Photo: Joe Raedle Getty Images via AFP Tuesday, at the Republican convention in Milwaukee, speakers took the stage one after another to amplify Donald Trump's hostile rhetoric towards immigrants. Pictured is Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Fabien Deglise in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Published yesterday at 11:36 p.m.
- United States
“We have to stop this. We can no longer afford so much immigration. Especially with all the crime it's increasing.”
At 84 years old, on the steps of Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum on the second day of the Republican National Convention, Bob Crowther, a Republican from Illinois, admitted to having a lot of opinions on a lot of issues.
“We need to send them all home and build a wall, like the Chinese did with the Great Wall. »
Photo: Fabien Deglise Le Devoir For Bob Crowther, 84, the solution to solving insecurity in the United States is simple: send foreigners home and build a wall, like the Great Wall of China, he said.
Under very close surveillance, since the assassination attempt on Donald Trump last Saturday in Pennsylvania, the major political gathering continued on Tuesday by putting security at the heart of its discussions of the day, with fundamentally the fight against immigration, a key theme of the ex-president to mobilize his troops.
On Monday, delegates from all states adopted the Republican program for next November's presidential election. The laconic document, compared to the programs of previous years, is barely 16 pages long and promises, among other things, to “carry out the largest deportation operation [of illegal immigrants] in the history of the United States.” A proposal widely supported by the participants in this convention met by Le Devoir, including several from immigrant backgrounds themselves.
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“Immigration needs to be organized,” commented Flor de Lis Grotestan, who came from Florida to wear the colors of a group called “Anti-Communist Patriots” in Milwaukee. I was born in Cuba. I had to leave my country when Castro's communists took power. I know where this could lead. The United States was built on immigration, it’s true. But it is time to better regulate all of this. »
Last May on CNN, Donald Trump revealed a little more about his plan to fight against what he describes as “an invasion”, a concept which feeds fears and the so-called “great replacement” conspiracy theory promoted by his new running mate. , J.D. Vance. The ex-president spoke of deporting “15 to 20 million undocumented immigrants”, figures undoubtedly higher than the actual number of people living under this status in the United States, estimated at 11.3 million in 2022 by the Center for Immigration Studies.
200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000Guests in harmony with Trump
Tuesday , in Milwaukee, speakers took turns on stage to amplify the message of the Republican candidate, conflating immigration with crimes and social problems like him. “I have never seen anything worse than the Biden administration’s open borders policy,” summarized Mike Rogers, a Michigan politician who dreams of becoming his state’s senator in Washington. She rolled out the red carpet for criminals, fentanyl, Chinese spies, terrorists…” he said. “We should have brought back law and order long ago.”
“Borders have become our greatest threat,” said former United States Ambassador Nikki Haley, who fought fiercely against Donald Trump during the Republican primary and who assured the former president on Tuesday evening of his “strongest” support. Under Joe Biden, immigration is arriving by the thousands every day. We don't know who they are, where they're landing, or what they're planning to do.”
In front of supporters who welcomed her call for party unity, the former governor of South Carolina added: “Kamala Harris [the vice-president] had one job, one job only: to solve the problem at home. border. Now imagine her in charge of the whole country,” a prospect that Nikki Haley has been foreshadowing for months, estimating that if Joe Biden is re-elected, he will not be able to complete his mandate.
“Our borders were more secure under Donald Trump,” declared Ron DeSantis, another opponent of Donald Trump, who also came to publicly bury the hatchet at the Republican convention on Tuesday. The governor of Florida insisted that Joe Biden was the instrument of the radical left who “supports open borders allowing millions of illegal immigrants to flow into our communities”. “But don’t send them to Martha’s Vineyard,” where the Republican rebelliously transferred 50 Venezuelans in 2022 by plane from San Antonio, Texas, to annoy the liberals living on this upscale Massachusetts island. “It makes them angry.”
“If you came here illegally under Joe Biden, you're going to go back to where you came from under Donald Trump,” said Congressman Jim Banks, who is seeking the Indiana senatorial seat next November.< /p>
Forgotten facts
Last June, arrests of illegal immigrants fell by 29% compared to May, with 83,000 arrests by border services. The drop follows a series of radical measures taken by the Joe Biden government to strengthen border control, mainly in Republican-dominated states neighboring Mexico.
In 2023, 864 of these illegal immigrants were arrested across the country for taking part in burglary, robbery, larceny or fraud, according to recent data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In comparison, the FBI recorded 899,000 burglaries in 2022 alone across the country, committed in private residences and businesses. Figures that were not shared with participants at the Republican convention on Tuesday.
Photo: Fabien Deglise Le Devoir Santos Lopez, a Republican from New York state, supports his party's anti-immigration measures, even though he traveled there several years ago from the Philippines.
“As an immigrant myself from the Philippines, I have no problem with the border closures,” commented Santos Lopez, Republican from New York State. What we want is simple: to prevent bad apples from entering the basket.”
According to a study by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, published in June, the expulsion of illegal workers whose presence is strong in several sectors of the economy, such as agriculture and manufacturing, would have the potential to increase inflation from 0.5 to 3.1% in 2025, according to two scenarios: the removal of 1.5 million or 7.5 million people.
A mass deportation could also come with a colossal bill for the US government. In 2023, the 142,580 illegal immigrants escorted across the border by the Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement Unit cost American taxpayers $420 million, the agency's data shows.
On Wednesday, the Republican National Convention will continue on the theme of the foreign policies promoted by Donald Trump, before the big coronation evening of the Republican candidate, Thursday.