Donald Trump’s new campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, explained that the GOP presidential nominee is delaying his immigration speech because policies surrounding the issue “should not be rushed.”
Conway’s Monday night interview on Fox News’s “The Kelly File” came hours after reports that Trump will postpone a speech scheduled for Thursday in Colorado amid questions that he’s softening his stance on immigration.
“It’s for a very simple reason, that’s been on the schedule for a while, we inherited it,” Conway said. “Immigration is a very complex issue and to get the solutions right, to come out with your specific plan, should not be rushed.”
“He’s taking in the wisdom of many different counselors on this issue and that included Saturday’s meeting which I attended,” she added.
When host Megyn Kelly asked if Trump was changing his tune on a proposed deportation force that would remove 11 million undocumented immigrants from the U.S., Conway would not offer a clear answer. On Sunday, she said it was “to be determined.”
“It’s basically the same, and he said it again today in Ohio: first, secure the borders and actually apply and enforce the law,” Conway said. “Secondly, you have to deport those who have committed crimes.”
“I think a deportation force is more the logistics,” she continued. “In other words, how do you achieve the goal of making sure that we are fair to everyone?”
When Kelly pressed her again on if Trump would deport 11 million people from the country, Conway responded, “Here’s what he said about that: He will enforce the law, which will take care of a lot of that. He will deport those who have absolutely committed a crime. … He will make sure that Americans jobs are protected.
“The most important thing he’s said, and what he still says: We need to do it humanely.”
Earlier on Monday, Trump said that he wasn’t “flip-flopping” on a deportation force and has disputed a BuzzFeed report from over the weekend that said he indicated an openness to legalization for those in the country illegally when he met with his newly unveiled Hispanic advisory council over the weekend.
Trump offered some insight into what his immigration plan would look like during a Monday night interview on Fox News’s “The O’Reilly Factor,” suggesting he’d use similar tactics as President Obama and former President George W. Bush.
“We are going to obey the existing laws. Now, the existing laws are very strong. The existing laws, the first thing we are going to do, if and when I win, is we are going to get rid of all of the bad ones,” Trump said. “We have gang members. We have killers. We have a lot of bad people that have to get out of this country. We are going to get them out. And the police know who they are.”