As President Donald Trump considers striking a deal with Congressional Democrats that would enshrine DACA protections into law in exchange for strengthened border security, some immigration hardliners in Trump’s base fumed over what they perceived as a broken promise.
Democratic minority leaders Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Chuck Schumer said in a joint statement Wednesday night that they agreed in principle to a deal with Trump that would enshrine DACA protections into law.
Pelosi, Schumer and Trump agreed to “work out a package of border security, excluding the wall, that’s acceptable to both sides,” the joint statement read.
Later that night, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that Trump discussed DACA and border security with Pelosi and Schumer, but asserted that “excluding the wall was certainly not agreed to.”
But the following day, Trump told reporters “the wall will come later,” according to CNN.
A core tenet of Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign was his promise to build a wall on the nation’s southern border to curb illegal immigration. He also said on the campaign trail that he would repeal the DACA program, which was authorized by former President Barack Obama through executive action in 2012.
The program protects nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants brought here as children from deportation.
Reaction from Trump supporters was swift: Ann Coulter, known for her fiery support of Trump and conservative causes, tweeted “At this point, who DOESN’T want Trump impeached?” Breitbart, with former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon as its executive chairman, referred to Trump as “Amnesty Don” in a banner.
And on Twitter, under the trend #burnmyMAGAhat, some Trump supporters set their signature red hats ablaze to signal their displeasure at the potential bipartisan immigration deal.