Former head of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson said President Donald Trump's "rhetoric" has led to a decrease of "illegal migration on our southern border."
Trump has "scared off" a lot of illegal immigrants, Johnson told CNN's "New Day" morning program.
"Illegal migration on our southern border has gone down since this president has been in office," Johnson told CNN.
"Basically because, through his rhetoric he's scared off a lot of women and children in central America who would rather stay in their desperate circumstances or just migrate to Mexico and stop there," Johnson said.
Though Johnson worked for a president many called the "deporter-in-chief," he said Trump and his administration should bring more compassion to fighting illegal immigration.
"We have to enforce our immigration laws consistent with our values and consistent with humanity," Johnson told CNN.
"At the end of the day, when you enforce immigration laws, you have to be able to look yourself in the mirror, look your own family in the eye, recall the women and children who are desperate, to say, 'I did my best to enforce the law consistent with our priorities and consistent with our values,'" Johnson said.
"And I hope that the current administration does not lose sight of that."
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