Trump Considers Action to Shield Undocumented Farm Workers

US President Donald Trump said he is preparing an executive order to protect undocumented immigrants working in agriculture and hospitality from deportation, acknowledging their longstanding contributions to key economic sectors.

“Our farmers are being very badly hurt because they have very good workers. They’ve been working for them for 20 years. They’re not citizens, but they’ve been great, and we’re going to have to do something about it,” Trump told reporters at a White House event. 

The president said an order could be issued pretty soon but did not provide a timeline or specific policy details. He emphasized the need for a common-sense approach, noting that some deportations result in employers hiring criminals who came into our country.

Trump’s comments come amid rising tensions over immigration enforcement. Recent immigration raids, including arrests in the parking lot of a retail store in Los Angeles, have sparked protests and clashes with police. Demonstrators have voiced opposition to the increasing pace of deportations, which the White House has reportedly ordered to reach up to 3,000 removals per day.

Industry groups in agriculture and hospitality have long advocated for relief from broad deportation policies, warning that labor shortages could disrupt the US food supply chain and tourism industry. Nearly half of the country’s estimated 2 million farmworkers, as well as many in the dairy and meatpacking sectors, lack legal immigration status, according to the US Departments of Labor and Agriculture.

Brooke Rollins, US Secretary of Agriculture, told CNBC the administration is exploring all options but emphasized that legislative action by Congress would ultimately be necessary to make lasting changes.