Hardline conservatives are turning on Donald Trump after it emerged that the President’s top advisers are prepared to abandon one of his core campaign promises.
White House adviser James Blair privately urged House Republicans Tuesday to stop promoting the ‘mass deportations’ of illegal migrants, according to a report from Axios.
Trump’s deputy chief of staff, speaking at the Republicans’ annual retreat in Doral, Florida, urged lawmakers to instead focus their messaging on deporting violent criminals.
The White House’s advice signals that Trump may be shifting how he frames his immigration policy heading into the midterms.
The latest bombshell has rocked some of Trump’s most hardline supporters because mass deportations were the central promise of his 2024 campaign.
‘Absolutely disgusting betrayal,’ said Republican attorney Anthony Sabatini. ‘Sad to see.’
Trump stormed back into the White House on a wave of voter support for his tough immigration agenda, but just one year into his presidency, the issue has become one of the most politically dangerous for his administration.
Nearly half of Americans reject the crackdown after the deaths of two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, during anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis.
Trump’s top White House adviser James Blair has privately urged House Republicans to stop promoting the ‘mass deportations’ of illegal migrants
Immigration enforcement has been the most controversial yet defining issue for Trump since the start of his second term
Noem has ruled over DHS alongside her close adviser and rumored lover Corey Lewandowski
‘The betrayals just keep coming,’ said one MAGA user on X, while another reacted to the news by claiming ‘MAGA is dead.’
Immigration enforcement has been the most controversial yet defining issue for Trump since the start of his second term.
During the President’s first year, the administration leaned heavily into aggressive deportation crackdowns in urban areas controlled by local Democratic leaders.
The effort was spearheaded by outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem who was fired last week by Trump after numerous scandals plagued her tenure.
Noem’s firing is being welcomed by senior White House officials as an opportunity to reset the administration’s approach to immigration, according to a source.
Trump returned to the White House with strong voter support for deportations and tougher border security.
But under Noem’s leadership, public sentiment has shifted sharply, and the issue has increasingly become a political liability for the president as the midterm elections approach.
Noem famously ruled over DHS alongside her close adviser and rumored lover Corey Lewandowski.
Sources tell the Daily Mail that frustration had been mounting inside the White House over the infighting that Noem and Lewandowski had fueled within DHS, including persistent leaks and internal disputes targeting senior immigration officials.
