Donald Trump threatens to deport US citizens if they meet one condition | World | News
Donald Trump has provoked further political controversy after threatening to deport US citizens convicted of “bad” crimes. His comments come as the White House intensifies its crackdown on illegal immigration, with the US President visiting a new detention centre in Florida dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz” on Tuesday.
Trump has moved fast to fulfil his election pledges to deal with the rising number of illegal immigrants entering the US. In the first 100 days of his new administration, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) claimed to have arrested 66,463 migrants and removed 65,682.
In his latest move, the White House boss is looking to crack down on criminals, including those born and bred in the US.
He said: “We have a lot of bad criminals who came into this country. They came in stupidly, and it was an unforced error.
“It was an incompetent President who allowed it to happen.
“We also have a lot of bad people who have been here a very long time. They are not new to our country; many of them were born in our country.
“I think we ought to get them the hell out of here, too, if you want to hear the truth.”
Trump conceded his views would come across as a “little controversial” but bluntly stated that he “could not care less”.
As he anticipated, his remarks provoked a furious reaction from his critics – especially on social media.
Brian Allen fumed: “That’s not immigration policy. That’s fascism with a passport scanner.
“He’s not talking about “illegals” anymore. He’s talking about you. About anyone who disagrees. About journalists. Activists. Protesters. Citizens.”
The Trump administration has also raised the possibility that it might strip Zohran Mamdani – the Democrats mayoral candidate for New York City – of his US citizenship.
Mamdani has been accused of concealing his support for “terrorism” during his naturalisation period by Republican Tennessee representative Andy Ogles.
Asked about Ogles’s call, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said: “I have not seen those claims, but surely if they are true, it’s something that should be investigated.”