Polls show falling US support for Trump's deportations
Trump won last year's election in part with promises to launch a historic deportation drive, riling up his base with exaggerated claims of mass violence committed by undocumented migrants, whom he referred to as 'savages' and 'animals.'
Polls from both CNN and CBS show that Trump has lost majority support for his deportation approach.
Fifty-five per cent of respondents feel the raids - frequently seen online in viral videos of masked, unidentified agents seizing people off the street - have gone too far, CNN said.
This was up 10 per cent from a similar poll in February, shortly after Trump took office.
A majority - 57 per cent - said they oppose plans for construction of mass detention facilities, with only 26 per cent supporting the idea, CNN said.
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A CBS News poll found that 56 per cent of Americans believe Trump's administration is targeting migrants who do not represent a threat to public safety, up from 47 per cent last month.
According to the poll, only 49 per cent of Americans approve of Trump's immigration policies, down from 54 per cent last month and 59 per cent in February.
Support remains nearly universal among Republicans, however, with 91 per cent in favor of the deportations.
Opposition among independents is nonetheless at 59 per cent and among Democrats at 86 per cent.
Trump marked the six-month mark of his second presidency by heading out to his golf club in Virginia, near Washington, and posting on social media that the period was 'being hailed as one of the most consequential periods of any President.'
'Six months is not a long time to have totally revived a major Country,' he wrote on Truth Social.
'One year ago our Country was DEAD, with almost no hope of revival,' he said, adding that now the United States was the 'most respected Country anywhere in the World.'
In keeping with other surveys, the CBS News poll found Trump's overall approval rating is underwater. Currently only 42 per cent of Americans approve of his job, compared to 53 per cent in February. AFP
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Business Times
14 minutes ago
- Business Times
Trump tariffs leave costly China supply question unanswered
[BEIJING] US President Donald Trump's recent flurry of trade deals have given Asian exporters some clarity on tariffs, but missing are key details on how to avoid punitive rates that target China's supply chains. Trump unveiled tariffs of 20 per cent for Vietnam and 19 per cent for Indonesia and the Philippines, signalling that those are the levels the US will likely settle on for most of South-east Asia, a region that ships US$352 billion worth of goods annually to the US. He's also threatened to rocket rates up to 40 per cent for products deemed to be transshipped, or re-routed, through those countries, a move largely directed at curbing Chinese goods circumventing higher US tariffs. But still unclear to manufacturers is how the US will calculate and apply local-content requirements, key to how it will determine what constitutes transshipped goods. South-east Asian nations are highly reliant on Chinese components and raw materials, and US firms that source from the region would bear the extra tariff damage. That's left companies, investors and economists facing several unanswered questions about Trump's tariffs that appear aimed at squeezing out Chinese content, according to Deborah Elms, head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation in Singapore. 'Is that raw materials? All raw materials? Above a certain percentage?' she said. 'How about parts? What about labour or services? What about investment?' BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up In an agreement with Indonesia last week, the White House said the two countries would negotiate 'rules of origin' to ensure a third country would not benefit. The deal with Vietnam earlier this month outlined a higher 40 per cent tariff rate for transshipped goods. And Thai officials, who have yet to secure a deal, detailed that they likely need to boost local content in exports to the US. Missing details The Trump administration is not providing much clarity on the matter right now. US officials are still working out details with trading partners and looking at value-based local content requirements, to ensure exports are more than just assembled imported parts, according to a source familiar with the matter, who did not want to be identified discussing private talks. A senior Trump administration official also said this week that details on the approach to transhipment are expected to be released before Aug 1, the deadline for when higher US tariffs kick in. Some factories are already adjusting their supply chains to comply with rules that will require more locally-made components in production. Frank Deng, an executive at a Shanghai-based furniture exporter with operations in Vietnam, and which gets about 80 per cent of business from the US, said in an interview that his firm is making adjustments as authorities appear to be more strictly enforcing country-of-origin rules. Vietnam has always had specific local content requirements for manufacturers, Deng added, including that a maximum of 30 per cent of the volume of raw materials originates from China, and the value after production in Vietnam must be 40 per cent higher than the imported raw materials. 'We have been struggling to meet all the standards so that we can still stay in the game,' Deng said. 'But I guess that's the only way to survive now.' For most of South-east Asia, reducing the amount of Chinese-made components in manufacturing will require a complete overhaul of their supply chains. Estimates from Eurasia Group show that Chinese components make up about 60 to 70 per cent of exports from South-east Asia – primarily industrial inputs that go into manufacturing assembly. About 15 per cent of the region's exports now head to the US, up about four percentage points from 2018. Local content The US has become increasingly vigilant about China's ability to bypass US trade tariffs and other restrictions through third countries since Trump's first trade war in 2017. Thailand signalled its frustration over the lack of clarity for how much local content is needed in goods exported to the US to avert transhipment rates, but noted it will likely be much higher than a traditional measure of 40 per cent. 'From what we have heard, the required percentage could be significantly higher, perhaps 60 per cent, 70 per cent, or even 80 per cent,' Deputy Prime Minister Pichai Chunhavajira said on Jul 14. 'Emerging countries or new production bases are clearly at a disadvantage,' he said, as their manufacturing capabilities are still at an early stage and must rely on other countries for raw goods. Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia have all taken steps this year to address Trump's concerns, increasing scrutiny of trade that passes through their ports, including new rule-of-origin policies that centralise processing and imposing harsh penalties on transshippers. Developing nations may still struggle to enforce Trump's rules or comply with the rules if it means going up against China, their largest trading partner and geopolitical partner. 'The reality is it's not enforceable at all,' said Dan Wang, China director at Eurasia Group. 'Chinese companies have all kinds of ways to get around it and those other countries have no incentive to enforce those measures, or capacity to collect the data and determine local content.' BLOOMBERG
