Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy on Sunday backed President-elect Donald Trump’s administration’s mass deportation plans, characterising it as a “pragmatic” approach and suggesting it aligns with the views of many Americans.
Speaking on ABC’s “This Week” in an interview with Jonathan Karl, Ramaswamy acknowledged that the US has a broken legal immigration system but added that the first step should be to restore the rule of law in a pragmatic way.
“Do we have a broken legal immigration system? Yes, we do, but I think the first step is going to be to restore the rule of law and do it in a very pragmatic way,” Ramaswamy said, as quoted by Politico.
He stressed that most Americans likely agree that individuals who have entered the country illegally and committed a crime should be deported, describing it as the largest mass deportation.
“A pragmatic way. I don’t think most Americans disagree with me to say those who have entered, those who have committed a crime, they should be out of the country. That would be the largest mass deportation,” he said.
While Ramaswamy did not confirm specific figures regarding the number of potential deportations, he stressed that those who entered the country illegally in recent months “have no place in this country.” He advocated for a “pragmatic” approach that prioritises the deportation of individuals who have committed crimes, a move he believes would result in a historically significant mass deportation.
Ramaswamy also called for a halt to all federal funding that supports illegal immigration, including aid to sanctuary cities. He believes this would encourage self-deportation. “Not an iota, not a cent of government spending should go to subsidize this,” he said. “Not to sanctuary cities, not to federal aid for people in this country illegally, and we’ll see a large number—by the millions—of self-deportations as well.”
Although acknowledging Trump’s commitment to respecting the dignity of Americans, Ramaswamy did not rule out the possibility of deporting individuals protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. “I say this as the child of legal immigrants to this country, the proud child of legal immigrants to the United States of America,” he explained. “If your first act of entering this country broke the law, that doesn’t allow you to remain in this country. You have no right to enter the United States.”
When asked about his own political future, including the possibility of serving in the Trump administration or pursuing the open Ohio Senate seat, Ramaswamy remained open to possibilities. “There are a couple of great options on the table,” he said. “I want to have the biggest possible impact on the country.”
