President Donald Trump signed an historic number of Executive Orders his first day back in office. The 26 Trump signed on Monday is more than any other president had signed on the first day of his term. Joe Biden signed nine in 2021, Trump only one in 2017, and Bill Clinton only one in 1993. A number of these orders dealt with immigration, which was a top issue in the 2024 election. According to the latest New York Times/Ipsos polling, Americans generally agree with most of what Trump wants to do on immigration, but there are areas where they’re skeptical.
By The Numbers:
Almost all Americans (87%) support Trump’s plan to deport immigrants who are here illegally and have criminal records. Only 10% oppose this plan.
A majority of Americans support the plan to deport immigrants who are here illegally and arrived within the last four years (63%) as well as the plan to deport all immigrants who are here illegally (55%).
Only 41%, however, support ending birthright citizenship for children born to immigrants who are here illegally and even fewer (34%) support ending protection for immigrants who were children when they entered the U.S. illegally (the “Dreamers”).
The Bottom Line: President Trump is showing he’s serious about tackling the immigration crisis with swift action. That said, it’d benefit his effort to approach some of these options with appropriate messaging and humanity so he keeps swing voters aboard longer than just the first 100 days and for more of his agenda.