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Trump addresses illegal immigration, crime

Trump on illegal immigration and crime
Trump speaks on illegal immigration and crime 02:37

President Trump stood alongside "angel families" who have been affected by crimes committed by undocumented immigrants Friday, as he continues his push for strong borders.

Mr. Trump said the purpose of the event was to remember those who are "victims of illegal immigration." Mr. Trump made few of the remarks, leaving family members who had lost a son or daughter to speak up as they held pictures of their loved ones. But in the few remarks he gave, the president decried the nation's border security, claiming it is contributing to rampant crime. 

"These are the families the media ignores," Mr. Trump said. "They don't talk about them. Very unfair. We have to look at everybody.  But this is a very unfair situation. And I knew that years ago when we would be together out campaigning. And I said, 'If this ever happens, we're never forgetting you.' You know that, Laura, everybody. Incredible people. And they're dedicated."

"These are the stories that Democrats and people that are weak on immigration, they don't want to discuss, they don't want to hear, they don't want to see, they don't want to talk about," the president continued. "No major networks sent cameras to their homes or displayed the images of their incredible loved ones across the nightly news. They don't do that."

Calling out and preventing crimes committed or allegedly committed by people in the country illegally has been a key component of Mr. Trump's presidency and Attorney General Jeff Session's approach to his Justice Department. 

But earlier Friday, the president threw a wrench in a GOP bill to overhaul border security, tweeting that Republicans — who intend to vote on a compromise bill next week — are "wasting their time on immigration" doing anything ahead of the midterm elections. 

At the same time, the Trump administration continues to face scrutiny even after Mr. Trump's executive order halting the separation of children from their parents at the southern border. The administration has yet to publicly lay out a reunification plan for those families. At this point, 500 children out of more than 2,000 have so far been reunited with their families. 

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