Donald Trump didn’t know about the Gang of Eight immigration bill when he announced his run for the Republican nomination last June, Bloomberg reports in a profile published Thursday.
“When I made my [announcement] speech at Trump Tower, the June 16 speech, I didn’t know about the Gang of Eight,” Trump told Bloomberg. “I just knew instinctively that our borders are a mess.”
The bipartisan 2013 Gang of Eight immigration bill was a massive rewrite of the immigration system that would have provided a path to citizenship for illegal aliens currently in the United States while spending millions on border security. It also would have increased legal immigration into the country.
The Bloomberg profile, which focused on Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus, noted the sharp differences between the Republican Party’s vision for 2016, and how it has actually turned out. In the aftermath of Mitt Romney’s loss the GOP released an “autopsy,” which said the party needed to soften its tone and push for immigration reform in a bid to win over Hispanic voters.
This recommendation was seen by some as donor outreach.
“After Romney’s loss, every major donor was just distraught and ready to bail, convinced we could never win a national election. So the autopsy was absolutely necessary from a donor maintenance standpoint. But it was public relations, nothing more. Reince never had the power to implement it,” an anonymous Washington strategist told Bloomberg.
Lewis Eisenberg, former RNC finance chairman, echoed this sentiment. “[Priebus] had a convincing story of how the Republican Party could win,” Eisenberg said. “That’s what it’s all about, to win a donor’s heart.”
Trump told Bloomberg his vision for the future of the Republican Party did not have donors in mind.
“Five, 10 years from now — different party. You’re going to have a worker’s party. A party of people that haven’t had a real wage increase in 18 years, that are angry,” Trump said.
Regarding how he reached his political positions, Trump told Bloomberg, “I’m not sure I got there through deep analysis.”
“My views are what everybody else’s views are. When I give speeches, sometimes I’ll sign autographs and I’ll get to talk to people and learn a lot about the party,” Trump added.
