President Donald Trump indicated he may support amnesty when talking to reporters aboard Air Force One Wednesday night.
The president was asked about Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly’s comments to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus that President Obama’s amnesty for illegal immigrants who arrived as minors, DACA, might be terminated due to legal challenges from Republican states.
“It’s a decision that I make and it’s a decision that’s very very hard to make. I really understand the situation now,” President Trump replied. “I understand the situation very well. What I’d like to do is a comprehensive immigration plan. But our country and political forces are not ready yet.”
“Comprehensive immigration reform” is used in modern American politics as a euphemism for giving illegal immigrants currently in the U.S. a path to legal status or citizenship.
During his run for the presidency, Trump took a hardline stance on immigration and pledged to deport all 12 million or so illegal immigrants in the country. He also said he would “immediately” end DACA.
However, he has reneged on this promise, and in his first few months in office nearly 100,000 illegal immigrants benefited from the amnesty program.
Trump added, “There are two sides of a story. It’s always tough.”