AsiaOne
2 hours ago
- AsiaOne
US diplomats asked if non-whites qualify for Trump refugee programme for South Africans, World News
WASHINGTON — In early July, the top official at the US embassy in South Africa reached out to Washington asking for clarification on a contentious US policy: Could non-whites apply for a refugee programme geared toward white South Africans if they met other requirements? President Donald Trump's February executive order establishing the programme specified that it was for "Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination," referring to an ethnic group descended mostly from Dutch settlers. In a diplomatic cable sent July 8, embassy Charge d'Affairs David Greene asked whether the embassy could process claims from other minority groups claiming race-based discrimination such as "coloured" South Africans who speak Afrikaans. In South Africa the term coloured refers to mixed-raced people, a classification created by the apartheid regime still in use today. The answer came back days later in an email from Spencer Chretien, the highest-ranking official in the State Department's refugee and migration bureau, saying the programme is intended for white people. Reuters was unable to independently verify the precise language in the email which was described to the news agency by three sources familiar with its contents. The State Department, responding to a request for comment on July 18, did not specifically comment on the email or the cable but described the scope of the policy as wider than the guidance in Chretien's email. The department said US policy is to consider both Afrikaners and other racial minorities for resettlement, echoing guidance posted on its website in May saying that applicants "must be of Afrikaner ethnicity or be a member of a racial minority in South Africa". Chretien declined to comment through a State Department spokesperson. Greene did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. The internal back-and-forth between the embassy and the State Department — which hasn't been previously reported — illustrates the confusion in how to implement a policy designed to help white Afrikaners in a racially diverse country that includes mixed-race people who speak Afrikaans, as well as whites who speak English. So far the State Department has resettled 88 South Africans under the programme, including the initial group of 59 who arrived in May. Another 15 are expected to arrive by the end of August, one of the sources said. Trump, a Republican who recaptured the White House pledging a wide-ranging immigration crackdown, placed an indefinite freeze on refugee admissions from around the world after taking office, saying the US would only admit refugees who "can fully and appropriately assimilate". Weeks later, he issued an executive order that called for the US to resettle Afrikaners, describing them as victims of "violence against racially disfavored landowners," allegations that echoed far-right claims but which have been contested by South Africa's government. Since the executive order, US diplomats working to implement the programme have been deliberating internally about which racial groups could be considered eligible, one of the sources said. In the July 8 cable, Greene laid out a summary of the different ethnic and racial groups in the country before seeking guidance on eligibility. In addition to Afrikaners and mixed-race South Africans, Greene mentioned indigenous South Africans known as the Khoisan people. He said that members of the Jewish community had also expressed interest, but that in South Africa they are considered a religious minority and not a racial group. "In the absence of other guidance, [the US embassy] intends to give consideration to well-founded claims of persecution based on race for other racial minorities," Greene wrote. At least one family identified as coloured has already travelled to the US as refugees, two people familiar with the matter said. The cable forced the administration to clarify its position on whether the policy is for whites only, and if it does include other aggrieved minorities, who would qualify, two of the people familiar with the matter said. [[nid:718304]] Chretien, a conservative who wrote op-eds promoting the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025 plan to overhaul the federal government, is the senior official at the State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration. During the apartheid era, which ended with the first democratic elections in 1994, South Africa maintained a racially segregated society with separate schools, neighborhoods and public facilities for people classified as Black, coloured, white or Asian. Blacks make up 81 per cent of South Africa's population, according to 2022 census data. Coloured South Africans make up eight per cent, and Indians three per cent. Afrikaners and other white South Africans constitute seven per cent of the population but own three-quarters of the privately held land in the country. When asked about the programme in May, Trump said he was not giving Afrikaners preferential treatment because they are white. "They happen to be white, but whether they are white or Black makes no difference to me," he said. In response to a request for comment, a White House official said the administration's policy reflected Trump's executive order. "We will prioritise refugee admissions for South African citizens, including Afrikaners and other racial minorities in South Africa, who have been targeted by the discriminatory laws of the South African government," the official said. The assertion that minority white South Africans face discrimination from the Black majority has spread in far-right circles for years and been echoed by white South African-born Elon Musk, a US citizen who served as a top White House aide during the first four months of Trump's administration. The South African government has rejected the allegations of persecution and a "white genocide". There is no evidence to back up claims of widespread, race-based attacks in the country. During a combative Oval Office meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in May, Trump showed a printed image of a Reuters video taken in the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of what he falsely presented as evidence of mass killings of white South Africans. The South African Chamber of Commerce said earlier this year that 67,000 people were interested in the programme. ALSO READ: First white South Africans board plane for US under Trump refugee plan
