Former President Donald Trump ignited controversy on Monday by asserting that illegal immigrants are introducing “bad genes” into the United States.
These remarks, made during a radio interview with conservative host Hugh Hewitt, reflect Trump's ongoing inflammatory rhetoric about immigration, which has frequently faced criticism for vilifying migrants.
Trump's comments were directed at Vice President Kamala Harris, his Democratic opponent in the upcoming presidential election. He cited government statistics indicating that 13,000 immigrants with homicide convictions were not being detained by federal immigration authorities.
“How can we allow people to enter through an open border, 13,000 of whom are murderers, many of whom have killed multiple people? They are now living freely in the United States,” Trump stated. He further claimed, “A murderer — I believe this — it’s in their genes. We have a lot of bad genes in our country right now.