DONALD TRUMP ENDORSES AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS [DISAPPOINTING, BUT NOT SURPRISING]

Disappointing, but not surprising.

The depressing reality though that is that most of the Republican field has endorsed amnesty in one form or another. So this isn't much of a surprise. Trump is using his own vocabulary, but he's echoing the same amnesty talking points you could hear from Marco Rubio... or Barack Obama.

During Friday's interview, Trump said the U.S. should take a two-step approach to the 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the country.
"Well, the first thing we do is take the bad ones — of which there are, unfortunately, quite a few," said Trump, who owns three New Jersey golf courses and once owned three Atlantic City casinos. "We take the bad ones and get 'em the hell out. We get 'em out."
But he said the country should take a different approach with "the other ones" — i.e., undocumented immigrants who have "done a good job" since arriving in the U.S.
"I'm a very big believer in the merit system," Trump said. "I have to tell you: Some of these people have been here, they've done a good job. You know, in some cases, sadly, they've been living under the shadows. ... If somebody's been outstanding, we try and work something out.
"But before we do anything, we have to secure the border because the border is like having no border," he added.

I'm sure some people will be tempted to cheer this, but compare it to Obama's own amnesty executive order.

These executive actions crack down on illegal immigration at the border, prioritize deporting felons not families, and require certain undocumented immigrants to pass a criminal background check and pay their fair share of taxes as they register to temporarily stay in the U.S. without fear of deportation.
Cracking Down on Illegal Immigration at the Border: The President’s actions increase the chances that anyone attempting to cross the border illegally will be caught and sent back. Continuing the surge of resources that effectively reduced the number of unaccompanied children crossing the border illegally this summer, the President’s actions will also centralize border security command-and-control to continue to crack down on illegal immigration.
Deporting Felons, Not Families: The President’s actions focus on the deportation of people who threaten national security and public safety. He has directed immigration enforcement to place anyone suspected of terrorism, violent criminals, gang members, and recent border crossers at the top of the deportation priority list.

Deporting the "bad people" first is already an Obama talking point. People may think they can trust Trump, but not Obama or any of the Republicans, but like them, Trump frontloaded rhetoric about enforcement while keeping the amnesty out back.

And "secure the border first" has been the talking point of every Republican amnesty proponent.

Nobody likes the A-word, including Rubio and Ryan who spent the better part of a year arguing that legalizing illegal aliens isn't amnesty if they have to pay a fine. Even Obama made that argument.

The next step would be to get Trump to lay out criteria for who gets to stay and how many of them it would apply to, but good luck getting an answer.

This has been Trump’s position all along.

He says the immigrants here working, can work through the immigration process along with all the rest of the immigrants.

What Trump is also saying is those not working, get out and go home. That is a majority, I believe, and he’s saying they can go home. End of discussion.

He’s also for building a real fence, along all 1,800 miles of our border.

It is a good approach. As good as anyone is proposing.

That has been Trump’s position all along. No news at all.

“Well, the first thing we do is take the bad ones — of which there are, unfortunately, quite a few, ... We take the bad ones and get ‘em the hell out. We get ‘em out.”

“I’m a very big believer in the merit system ... I have to tell you: Some of these people have been here, they’ve done a good job. You know, in some cases, sadly, they’ve been living under the shadows. ... If somebody’s been outstanding, we try and work something out.

“But before we do anything, we have to secure the border because the border is like having no border,” he added.

Guess I’m not seeing “amnesty” here.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.