In any normal White House, presidents and vice presidents are expected to read from identical scripts. When Donald Trump is in the Oval Office, however, it doesn’t seem to work out that way.
During the Republican’s first term, he had a weird knack for contradicting Mike Pence. In the first year of his second term, it’s apparently JD Vance’s turn for similar treatment.
On pardons for Jan. 6 convicts, Trump contradicted his own vice president. On deployment of federal troops to U.S. cities, Trump again contradicted his own vice president. The president and Vance weren’t even on the same page on talking points related to Jeffrey Epstein.
But to fully appreciate the scope of the problem, consider the distance between the two Republicans on the issue of legal immigration.
Two weeks ago, for example, Vance appeared at a conversative event in Mississippi, where he insisted that he wants to see legal immigration numbers go “way, way down” from the status quo, in order to improve Americans’ “sense of common identity.” The vice president went on to argue that, as far as he’s concerned, “we have let in too many immigrants,” adding that legal immigrants “are undercutting the wages of American workers.”
This week, however, the president said something quite different about legal immigration. NBC News reported:
President Donald Trump defended H-1B visas during an interview that aired Tuesday night, arguing foreign labor is needed at times because U.S. workers do not have ‘certain talents.’ Trump made the remarks during a Fox News interview when asked whether his administration would prioritize the costly visas that allow skilled workers from overseas to temporarily work in the United States. He said the United States has to ‘bring in talent.’
Fox News host Laura Ingraham said in response, “We have plenty of talented people here.” Trump replied, “No, you don’t.”
TRUMP: You have to bring in talentINGRAHAM: Well, we have plenty of talented people in AmericaTRUMP: No you don't. No.INGRAHAM: We don't have talented people here? When Ingraham pressed further, the president said, in apparent reference to his own country’s population, “You don’t have certain talents and … people have to learn.” Trump’s criticisms of Americans and their employment skills weren’t exactly well received among many on the right, but spare a thought for Vance, whose just saw the president step on his anti-immigration vision during a nationally televised interview. The editorial board of The Wall Street Journal, commenting on the contradiction, concluded, “For all of his campaigning against illegal immigration, Mr. Trump understands that America needs the world’s strivers to continue to prosper. Perhaps he can make that case to his young apprentice.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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