Frank Luntz warns Dems attacking Trump on immigration would be ‘mistake’

Pollster Frank Luntz said Tuesday that attacking President Donald Trump on his immigration agenda would backfire on Democrats.

Trump holds a 48% approval rating on how he has managed immigration, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted March 31 to April 2. Luntz said on “CNN News Central” that Trump has successfully conveyed a message of toughness on immigration that resonates with voters.

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“I do know that the public overwhelmingly supports a tough approach, overwhelmingly supports action over inaction. And this is one area where the president has done well in communicating that we’re simply not doing it the way it’s been done before,” Luntz said. “And we’re going to be really tough. Now, obviously, we’re a compassionate people and we don’t want people deported who shouldn’t be.”

“But the Democrats will make a mistake if they go at Trump in this area because the public wants the border sealed, they want the right people coming across it,” he continued. “They want tall gates to invite immigration to continue to happen, but they don’t want illegal immigration, and they want it stopped.”

Trump has faced backlash from Democrats for mistakenly deporting alleged MS-13 gang member Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia to his home country of El Salvador. The Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. should “facilitate” Garcia’s return, but the Trump administration is arguing that it is not required to.

Democrats also criticized federal immigration authorities’ arrest of a prominent illegal migrant activist, Jeanette Vizguerra, framing her as a simple grandmother who is not receiving due process. Vizguerra has a criminal record dating back over 15 years and has been breaching immigration laws for even longer, authorities say.

Border Patrol agents recorded about 7,180 crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border during March, according to data published April 1 by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). In contrast, the monthly average of border crossings from the previous four years was 155,000, and the average daily border encounters were 5,100 per day.

Daily southern border apprehensions have also plunged to about 230 each day, a number the Trump administration asserts is the lowest in recorded American history.

Border encounters have been consistently dropping since Trump began his second term. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem verified in March that there were just 200 migrant encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border on Feb. 22, marking the lowest single-day apprehension number in more than 15 years.

Trump’s administration declared an emergency that enabled more resources — including the military — to be sent to the border, successfully coerced the Mexican and Canadian governments to bolster their own border security, eliminated a widely used asylum app, and focused on border wall construction. It has also strongly leaned into interior enforcement, detaining and deporting numerous criminal illegal migrants across the nation, resulting in many migrants becoming too discouraged to even attempt illegal entry at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The economy, healthcare, crime, and immigration were Hispanic voters’ main priorities heading into the 2024 election, according to an AP/NORC poll published in October. Trump led former Vice President Kamala Harris when it came to managing both immigration and the economy, according to a September NBC/Telemundo/CNBC poll.

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