The shift comes amid a notable softening in tone from the Trump administration over the past several days.
MINNEAPOLIS — Polls show voters’ opinions are shifting on the White House’s handling of immigration enforcement, as approval ratings for President Donald Trump on the issue hit their lowest point since his return to office.
The change comes amid a notable softening in tone from the Trump administration over the past couple of days, coinciding with growing public disapproval of recent enforcement actions. According to a poll published this week by Reuters and Ipsos, most Americans do not approve of how Trump and his administration are handling immigration, with a majority saying the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdown has gone too far.
“You can enforce all of the immigration laws on the books without doing it the way ICE and the Border Patrol have done it, and I think that’s what Americans are responding to,” said Brian McClung, a political analyst and former staffer for Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty. “They’re seeing the people of Minnesota under siege and imagining that that could happen in their hometown next.”
McClung said while most Americans who voted for Trump favor a strong southern border and the deportation of people who have committed violent crimes, they do not support what he described as overly aggressive tactics by federal agents. “It’s not really a question of whether or not you think immigration laws should be enforced,” McClung said. “It’s really how they’ve gone about it and how some of these top leaders have lied to the American public in the aftermath of these shootings.”
Larry Jacobs, a University of Minnesota political science professor and founder of the university’s Center for the Study of Politics and Governance, said the Trump administration is struggling with credibility. “They have made some very strong statements about the Minnesotans who were killed by ICE, that they were domestic terrorists, but there’s a lot of video evidence suggesting they were not impeding or threatening ICE, and this has led to some real doubts about whether the administration could be trusted,” Jacobs said. “Trust is one of the most important ingredients for any politician. When you begin to lose the faith and confidence of voters, it’s very hard to turn that around.”
Jacobs noted that while most Americans disapprove of Trump’s immigration policy, there is less agreement about what they’d like to see instead. “When it comes to issues like abolishing ICE, which is getting a lot of attention in Washington, the public is a bit split,” he said.
With the midterm elections still 10 months away and the governor’s race on the horizon, both McClung and Jacobs said Republicans will need to adjust their messaging and refocus on issues such as fraud in order to rebuild public trust. McClung said members of the party should be willing to speak out, even if it creates tension with the president. “Republicans need to speak out, even if it’s difficult, even if it puts them at odds with President Trump, because Minnesotans respect authenticity,” he said.
McClung and Jacobs said only time will tell if the administration’s softer tone and changes in federal leadership on the ground in Minneapolis will influence voters.