President Trump leads a prison reform roundtable in the Roosevelt Room at the White House Thursday. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post)
By Josh Dawsey
January 11 at 7:31 PM

President Trump grew frustrated with lawmakers Thursday in the Oval Office when they floated restoring protections for immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador and African countries as part of a bipartisan immigration deal, according to several people briefed on the meeting.

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” Trump said, according to these people, referring to countries mentioned by the lawmakers.

Trump then suggested that the United States should instead bring more people from countries like Norway, whose prime minister he met with on Wednesday. The president, according to a White House official, also suggested he would be open to more immigrants from Asian countries because they help the United States economically.

In addition, the president singled out Haiti, telling lawmakers that immigrants from that country must be left out of any deal, these people said.

“Why do we need more Haitians?” Trump said, according to people familiar with the meeting. “Take them out.”

 1:08
Here's how the Diversity Visa Lottery, also know as the green card lottery, works

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Despite criticism, a program that awards U.S. permanent residency through a lottery has been around for more than 20 years. This is how it works. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post)
The comments left lawmakers taken aback, according to people familiar with their reactions. Sens. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) and Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) had proposed cutting the visa lottery program by 50 percent and then prioritizing countries already in the system, a White House official said.

A White House spokesman defended Trump’s position on immigration without directly addressing Trump’s remarks. White House officials did not dispute the account.

[200,000 Salvadorans may be forced to leave the U.S. as Trump ends immigration protection]

“Certain Washington politicians choose to fight for foreign countries, but President Trump will always fight for the American people,” spokesman Raj Shah said in a statement issued after The Washington Post first reported Trump’s remarks. “ . . . Like other nations that have merit-based immigration, President Trump is fighting for permanent solutions that make our country stronger by welcoming those who can contribute to our society, grow our economy and assimilate into our great nation.”


Trump built his candidacy and presidency around hard stances on immigration, vowing to build a wall along the Mexican border and cut legal immigration by half, among other positions. Officials at the Department of Homeland Security have also increased immigration raids, including dozens earlier this week at convenience stores across the country.

The remarks were quickly met with scorn from Democrats and some Republicans and could throw another wrench into bipartisan discussions on immigration, which had shown promise in recent days, according to legislators.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) said the comments “will shake the confidence that people have” in the ongoing immigration policy talks.

 2:00
What does temporary protected status (TPS) mean?

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DHS announced on Jan. 8 that it will end protected immigration status for about 200,000 migrants from El Salvador. This is what you need to know about TPS. (Melissa Macaya, Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post)
 “Democrats and Republicans in the Senate made a proposal. The answer is this racist outburst of the president. How can you take him seriously? They [Republicans] don’t believe in immigration — it’s always been about people of color and keeping them out of this country,” Gutierrez said.


Rep. Cedric L. Richmond (D-La.), chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, said on Twitter that Trump’s remarks “are further proof that his Make America Great Again Agenda is really a Make America White Again

Source:
Washington post