Four years after “Build the wall” was his signature phrase, immigration has taken a back seat to other issues in President Trump’s reelection campaign.
The country is attempting to dig its way out of a pandemic and the economic damage left in its wake. Civil unrest has gripped the streets of major cities following the death of George Floyd in police custody. Some cities have seen an uptick in violent crime.
“I think he needs to focus completely on rebuilding the economy, not building the wall,” said Republican strategist John Feehery. “Since COVID struck, illegal immigration isn’t the issue top of mind for most voters. It’s finding a job. Trump is good at creating a vibrant economy where jobs are plentiful. Biden? Not so much.”
An August Pew Research Center poll found that 52% registered voters considered immigration “very important” to their vote in November. That’s a higher percentage than said the same about economic inequality, climate change, or abortion. But it still ranked eighth, tied with racial and ethnic inequality, among issues of importance to voters. The economy, healthcare, the coronavirus outbreak, crime, even Supreme Court appointments all came in higher.
Trump and his campaign haven’t ignored immigration either, touting his record and assailing the Democrats as lax on border security. “Perhaps no issue have our opponents more thoroughly betrayed working families of all backgrounds than on the subject of immigration,” Trump said at a rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin, on Thursday. “Under my administration, we’ve achieved the most secure border in American history.”
“As President Trump said in his speech last night, he is keeping his promises to secure our borders and end illegal immigration by building a strong border wall, deporting violent gang members, and closing dangerous loopholes like the harmful catch and release policy,” said campaign spokeswoman Courtney Parella. “While Joe Biden and Kamala Harris push their out-of-touch agenda for open borders, sanctuary cities, amnesty to 11 million illegal immigrants, and taxpayer-funded healthcare and work permits to illegal immigrants, President Trump will continue to encourage legal immigration while protecting the American worker, rebuilding our economy, and delivering the Great American Comeback.”
Still, immigration hawks who support Trump would like to hear more. “Immigration has been a big part of the good news labor story” before the coronavirus kicked in, said Dan Stein, president of the restrictionist Federation for American Immigration Reform, referring to wage growth helped along by tight labor markets. “I certainly hope that the president can reflect on what he’s accomplished in this area over the past four years.”
The word “immigration” only appeared twice in Trump’s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, delivered from the White House lawn. “In perhaps no area did the Washington special interests try harder to stop us than on my policy of pro-American immigration,” he said. “But I refused to back down, and today, America’s borders are more secure than ever before.”
With that, Trump began a sustained defense of his record on immigration and border security, including talking about the progress his administration has made on the wall. But no mention was made of his coronavirus moratorium on most new immigration into the United States as the job market recovers. And in a campaign where Hillary Clinton is no longer his opponent, cries of “Lock her up!” still break out at rallies nearly as often as wall-related chants.
“The minute he talked about the wall, the place exploded,” Stein said, recalling the 2016 rallies. Some immigration-centric Trump supporters, such as conservative columnist Ann Coulter, have become critics.
Trump has since made significant inroads with Hispanic voters, polling as high as 41% nationally among this demographic and actually running ahead of Biden with Florida Latinos in some surveys. The Trump campaign believes it has opportunities with black and Hispanic men this fall. Democrats thought Trump’s rhetoric about the border and the family separations that occurred at the border during his presidency would permanently alienate a large majority of Hispanics, much like the GOP share of the black vote never recovered from nominating Barry Goldwater in 1964.
But supporters say that outreach to black and Hispanic voters doesn’t require sidelining immigration. “The real issue is, has he properly highlighted the magnitude of the completely screwball policies coming out of the unity platform?” Stein said, referring to the Democratic agenda crafted in conjunction with Bernie Sanders supporters. “He has been handed on a silver platter some of the most outrageous proposals from a mainstream presidential campaign.”