Business Times
2 hours ago
- Business Times
Trump arrives in Scotland for golf and bilateral talks as EU trade deal nears
[EDINBURGH/LONDON] US President Donald Trump, dogged by questions about his ties to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, arrived in Scotland on Friday (Jul 25) for some golf and bilateral talks that could yield a trade deal with the European Union. Trump told reporters upon his arrival that he will visit his two golf properties in Scotland and meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, whom he called a 'highly respected woman'. As hundreds of onlookers cheered his arrival, Trump repeated his earlier comment about a 50-50 chance of securing a deal with the EU, adding it would be his administration's biggest trade agreement thus far, if it came together. However, he said there were still 'sticking points' with Brussels on 'maybe 20 different things'. Trump said his meeting with Starmer would be more of a celebration of the trade deal already reached than continued work on it, adding: 'It's a great deal for both.' Before he left Washington, Trump said his administration was working hard on a possible trade deal with the EU, and Brussels was keen to make a deal. Von der Leyen said later she would meet Trump in Scotland on Sunday. EU diplomats say a deal could result in a 15 per cent tariff on EU goods, mirroring a framework accord with Japan reached this week and half of the 30 per cent Trump is threatening to impose by Aug 1. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Trump has sought to reorder the global economy after imposing a 10 per cent tariff on nearly all trading partners in April and threatening sharply higher rates for many countries to kick in a week from now. Trump says the moves will reduce the US trade deficit and bring in extra revenue, but economists warn the new trade policies could drive up inflation. 'Don't talk about Trump' Trump, facing the biggest domestic political crisis of his second term, expressed frustration about ongoing questions about his administration's handling of investigative files related to Epstein's criminal charges and his 2019 death in prison. 'You make it a very big thing over something that's not a big thing,' Trump told reporters in Scotland, urging them to focus on other prominent Americans with ties to Epstein, including former president Bill Clinton. 'Talk about Clinton. Talk about the former president of Harvard. Talk about all of his friends. Talk about the hedge fund guys that were with him all the time. Don't talk about Trump,' he said. 'What you should be talking about is the fact that we have the greatest six months in the history of a presidency.' The Epstein issue has caused a rare breach with some of Trump's most loyal Make America Great Again supporters, and majorities of Americans and Trump's Republicans say they believe the government is hiding details on the case, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling. White House officials are hoping the controversy dies down while Trump is abroad, two sources familiar with the matter said. Deepen ties Trump will stay at his Turnberry property on Scotland's west coast this weekend, before travelling on Monday to a golf property in Aberdeen, where he will open a second 18-hole course named in honour of his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod. MacLeod was born and raised on a Scottish island before emigrating to the US. As he left the White House, Trump said he looked forward to meeting both Starmer and Scottish leader John Swinney, who had publicly backed Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the 2024 US presidential election. The trip gives Trump and Starmer a chance to deepen their already warm ties, with key issues on the agenda to include ending Russia's war in Ukraine, British and US sources said. The deteriorating situation in Gaza is also likely to come up. Starmer on Thursday said he would hold an emergency call with France and Germany over what he called the 'unspeakable and indefensible' suffering and starvation being reported there, and called on Israel to allow aid to enter the Palestinian enclave. Gaza health authorities say more than 100 people have died from starvation, most in recent weeks. Human rights groups have said mass starvation is spreading even as tons of food and other supplies sit untouched just outside the territory. Since being elected last year, Starmer has prioritised good relations with Trump, stressing the importance of Britain's defence and security alliance with the US, while working to clinch the first tariff-reduction deal with the US in May. The framework agreement reaffirmed quotas and tariff rates on British automobiles and eliminated tariffs on the UK's aerospace sector, but left steel tariffs in place. Starmer is expected to press for lower steel tariffs, but sources close to the matter said it was unclear if any breakthrough was possible during Trump's visit. Trump has described Scotland as a 'very special place' and made a similar trip there in 2016 during his earlier run for the presidency, but he will not necessarily get a warm welcome. About 70 per cent of Scots have an unfavourable opinion of Trump, while 18 per cent have a favourable opinion, an Ipsos poll in March found. Scottish police are girding for protests on Saturday in both Aberdeen and in Edinburgh, the country's capital. Trump will return to Britain from Sep 17 to 19 for a state visit hosted by King Charles. It will make Trump the first world leader in modern times to undertake two state visits to Britain. The late Queen Elizabeth hosted him at Buckingham Palace for a three-day state visit in June 2019. REUTERS
