June 16, 2015
- ↑ Gallup, "One in Five Voters Say Immigration Stance Critical to Vote," September 9, 2015
- ↑ Donald J. Trump, "Donald J. Trump delivers groundbreaking contract for the American voter in Gettysburg," October 22, 2016
- ↑ Time, "Read Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump’s Remarks at a Military Forum," September 7, 2016
- ↑ LA Times, "Transcript: Donald Trump's full immigration speech, annotated," August 31, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Trump shifts on immigration: 'There's no amnesty, but we work with them'," August 24, 2016
- ↑ The Texas Tribune, "Trump Open to 'Softening' in Immigration Laws," August 23, 2016
- ↑ BuzzFeed, "In Reversal, Trump Indicates To Hispanic Leaders Openness To Legalization For Immigrants," August 20, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Donald Trump: 'I'm not flip-flopping' on immigration," August 22, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Trump denies 'flip-flopping' on immigration," August 22, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Trump doubles down on deportations," August 22, 2016
- ↑ CBS News, "Donald Trump on Muslim ban "expansion," possible Roger Ailes campaign role," July 24, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Transcript: Donald Trump's national security speech," June 13, 2016
- ↑ Yahoo Finance, "'I don't think so, darling': Donald Trump dismisses woman defending illegal immigration," February 4, 2016
- ↑ Newsweek, "Donald Trump Galvanizes Latino Voters In 2016," December 22, 2015
- ↑ CNN, "Rush Transcript second debate: CNN Facebook Republican Presidential Debate," December 15, 2015
- ↑ CNN, "Rush Transcript second debate: CNN Facebook Republican Presidential Debate," December 15, 2015
- ↑ BBC, "Donald Trump defends his 'humane' deportation plan," November 11, 2015
- ↑ Breitbart, "Donald Trump Rights Ship On Immigration: Demands Disney Rehire Workers Replaced By Cheap Foreign Labor, Calls Rubio ‘Silicon Valley's Puppet’," October 29, 2015
- ↑ Huffington Post, "Pro-Immigration Protester Violently Dragged Out Of Trump Rally," October 25, 2015
- ↑ The Hill, "Trump: My immigration policies would have prevented 9/11," October 18, 2015
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Donald Trump Says Immigrant Deportations Done in Two Years," September 11, 2015
- ↑ Donald J. Trump for President, "Immigration Reform That Will Make America Great Again," archived August 17, 2015
- ↑ Reuters, "Exclusive: Donald Trump's companies have sought visas to import at least 1,100 workers," August 2, 2015
- ↑ Business Insider, "Donald Trump just showed why his campaign may be doomed," July 26, 2015
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Donald Trump makes a Texas-size splash with visit to Mexican border," July 24, 2015
- ↑ TIME, "Here’s Donald Trump’s Presidential Announcement Speech," June 16, 2015
- ↑ CNN, "Trump a right-leaning tower at CPAC," March 15, 2013
- ↑ Trump, Donald. (2011). Time to Get Tough. Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing. (page 141)
- ↑ Trump, Donald. (2000). The America We Deserve. Los Angeles, CA: Renaissance Books. (page 144)
- ↑ Twitter, "Donald Trump," accessed June 23, 2016
- ↑ DonaldJTrump.com, "Donald J. Trump Statement on Executive Amnesty Ruling," accessed June 23, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Donald Trump says illegal immigrants ‘have to go.’ Only 31 percent of Republicans agree." accessed April 6, 2016
- ↑ Republican Party, "The 2016 Republican Party Platform," accessed August 23, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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