The Trump administration continued to send Americans mixed signals on who is exempt from its massive effort to catapult millions of undocumented immigrants out of the country.
In June President Donald Trump had vowed to protect migrants from raids at farms, hotels and restaurants, quickly reversing course after leaders in these industries expressed concerns about worker shortages.
“Our farmers are being hurt badly,” Trump said in a June 12 Truth Social post. “You know, they have very good workers. They’ve worked for them for 20 years. They’re not citizens, but they’ve turned out to be, you know, great.”
But carveouts for certain industries were rejected by some voices in the White House, such as Stephen Miller, a deputy White House chief of staff who is a top architect of the administration’s immigration crackdown.
A White House official also confirmed the change in direction with USA TODAY in late June, saying anyone in the U.S. illegally is at risk of deportation.
But Trump as recently as July 3 indicated he wanted to protect farmers who depend on migrant labor, saying “we’ll put the farmers in charge” of deportations for migrant farm workers. That prompted a new round of questions from supporters and critics who have been scratching their heads on what the administration’s view of how to treat migrant workers in specific industries.
“I can’t underscore enough, there will be no amnesty. The mass deportations continue, but in a strategic way,” Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said at a July 8 press conference when asked about farm labor.
“And we move the workforce toward automation and 100% American participation, which with 34 million able-bodied on Medicaid we should be able to do fairly quickly,” she added.
About 42% of farm workers in the U.S. between 2020 and 2022 lacked legal status, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
This story will be updated.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ‘No amnesty’: Trump officials promises no immigration exemptions
