President Trump said he can work with Democrats on immigration after the midterms, but the White House vowed never to allow mass amnesty as Vice President JD Vance blasted the idea.
President Donald Trump told Fox News on election night he is open to working with Democrats on immigration, calling it a big deal and saying he likes getting things done. A White House official later told the Daily Caller the administration will never allow mass amnesty, and Vice President JD Vance warned that anyone pushing it is lying.
The comments landed as Republicans absorbed losses in both chambers of Congress and as Democrats have pressed hard against immigration enforcement. Trump spoke with hosts Martha MacCallum and Bret Baier during Fox News election night coverage on Tuesday. He framed cooperation as practical, not open-ended.
“I’m a person that likes getting things done, and there are things that we can work with. We can’t work on everything,” Trump said.
“But I can work with them on a lot of things. I mean, we can work with them on immigration. I think. Immigration is a big deal. I’ve always felt we should be able to work on immigration.”
Trump also made clear he still holds the veto pen. In remarks circulated on X, he said Democrats can send over 50 bills and he can stamp them vetoed with nothing they can do about it. That posture keeps any deal under his control.
After Trump’s interview drew attention, the Daily Caller asked the White House about amnesty. An official answered in writing and left no room for a broad legalization push.
“There has never been a stronger administration on immigration enforcement than the Trump Administration. Both the President and Vice President have delivered the most secure border in American history and under their leadership, ICE has shattered arrest records. The Administration will never allow for mass amnesty.”
A source familiar with internal discussions put it even shorter: amnesty is not on the table. The administration has pursued an aggressive deportation agenda since returning to office. That record is the backdrop for any talk of bipartisan bills.
Immigration has been central to Trump’s campaigns in 2016, 2020, and 2024. Voters still give Republicans an edge on the issue. NBC News exit polls showed 44 percent of voters preferred Republicans on handling immigration, compared with roughly 40 to 41 percent who favored Democrats.
On November 4, Vice President JD Vance posted his first public read of the midterm results. He said data analysts on the right had obsessed over the “composition” of the electorate and that Florida’s electorate was nine points more Republican than Democrat, only a couple of points worse than 2024. A pollster had told him the night before they would lose the generic ballot by 13 points.
Vance listed the top reasons Trump 2024 voters said they might come back: end the war, focus on cost of living and inflation, put America First, and change the relationship with Israel. Those four answers, he wrote, accounted for nearly all the responses. He then turned to what he expects next.
“In the next few months, there’s going to be a lot of gaslighting. Expect to hear any number of establishment politicians say the solution to our woes is amnesty. I’m open to the idea that we should change enforcement, by focusing more on businesses that hire illegal labor, for instance. But anyone pushing amnesty is lying to you.”
Vance said many spent Monday attacking Rachel Campos Duffy for calling for a diplomatic resolution, and that her political advice was sound. He closed by urging the party to take voter anger and get back to the work of saving the country. The official @VP account later posted Trump’s reaction to the statement: “I thought it was good.”
Asked Wednesday at the White House ballroom construction site about Vance’s assessment, Trump said it “was fine. I thought it was good.” He did not address the separate immigration and amnesty portion of the post in the remarks captured there. On the conflict and gas prices, Trump said the action drove gasoline up a little short term but that long term it was the only answer because Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.
The Democratic National Committee approved two resolutions in August that called for major rollbacks of immigration enforcement. One urged Congress to abolish ICE and phase out the immigration detention system. The resolutions also called for restricting Department of Homeland Security funding unless the agency ends workplace raids, mass arrests, and immigration actions near schools and places of worship, and for ending contracts with private immigration detention companies.
That is the other side of any “work with them” conversation. Democrats have spent political capital attacking the very tools the Trump administration has used to secure the border and raise ICE arrests. Trump’s veto threat and the White House amnesty ban sit directly against that record.
Several House Republicans who backed a sweeping immigration bill known as the Dignity Act also lost their seats. The measure was pitched to curb illegal immigration, overhaul the asylum system, and provide legal status for long-term illegal immigrants. Original co-sponsors who lost included Reps. David Valadao of California, Mike Lawler of New York, and Gabe Evans of Colorado. Later co-sponsors Monica De La Cruz of Texas and Jen Kiggans of Virginia also lost. Florida Rep. Maria Salazar, the bill’s sponsor, retained her seat.
Those results give Republicans a concrete reminder of the political cost of measures that pair enforcement language with pathways to legal status. Vance’s post framed amnesty talk as gaslighting after voters punished the party over the war, prices, and America First priorities. Trump’s own words keep the door open to limited deals while the White House and the vice president close it on mass amnesty.
Trump’s interview and the follow-up statements form a single message: he will talk, he will work where he can, and he will not surrender enforcement. He told Fox he has always felt the parties should be able to work on immigration. He also reminded Democrats he can reject bill after bill.
Eric Daugherty posted the Trump remarks on X the same day, highlighting the veto line and the immigration comments and adding that the American people do not want amnesty. The White House official’s written reply and the internal source both matched that bottom line. Vance went further, calling amnesty a lie and pointing enforcement energy at businesses that hire illegal labor instead.
A new Congress takes office in January. Democrats will arrive with resolutions on the books that target ICE, detention, and core enforcement tools. Republicans return with losses in both chambers and a White House that has already said mass amnesty is off the table. Trump has said he wants results. The test will be whether any bill that reaches his desk actually strengthens the border he and Vance claim is the most secure in American history, or whether it becomes one more measure he stamps with a veto.
Voters still rate Republicans stronger on immigration. The administration says the border is secure and ICE arrests are at record levels. Mass amnesty would erase that leverage. Trump can talk deals. He does not have to sign one that lets the other side win the argument.
