Florida Republican: Trump should seek to ‘normalize’ longtime US immigrants

Administration Florida Republican: Trump should seek to ‘normalize’ longtime US immigrants Comments: by Ashleigh Fields - 07/05/26 5:05 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Ashleigh Fields - 07/05/26 5:05 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Florida Rep. Carlos Giménez (R) on Sunday said President Trump should seek to “normalize” longtime U.S. immigrants as his administration grapples with the fallout of mass deportation efforts.

“I don’t think anybody wants criminals to be here. I don’t think anybody wants gang members to be here. I think that people with active deportation orders, yeah, OK. But those that have been here for years, DACA is a great example of that, OK? And those that have been here for years, that have been working, are part of the community, that are part of the economy, we need to find a way to normalize them,” the Florida Republican said during a Sunday appearance on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is a U.S. immigration policy established in 2012 that protects from deportation eligible immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally after being brought over into the country as children.

“Doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re going to be citizens at the end of the day, but to normalize them, so they can come out of the shadows, pay taxes, and then, you know, live their life without having, you know, fear of somebody coming up and, and taking them away after 20-something years and separating from their children that they’ve had during that time, and so we have to find a solution,” Giménez added.

DACA recipients are granted lawful status and work authorization, both of which must be renewed every two years.

They are one example of immigrants here in the U.S. who are facing uncertainty about the long-term future of their legal status as residents in the country as the Trump administration increases removal efforts for non-citizens nationwide.

Giménez is urging Democrats and Republicans to work together to provide a solution for long term residents who would like to continue to stay in the U.S.

“I think that the solution could be bipartisan, but it also seems, you know, when the Democrats were in control, it wasn’t, it didn’t happen. When we were in control, it didn’t happen. It’s got to happen,” Giménez said.

“We’ve got to stop kicking this can down the road. We got to have the debate. Everything, you know, whatever comes out of it, I’m sure, you know, the Democrats won’t like 100 percent of it, the Republicans won’t like 100 percent of it. And if that’s the case, if that’s the final solution, it’s probably the good solution,” he added.

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