Former MSNBC host Joy Reid made strong claims about President Donald Trump’s immigration plans during a recent episode of her podcast. Reid suggested that Trump wants to deport immigrants and then bring them back to work in poor conditions.
Reid’s comments came after she listened to Trump’s recent interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box. During that interview, Trump talked about farm workers and how important they are to American agriculture. He said that people from cities, especially those living in inner cities, do not typically work on farms.
During her podcast, Reid claimed that Trump’s plan involves deporting what she called “Brown people” and then bringing them back to work as “the perfect nearly slave labor.” She said these workers would be ideal because “they never complain” and “don’t get a bad back.” Reid was responding to Trump’s comments about how these farm workers are hard to replace and naturally suited for agricultural work.
White House fires back with strong response
The White House did not stay quiet about Reid’s accusations. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson gave a sharp response to Fox News Digital. She said there was a good reason Reid’s show got canceled, calling her takes “too dumb even for ‘MSDNC.'”
Jackson defended Trump’s position on immigration and workers. She said Trump is committed to making sure American businesses have legal workers who get fair pay and proper protection. The spokeswoman pointed out that illegal employment can lead to trafficking and exploitation of workers.
Jackson also turned the criticism back on Reid and the Democratic Party. She said they are the ones who are out of touch because they claim to need illegal workers for cheap labor. Jackson mentioned a recent ICE raid at a marijuana facility that rescued 14 children from possible labor exploitation as an example of the problems with current policies, particularly as fake ICE agents have been arrested across multiple states for threatening and detaining immigrants.
Trump had suggested during his CNBC interview that farmers might need a “temporary pass” system. This would help farmers and the hospitality industry avoid problems during ICE enforcement operations, as the agency prepares to become the biggest police force in the U.S. with 10,000 new agents. Trump explained that farm work is very physical and that most people from cities are not willing or able to do this type of work. He shared a conversation where someone told him that if farm workers get a bad back, “they die” because they cannot afford to stop working.
Reid interpreted Trump’s comments differently. She saw them as proof that deportations are only temporary and that Trump plans to bring workers back to exploit them. She claimed that Trump and his team, including Stephen Miller, Kristi Noem, and Tom Homan, who has proposed controversial plans to “deputize” every U.S. citizen to help find missing migrant children, are staging deportations for show while planning to bring workers back later.
The exchange shows the deep divide in how different sides view immigration policy. While Trump and his supporters say they want to protect American workers and ensure legal immigration, critics like Reid see the policies as targeting people based on race and setting up systems for exploitation.
