Trump says his immigration policy ‘too tough’ for voters

During his first television interview since his party lost control of both chambers of Congress, Trump told CBS's 60 Minutes programme that some voters were unhappy with his administration's controversial deportation drive, which led to widespread protests and even resulted in the deaths of two US citizens during demonstrations.

Policy reversal

Trump made his admission about the toughness of his immigration policy just days after appointing Stephen Miller, the chief architect of his hardline immigration stance, to replace Susie Wiles as his White House chief of staff, prompting questions about the direction of his immigration policy.

Democratic response

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer criticized Trump's move, posting on X: "Apparently, his solution was to put the man responsible for it in charge of the White House. That's not a course correction. That's a promotion."

Trump had promised an aggressive immigration crackdown during his campaign, blaming undocumented migrant "killers" and "drug dealers" for soaring crime, which led to extensive operations in multiple US cities causing arrests to soar.

Potential compromise

The president indicated he might be able to work with the new Democratic-controlled Congress on some kind of immigration agreement, suggesting a moderate approach that would still deport criminals but allow "good people" who had lived and worked in the country "paying taxes" to remain.

Democrats have already stated that oversight of ICE and the Department of Homeland Security will be a priority for the new Congress, setting up potential confrontation with the administration despite Trump's apparent shift toward moderation.