President Donald Trump will do "everything in his authority" to fight illegal immigration, White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said Friday, while not ruling out the use of the Insurrection Act, a federal law dating back to 1807 that would allow him to use the military to control and remove migrants.
"I'm saying there are lots of tools at his disposal," Gidley told Fox News' "Fox and Friends," after he was asked about reports that the president plans to use the act. "He hasn't used them all and looking at ways to protect the American people."
On Thursday, The Daily Caller, quoting senior administration officials, Trump is considering invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807, which allows a president to use the military to combat "unlawful obstruction or rebellion" inside U.S. borders. President George H.W. Bush used the act in 1992 during the Los Angeles riots.
"What's so sad is we are getting to this point in the first place," said Gidley. "We can fix this now with Congress and fix it in a lasting way that protects the American people."
Meanwhile, it will be "up to Democrats" whether immigration reform that helps protect Americans and secure the border will be approved, Gidley said Friday, following President Donald Trump's announcement of his administration's merit-based immigration plan.
"So many of the problems we face are because of an immigration system that hasn't been touched for almost 60 years now," Gidley said. "It's up to Democrats to come to the table. We have repeatedly tried to get them there and they won't do it."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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