Donald Trump Friend Questioned at Airport: 'Never Been Treated Like That'

Donald Trump has told a radio host how one of his friends was given a hard time coming into the United States, contrasting the experience with illegal immigrants who seemingly cross the U.S.-Mexico border at will.

The former president told Philadelphia-based Rich Zeoli that an unidentified friend of his was given the third degree, "brought to a room" and had "never been treated like that." He added: "if you come through the southern border, nobody's checking you."

The presumptive Republican nominee in November's presidential election has made illegal immigration a cornerstone of his current campaign, pledging to literally and figuratively build on the southern border wall and associated policies from his first term.

Numbers of illegal migrant encounters at the southern border have increased annually under the Biden administration, exceeding 2.4 million during the 2023 fiscal year, up from roughly 1.7 million in 2021, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

Polls have shown that President Joe Biden's mental acuity and immigration policies are issues most important to prospective Republican voters, viewed as even more pressing than inflation and the cost of living.

The president and his party, however, have laid blame on Republicans in the House and Senate for not passing any comprehensive immigration reforms—with some accusing the GOP of not wanting to address the issue because it's politically expedient for the former president and his campaign.

Trump had been asked Monday by Zeoli about "able-bodied Chinese men walking over the border illegally" and how they are purportedly being released into U.S. streets without charges or federal government oversight.

"So, a friend of mine came into the country—he flew in [on] an airline—he said he has never been treated like that," Trump told Zeoli. "He said they're giving him the third degree. They're, you know, checking him for everything. I think he said they brought him to a room—the whole thing.

"And yet, if you come by the millions, if you come through the southern border, nobody's checking you. You just walk right through. You know, coming into the country on an airliner, especially if you're first class, they give you the third degree. But, you know, if somebody wants to walk right into our country, as millions and millions of people are doing, totally unchecked and totally unvetted, it's ridiculous. It's really horrible what's happening. Our country is not the same country anymore."

It's unknown whether Trump was speaking about a Chinese individual he knows, or told the story based on general immigration policies.

Newsweek reached out to the Trump campaign via email for comment.

Chinese nationals have more recently drawn heavier attention from U.S. lawmakers and intelligence agencies. Lawmakers have encouraged the government to revamp a visa policy that has legally permitted nationals from the People's Republic of China (PRC) to enter Guam through the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).

Last month, federal authorities confirmed that a Chinese man illegally present in the U.S. drove onto a domestic Marine base without authorization. He was taken into custody and processed.

Trump said Biden is "destroying" the country with his various policies, making former President Jimmy Carter look "brilliant by comparison."

Biden's open-border policies are opening the door for migrants from South America, Asia and Africa to enter the U.S. with ease, said the ex-president, warning that "they're living in a town near you, maybe your town."

Trump also touted building "571 miles of wall" with the goal of building "another 200" if reelected.

However, as noted by Politifact and figures released by CBP in the final weeks of Trump's first term, the Trump administration built 458 total miles of primary and secondary border barriers to replace older, less reinforced barriers formerly in their spots. That does not account for "new" construction.

The administration actually built 52 miles of new primary border barriers where no previous barriers existed.

There were approximately 654 miles of primary barriers and 37 miles of secondary barriers along the 2,000-plus mile southern border before Trump ever took office. By January 2021, that number increased to 706 miles of primary barriers and 70 miles of secondary barriers.

"We had the best border in the history of our country," Trump said. "And now we have the worst border in the history of the world. There's never been a country with a border like this where millions of people are flowing in. And many of these people are really bad people.

"I mean, again, they're coming from prisons and mental institutions, and a lot of terrorists are coming into our country. We're gonna be paying a big price. We're gonna have the largest deportation in the history of our country."

An Associated Press/NORC poll released at the beginning of this month found that 68 percent of adults aged 18 and over across the U.S. disapprove of Biden's immigration policy, versus just 31 percent who approve. The president's support from Democratic constituents on the issue is just 56 percent.

A newer poll of 1,500 eligible voters conducted on April 11 and exclusively for Newsweek found that just 20 percent of respondents think the U.S. has "control over its borders," down from 34 percent in August 2023.