In his first formal interview since winning the presidency, President-elect Donald Trump revealed his intentions to overhaul U.S. immigration and citizenship policies. Speaking with Kristen Welker on NBC’s *Meet the Press*, Trump outlined his priorities for day one in office, including a large-scale deportation of immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally.
“I don’t want to be breaking up families, so the only way you don’t break up the family is to keep them together and send them all back,” Trump said. “You have no choice.”
Trump emphasized that the deportation process would focus first on individuals with criminal records, noting that their presence in the country is costing the U.S. a significant amount of money. “First of all, they’re costing us a fortune. But we’re starting with the criminals, and we’ve got to do it. Then we’ll move on to others, and we’ll see how it goes,” he added.
While Trump has stated that any of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. could face deportation, certain groups are more likely to be targeted. According to recent data from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), there are over 660,000 non-citizens with criminal convictions or pending charges, including many for drug-related offenses and assault. The most common charge among undocumented immigrants is “traffic offenses,” including driving under the influence.
In addition to deportation plans, Trump discussed his desire to end birthright citizenship, which grants citizenship to anyone born in the U.S. While he hinted that he might pursue this change through an executive order, legal experts argue that such a move could face significant challenges, as the U.S. Constitution currently guarantees citizenship to anyone born on American soil.
The interview also touched on Trump’s stance regarding the January 6 Capitol riot. He suggested the possibility of pardoning individuals involved in the storming of the Capitol, while also calling for the prosecution of lawmakers he described as “political thugs” and “creeps” for investigating the event. “For what they did, honestly, they should go to jail,” Trump said.
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