By
Eli Yokley
February 28, 2017 at 10:50 pm ET
President Donald Trump used his first address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday to pitch lawmakers on immigration reform, listing three main priorities any potential compromise should cover.
“I believe that real and positive immigration reform is possible, as long as we focus on the following goals: To improve jobs and wages for Americans. To strengthen our nation’s security. And to restore respect for our laws,” Trump said.”If we are guided by the well being of American citizens, then I believe Republicans and Democrats can work together to achieve an outcome that has eluded our country for decades.”
Given his tough talk on immigration on the campaign trail, the idea of a compromise with Democrats is tenuous ground for Trump. A new Morning Consult/POLITICO survey from over the weekend found that 63 percent of Trump voters said all undocumented immigrants currently living in the U.S. should be required to leave the country. Overall, most voters (53 percent) said undocumented immigrants currently in the country should have a path to U.S. citizenship or at least retain legal status.
Trump was short on details, but he spoke of a “merit-based immigration system,” rather than “this current system of lower-skilled immigration.” He also said the construction of a “great, great wall” along the U.S.-Mexico border would come soon, and reiterated that “the bad ones are going out.”
Trump’s suggestion of halting immigration of lower-skilled workers could play better with his supporters. More than 6 in 10 (63 percent) of Trump voters said the U.S. should not allow more lower-skilled immigrants into the country. In contrast, 55 percent of Trump voters support letting more highly skilled immigrants into the U.S.
Most Americans are with Trump on the goal of deporting Americans with criminal records. According to a Morning Consult survey conducted last month, seven in 10 Americans (72 percent) support deporting only undocumented immigrants who have criminal records. Four in 10 (38 percent) said they support deporting them all.
To groans from Democrats, Trump also announced he would be instructing the Department of Homeland Security to create an office for “Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement” to provide “a voice to those who have been ignored by the media and silenced by special interests.”
Among the other things he hit on: