Industry groups ranging from construction to agriculture are raising concerns with the Trump administration over its ongoing immigration crackdown, arguing it is undercutting President Donald Trump’s agenda and weakening the economy, according to multiple groups who spoke with CNN and sources close to the White House.
Worker shortages have been a years-long problem for multiple industries, but the recent abrupt push to end deportation protections for 1.3 million people who had been legally working in the US and the aggressive immigration enforcement push nationwide are exacerbating an already challenging issue, industry representatives say.
Those industry groups — which are generally supportive of other parts of Trump’s economic agenda — are taking their immigration concerns directly to the administration, including the departments of Homeland Security, Labor, and Agriculture, as well as the White House.
Within the administration, the tug between industry concerns and immigration enforcement has prompted internal disagreements over how to pursue other types of enforcement, like at worksites, according to three sources familiar with the ongoing debate. One source close to the White House called the back and forth and consistent influence of lobbying on decisions “a bit manic.”
