Trump accuses Biden of 'bloodbath' of migrant-led crime, makes disputed claim about murder victim
Trump said he spoke to family of homicide victim Ruby Garcia. Her sister disputes it
Donald Trump accused President Joe Biden of unleashing a "bloodbath" at the U.S.-Mexico border on Tuesday, escalating his inflammatory rhetoric at campaign rallies in two swing states.
Trump, who has vowed to launch the largest domestic deportation operation in the nation's history if he wins a second term, said Biden was allowing a bloodbath that was "destroying the country."
In Michigan, he referred to those suspected of committing crimes who are undocumented as "animals." Those who study extremism warn that using such dehumanizing language increases the risk of violence.
"Every town is now a border town because Joe Biden has brought the carnage and chaos and killing from all over world and dumped it straight into our backyards," Trump said in Grand Rapids, Mich., where he was flanked by law enforcement officers in uniform.
WATCH l Bibles, shoes up for sale to bring in cash for Trump:
The Republican National Committee, now led by Trump loyalists, also launched a BidenBloodbath.com website, just a few weeks after hotly debated Trump campaign remarks about a bloodbath were defended by his supporters as being about Biden's auto industry policies.
While violent crime is down, Trump and other Republicans have seized on several high-profile crimes alleged to have been committed by undocumented U.S. residents.
He also claimed that migrants would cost the country trillions of dollars in public benefits and cause social security and Medicare to "buckle and collapse."
Biden's campaign said Trump is the one who threatens the programs.
"Donald Trump is trying to hide his unpopular record with erratic lies and desperate denials," said Brianna Johnson, the campaign's Wisconsin communications director.
The White House emphasized the positive impact that immigration has on the U.S. economy. They argued that recent gains in immigration have helped to boost employment and sustained growth.
"We know immigrants strengthen our country and also strengthen our economy," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at Tuesday's briefing, noting that immigrants were performing "critical work" on the Baltimore bridge that collapsed last week after being struck by a ship.
Trump comments 'shocking': sister of homicide victim
Trump on Monday invoked the killing of Ruby Garcia, a Michigan woman who was found shot to death by a road on March 22. Authorities say suspect Brandon Ortiz-Vite is a citizen of Mexico and had previously been deported following a drunk driving arrest.
Trump in his remarks said that he had spoken to some of her family to express condolences.
Garcia's sister, Mavi, however, told both the Washington Post and a local Michigan television station that the family was not contacted by the candidate or his campaign.
"He did not speak with any of us, so it was kind of shocking seeing that he had said that he had spoken with us, and misinforming people on live TV," Mavi Garcia told Target 8, the Michigan station.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer responds to Trump:
Nice try. Michiganders are tough and can hold our own, but we’ve got a problem with people who play political games instead of solving problems. <br><br>The facts: When Donald Trump was in office, his administration requested our support to secure the border. I was happy to work across… <a href="https://t.co/TbKHrKVX2d">https://t.co/TbKHrKVX2d</a>
—@gretchenwhitmerFBI statistics show overall violent crime dropped again in the U.S. last year, continuing a downward trend after a pandemic-era spike. In Michigan, violent crime hit a three-year low in 2022, according to the most recent available data. Crime in Michigan's largest city, Detroit, is also down, with the fewest homicides last year since 1966.
In Trump's first of three campaigns for president, he highlighted the shooting death of Kate Steinle in San Francisco by a man who had been previously deported. The man was later acquitted at trial.
He has also been accused of selective outrage in response to deadly crime. Trump critics noted that his comments about the white perpetrator of the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, in Las Vegas in 2017, were relatively muted compared to his remarks after mass shootings in San Bernardino, Calif., and Orlando, Fla., where the suspects were persons of colour.
High-stakes states
Michigan and Wisconsin are seen as critical battleground states in this year's election. Trump won both in 2016 over Hillary Clinton, but lost them to Biden in 2020.
Biden's campaign has tried to counter Trump's attacks by hammering the former president for his role in killing a bipartisan border deal that would have added more than 1,500 new Customs and Border Protection personnel, in addition to other restrictions.
LISTEN l CBC Washington correspondent Alex Panetta on failed border talks (Feb. 8):
"There was a solution on the table. It was actually the former president that encouraged Republicans to walk away from getting it done," Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, said Monday.
While Trump was president, an attempt to pass immigration legislation that would have involved some border wall funding also came to naught, with Democrats and Republicans blaming their rivals for the dissolution of talks.
Trump also presided over an expansive policy of separating migrant families, which was denounced by humanitarian organizations. The Trump administration failed to track many who had been separated, it was later learned.
Trump stemmed the tide of asylum claims for a backlogged system by implementing Title 42, a public health ordinance, during the early days of the pandemic. Biden continued the policy, but his bid to end it in 2022 was delayed for a year after legal challenges by Republican attorneys general in several states. Critics said that Title 42 had the unintended consequence of encouraging repeated border crossing attempts.
Trump, the first former president to be indicted, faces four separate criminal cases that could reduce his campaign appearances. Jury selection in a New York case, involving allegations of falsified business records, is set to begin on April 15.
With files from CBC News