President-elect Donald Trump promised to expel migrants to their country of origin by military force — and refused to “do business” with those countries if they refuse to take them in.
“I’ll get them into every country, or we won’t do business with those countries,” Trump, 78, said in a lengthy interview with Time magazine published Thursday after being honored as the outlet’s 2024 “Person of the Year.”
“I want them out, and the countries have got to take them back, and if they don’t take them back, we won’t do business with those countries, and we will tariff those countries very substantially,” he added.
“When they send products in, they will have substantial tariffs, and it’s going to make it very hard for them to do business with us.”
Border security and illegal immigration will be a top priority for the incoming president, as Trump has already promised with the help of his “border czar” Tom Homan to undertake the largest deportation operation in US history.
The soon-to-be 47th president even threatened to impose a 25% import tariff on both Canada and Mexico for having allowed millions of migrants and tons of deadly drugs like fentanyl to flow across the northern and southern borders during President Biden’s term.
Trump expressed hope that his second administration won’t have to build too many migrant camps — though Texas officials have offered up to 1,400 acres (2.1 square miles) of land in anticipation — since he wants to expel them quickly. But he hedged that “there might be more” constructed anyway.
“Whatever it takes to get them out. I don’t care,” the once and future president went on. “Honestly, whatever it takes to get them out. Again, I’ll do it absolutely within the confines of the law, but if it needs new camps, but I hope we’re not going to need too many because I want to get them out, and I don’t want them sitting in camp for the next 20 years.”
Trump also said his administration is planning on deporting migrant families together, so he doesn’t think parents, regardless of their immigration status, will have to be separated from their children.
“We will send the whole family back to the country,” he said.
On the overall immigration process, Trump reiterated the importance of vetting migrants coming across the border and having all those coming to the US abide by the full legal process — while adding that he doesn’t expect the crackdown will have bad economic ripple effects.
“We’re going to let people in, but we have to let them in legally,” he affirmed.
“We don’t want people to come in from jails. We don’t want the jails of Venezuela and many other countries, and not just South American countries. We don’t want the jails to be opened up into our country. We’re not accepting their prisoners. We’re not accepting their murders. We’re not accepting their people from mental institutions,” he concluded. “We’re not doing it.”