It is a mistake to count President Trump out.
After urging voters to imagine he was on the ballot, Trump faced a severe midterm rebuke, one of the biggest defeats of its kind. Still, the man who called for a fight after surviving an assassination attempt, and returned from political isolation to win the popular vote in 2024, is unlikely to fade away quietly.
Trump wants to be remembered as one of America’s greatest presidents—not only by his MAGA supporters, but by the country as a whole. One way to pursue that legacy would be to fix the immigration system, which has been broken for generations.
A president’s greatness is often measured by whether the country is better off in lasting ways. Franklin D. Roosevelt established a social safety net to help Americans weather economic crises. Ronald Reagan helped bring the Cold War to an end as the Soviet Union collapsed.
Finding a workable, balanced approach to immigration would be an achievement of similar importance.
In a recent “60 Minutes” interview, Trump acknowledged that his immigration policy had gone too far. He said his administration deserved credit for removing dangerous people, but that it had also deported people with good jobs whose main offense was entering the country illegally.
He has a point. Early in his second term, more than half of Americans approved of the administration’s efforts to secure the southern border and deport gang members and other people convicted of crimes. But as forceful ICE raids spread fear through immigrant communities and, eventually, led to violence, public opinion shifted. By the time Democrats won decisively in last week’s elections, polling averages showed Trump’s immigration approval rating more than 10 points underwater.
Most Americans, whether Republican or Democrat, support legal immigration. Many people in this country have roots elsewhere, and they respect those who follow the rules. At the same time, Americans were appalled as thousands crossed the southern border illegally each day during Joe Biden’s presidency. Allowing millions of people to enter without being properly vetted or documented was indefensible.
Trump’s promise to secure the border helped him win in 2024. But he appears to have treated that victory as a mandate to remove everyone living in the country illegally. That was not only impractical; it misjudged how Americans view immigration.
I warned earlier this year that the administration’s approach could cost Republicans the House in the midterms. That is where things now stand. Some observers see Trump’s decision to elevate Stephen Miller, reportedly a key architect of the deportation program, as a sign that the hard-line policy will continue. Maybe. But that conclusion may be premature.
It took Richard Nixon, a staunch anti-communist, to open relations with China. In a similar way, Stephen Miller, a firm opponent of illegal immigration, might help Trump find a way to repair the system. If the administration offered a fair and practical plan, Democrats could pay a political price for rejecting it.
The task is daunting, but there is a path forward.
First, Republicans and the White House should develop a system that continues to welcome talented people without disadvantaging American workers. Rather than relying on family sponsorship or the widely criticized diversity visa program, the country could adopt a merit-based system that gives priority to skills and qualifications, as Canada does. Trump proposed a version of this idea in 2019. It remains a sensible approach.
Second, people who are living in the country illegally, have established lives here and have committed no crime beyond entering unlawfully should have a way to obtain legal status. They could be registered as legal residents, with no path to citizenship, and be allowed to leave the shadows, work and pay taxes openly. That is not amnesty. It is a legal status that could attract support from Democrats and the broader public.
Third, securing the border is essential but not enough. Roughly half of undocumented immigrants entered legally and overstayed their visas. Congress should require employers to use E-Verify, the free federal service that checks whether workers are authorized to work. Many migrants come seeking jobs; if they cannot find work, they are more likely to return home. And if the country needs more seasonal labor, it should make more visas available.
Fourth, the government should remove benefits and incentives that encourage illegal immigration, including free health care and birthright citizenship. People who obtain legal status should be able to enroll their children in school and apply for health insurance. Those who choose not to seek legal status should not receive taxpayer-funded services. The Supreme Court narrowly rejected Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship by executive order, so Congress would need to change the law.
Finally, undocumented immigrants should not be counted in the census. Counting them can benefit states such as California and New York, whose policies may attract undocumented residents, by increasing their share of federal funding, congressional seats and Electoral College votes.
Any immigration plan will need a firm commitment to border security to gain public support. Trump has shown that stopping illegal crossings does not necessarily require a wall; it takes political resolve. Broader reform will demand more than that, including a sustained commitment to the country’s security and sovereignty.
Trump should put forward a revised, more balanced plan and challenge Democrats to oppose it. That could be the deal that finally moves immigration reform forward.
