President Donald Trump is continuing his attacks on members of the MS-13 gang, calling them "vicious killers" and complaining that Democrats like House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi are sticking up for them.
"Well, look, everybody knows what's going on," the president told Fox News' Brian Kilmeade during an interview recorded Wednesday backstage at a Long Island roundtable and airing on "Fox & Friends" Thursday.
"These are vicious killers and they shouldn't be allowed into the country. The laws are horrible. We are bringing them out by the thousands. As you know we are setting records. This is a record I don't even like talking about it because it's so ridiculous. They shouldn't be in the country."
However, Democrats are "sticking up" for the gang, he said.
"You heard Nancy Pelosi the other day like trying to find all sorts of reasons why they should be able to stay," said Trump. "These are stone cold killers. Vicious killers."
The roundtable invited several family members who have lost people to the gang violence, and Trump said "this should never happen."
Meanwhile, there are many "very brand new" sections of the border wall, and the United States is enjoying a "great economy, probably the best economy the county has ever had," Trump told Kilmeade.
"So people come across [the border]," he said, noting that "we are going to get the rest" of the money for the wall, and work to "change the immigration laws to toughen them up a lot."
There is legislation moving through the House, said Trump, with "four different bills" but unless they include a "real wall" and "very strong border security" there will be "no approvals from me."
"I can tell you there is a mod right now for very strong border security," said Trump. "When you see a scene like this, where these incredible parents have lost their sons and daughters, it's very hard not to do that."
He also termed the immigration lottery system "ridiculous, as you know."
"They take people from a lottery where, can you imagine, these countries are not putting their finest in that lottery," said Trump. "So I don't like the lottery. Chain migration is a disaster. You look at what's going on where somebody comes in whom is bad. And have 24 members of a family from not one of them do you want in this country. Chain migration is terrible. Lottery is terrible."
The president also called to "get rid" of the catch and release program.
"You catch them, even if you know they are a criminal, you catch them, you have to release them by law," said Trump. "You have to release them and then they go into society and they don't come back to the trial. It's crazy. We have the worst immigration laws in the entire world by far. Other countries laugh at us. It's because of the Democrats. Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi."
Immigration judges have a backlog of cases, said Trump.
"Think of it, we are the only country essentially that has judges," said Trump. "They want to hire thousands of judges. Other countries have, it's called security people. People that stand there and you can't come in. We have thousands of judges and they need thousands of more judges. The whole system is corrupt. It's horrible. So, yeah, you need thousands of judges based on this crazy system."
It require a "very special person" to be a judge, Trump said. "How do you hire thousands of people to be a judge? It's ridiculous. We have no choice, for the good of our country."