Donald Trump’s team has rejected claims that his rhetoric is harmful to immigrants, turning the table on Vice President Kamala Harris to accuse her of creating anger in migrant communities over her “amnesty policies”.
According to a poll by KFF, four in ten immigrants said that Trump’s rhetoric and policies on immigration are harmful to them.
However Taylor Rogers, RNC Spokesperson, told Newsweek: “Legal immigrants that come to our country to seek out the American dream are angry with Harris’ amnesty policies letting illegal immigrants cut the line and skip the process to enter legally.”
Newsweek has contacted the Harris campaign for comment.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris during an ABC News presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia.
Alex Brandon/AP
The Biden-Harris administration announced in June a new policy, criticized by Republicans as an amnesty, that would protect hundreds of thousands of undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens from deportation and allow them to work legally.
Harris has also committed to reviving President Joe Biden‘s unsuccessful bipartisan border security bill, which would have added 1,500 more CBP officers and 4,300 asylum officers, but was blocked by Senate Republicans.
Immigration is a top issue for voters‘ in the run-up to the presidential election, with a poll by Redfield and Wilton Strategies showing that 47% of respondents trust Trump on immigration compared to 36% who trust Harris.
The KFF poll showed that 55% of immigrants said they would be better off if Vice President Harris wins the November election, compared to 19% who said that they would be better off if former President Trump wins the White House.
“Everyone is quick to point to social media as the source of misinformation, and it often is, but it’s candidates who are amplifying misinformation about immigrants. Our poll shows that they’re harming immigrants in the process,” said KFF President and CEO Drew Altman in a statement.
But Rogers told Newsweek: “America is safer, stronger, and greater under President Trump’s America First policies, which is why they will vote for President Trump to secure the border, protect our communities, and restore law and order.
“Kamala Harris’ wide-open borders have allowed violent illegal immigrants into our communities, brutally raping and killing innocent Americans like Laken Riley and Jocelyn Nungaray.”
It comes after Trump vowed to halt all flights carrying migrants to Pennsylvania “immediately” if he is elected in the 2024 Presidential Race during a campaign rally in the critical swing state.
“Has your beautiful town changed?” Trump said to his supporters at his Monday night rally in Indiana.
“It’s composed of lawless gangs.”
“Do you think Springfield will ever be the same? You have to get them the hell out. You have to get them out,” Trump said to his supporters.
Crowds of MAGA loyalists began chanting “Send them back.”
The Republican presidential nominee has also vowed to initiate mass deportations, beginning in Ohio and Colorado.
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