President Trump on Friday warned that European countries “better watch themselves” over allowing an influx of immigrants, adding that free-flowing immigration has been bad for Europe and bad for the U.S.
Trump decried that immigration is “changing the culture” in European countries, adding that it’s a “very negative thing.”
“I know it’s politically not necessarily correct to say that, but I’ll say it and I’ll say it loud,” Trump said during a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May.
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“I think they better watch themselves because you are changing culture. You are changing a lot of things, you’re changing security,” he continued. “It’s a very sad situation. It’s very unfortunate but I do not think it’s good for Europe and I don’t think it’s good for our country.”
Trump went on to rail against U.S. immigration laws, claiming that the country “virtually” doesn’t have immigration laws.
Trump has long pointed to Europe’s immigration policy as a cautionary tale for the U.S. He has lamented that immigrants have poured into European countries and changed the culture of each nation.
Migration levels to Europe have actually declined recently, dropping to numbers more common prior to 2015, when an influx of people sought asylum on the continent to escape conflict and humanitarian crises in the Middle East and Africa.
The Trump administration, meanwhile, has cracked down on illegal immigration in the U.S., particularly at the U.S.-Mexico border.
That effort has sparked controversy in recent weeks after a “zero tolerance” policy led to the separation of thousands of migrant children from their parents.