Donald Trump strikes two different tones on immigration plan
Donald Trump displayed two different versions of himself Wednesday -- the polite, differential diplomat in Mexico City, and hours later, the same hot-tempered, uncompromising advocate of the border wall and mass deportation his supporters demand.
Speaking in Arizona, the Republican nominee made his highly anticipated immigration speech Wednesday night, declaring he will cancel President Obama’s executive orders and enforce all immigration laws currently in place. The speech came on the heels of Trump’s first foreign visit with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, where he struck a much softer tone. In the process, the GOP nominee ended his public flirtation with a softer immigration policy, reports CBS News correspondent Major Garrett.
In Phoenix, Trump promised mass deportations, but did not explain how he would do it.
“Anyone who has entered the United States illegally is subject to deportation,” Trump told the crowd. “People will know that you can’t just smuggle in, hunker down and wait to be legalized.”
Undocumented immigrants must return to their home country and apply for re-entry, Trump said, vowing to subject new immigrants to ideological tests.
“It’s our right as a sovereign nation to choose immigrants that we think are the likeliest to thrive and flourish and love us,” Trump said.
His
ten-point plan included tripling the number of immigration agents to round up
undocumented criminals, withholding federal tax dollars from sanctuary sites
and a biometric registry to halve visa overstays.
Trump’s number one point was his most rehearsed.
“We will build a great wall along the southern border, and Mexico will pay for the wall! They don’t know it yet, but they are going to pay for it,” Trump said.
But this time, Trump added a new diplomatic wrinkle.
”Mexico will work with us. I absolutely believe it, and especially after meeting with their wonderful, wonderful president,” Trump said.
In Mexico City, Trump met with Peña Nieto and traded campaign bombast for the hushed tones of cooperation.
“We all share a common interest in keeping our hemisphere safe,” Trump said.
Trump misled reporters, however, by saying Mexican financing of a border wall didn’t come up.
“We did discuss the wall. We didn’t discuss payment of the wall. That’ll be
for a later date,” Trump said.
But the topic did in fact come up. Pena Nieto said he told Trump at the top of the meeting Mexico would never pay for the wall.