President Trump claimed during an event for immigration enforcement officials on Monday that Democratic politicians have proved they “don’t mind crime” by opposing the construction of a border wall.
“We’re building the wall step by step and it’s not easy because we have a little opposition and it’s call the Democrats,” Trump said at a White House event that was meant to honor Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection agents.
“I guess they just don’t mind crime,” he added.
The president’s criticism comes as a faction of Democrats have called for the abolition of ICE, claiming the agency is in dire need of reforms and has been used wrongfully to enforce inhumane immigration laws. Trump on Monday said those seeking to abolish ICE “want to abolish America’s borders” and allow crime to flourish in the country.
“Sadly, in recent months … a coalition of open borders extremists — and to me that means people who don’t mind crime — have waged an unprecedented assault on American law enforcement, threatening ICE and border patrol [agents] for performing their duties admirably,” Trump said, adding that such “extremist” attitudes are “shameful [and] horrible in every way and it’s going to stop right now.”
“They have no courage, they have no guts. They just have big, loud mouths,” he said.
The searing indictment of “Abolish ICE” proponents followed a letter Trump sent to state and local leaders earlier Monday, asking them to pledge their support for federal immigration laws and enforcement officers. In the letter, Trump touted his administration’s unprecedented crackdown on violent illegal immigrants and transnational criminal groups like MS-13.
He told attendees Monday, “We’re rolling them the hell out of our country so fast your head would spin.”
[Also read: Trump warns: Abolishing ICE would cause ‘terror, bloodshed’]
