Reid criticised Trump’s approach as imprecise, suggesting it would target individuals based on race rather than focusing solely on illegal status.
Joy Reid wasn’t holding back on MSNBC, warning that under Trump’s grand deportation plan, even legal immigrants and U.S. citizens might not be safe—especially if they’re not “white.” Trump, elected as the 47th President of the United States on November 5, won over voters with his bold immigration rhetoric, tax cuts, shifting stance on abortion rights, and more.
In a controversial Instagram post, Donald Trump Jr. joked about domestic violence while celebrating his father’s election victories over Clinton and Harris.
Now, according to Reid, it’s not about precision; it’s about Trump’s “meat-axe approach,” where even a green card won’t be much of a shield. Because, apparently, being brown might just be enough to get you sent packing.
Trump will deport ‘legal immigrants’
Throughout his campaign, the Trump-Vance team outlined plans for mass deportations of millions, coupled with a hefty investment in expanding the U.S.-Mexico border wall. But, Reid warned that Trump’s promise to initiate the largest deportation effort would likely target individuals with darker skin rather than focus on all illegal moves, creating a racial imbalance in his approach.
During a conversation following Trump’s election victory, Joy Reid, Ali Velshi, and author David Cay Johnston discussed the potential fallout of Trump’s immigration policies. Johnston warned that Trump’s mass deportation plan would likely result in the removal of even legal immigrants and U.S. citizens. “There will be American citizens who will end up being deported because they’re not going to do this with precision. They’re going to do it. That’s right – meat ax approach”
“With the meat ax approach and also with de-naturalisation. Meaning don’t think because you have a green card and came through the right way,” Reid responded, according to Mediaite. “If you’re brown, you may not stick around. I don’t think they care whether you have a green card or not. They’re pulling people out and taking people out of this country, whether they like it or not, Ali, or whether you voted for them or not,” he added.
Trump’s win impact on H-1B visa and legal immigration
In his second term, Trump is likely to pursue stricter immigration policies which might end up targeting high-skilled workers and their families. While he has suggested offering green cards to international students, his first term saw a dramatic increase in H-1B visa denials and Requests for Evidence (RFEs), making it more difficult for skilled workers to gain employment eventually going to hurt Silicon Valley and the tech industry where a lot of employees are from Asian background.
People with H-4 visas, which are for spouses of H-1B workers, might run into problems too, especially since the Trump administration tried before to get rid of their work permission. Trump’s immigration rhetoric has raised alarms, with many criticising it as rooted in harmful racial purity ideals. In a December speech, he controversially claimed that migrants are “poisoning the blood of our country.” More recently, he linked “bad genes” to undocumented immigrants. Trump also made statements calling America the “garbage can for the world.”
“We’re a dumping ground. We’re like a — we’re like a garbage can for the world. That’s what, that’s what’s happened to us. We’re like a garbage can,” the newly elect said during his Arizona rally.
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